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No S660 for US, but Honda wants sporty cars

Honda, best known lately for being a mainstream player rather than the brand that brought us the CRX Si, NSX, Integra Type-R, and S2000, apparently wants to builds sporty cars for the US again. With that in mind (or not), Honda has ruled out bringing the tiny, sporty S660 roadster across the Pacific. "I wouldn't put my chips on [the S660]," American Honda Executive Vice President John Mendel told Automotive News. At nearly 11.1 feet long, the S660 slots in between the 12.8-foot Mazda MX-5 Miata and the 8.8-foot Smart ForTwo. Yet Mendel says the tiny two-seater wouldn't work here. "When the practicalities of the market come in, and the car only so big, that might not be the best car for the US market," Mendel said. "It might be better for India or China or somewhere else." Honda is considering its options here in the US, though. As AN reports, after his takeover earlier this year, new CEO Takahiro Hachigo promised more sporting models, like the new, US-bound, 300-horsepower Civic Type R. And while it's no secret that Honda has filed patent drawings for a mid-engine model, Mendel offered little to indicate that it'd become a reality. Calling the project from Honda's Silicon Valley research and design facility a "design study," Mendel wouldn't answer AN when it asked whether this new model was successor to the S2000 or a more attainable, lower-powered NSX. He did, however, say his company was getting pressure from dealers over the lack of verve in the company's lineup. "They want anything in the sports car world," Mendel told AN. "They're going, 'Gimme a sports car.' They want a retractable hardtop; they want a high-horsepower $20,000 sports car. Because that's the nature of what they do." There you are, Honda. Your dealers want it, which means your consumers are probably are asking for it, and your CEO wants it, too. Make something happen.

Ford driving Alaskan maniac rams toddler-carrying SUV

A couple from Anchorage had a frightening traffic encounter when they were followed and repeatedly rammed by a stranger in a pickup truck. Grace Bernert, her boyfriend, and his two-year-old daughter were returning home from a trip to downtown Anchorage when they noticed a blue, 2001 Ford F-150 following closely behind them. "The guy was so close, we couldn't see his headlights," Bernert told KTVA. Bernert, who was riding shotgun, pulled out her phone to record the truck when it struck the rear end of their Acura SUV. That's when she called 911. Bernert's boyfriend tried to lose the F-150 in the Sullivan Arena parking lot, then drove to a local Ford dealer's parking lot where he drove through a maze of new Ford pickups in an attempt to shake their assailant. "We started doing circles around the brand new Fords because we thought the truck wouldn't be able to turn as fast as we would," said Bernert. "We were right, but the guy didn't care. He just kept hitting the new fords and backing up, coming after us." The truck continued to follow them, ramming the Acura again and again. Bernert estimates that F-150 driver struck their SUV between five and seven times, and hit numerous new trucks in the dealership parking lot. Eventually, they ducked into a nearby neighborhood where they managed to lose the F-150 and called 911. Bernert told KTVA that she believes they were targeted but doesn't know why. "The guy was either some random sick person who didn't care, or somebody who knew us and didn't care there was a kid in the car," she said. Anchorage Police arrived shortly after the couple escaped the F-150 and filed a report about the incident. They are currently investigating. Recent Video:

Acura prices hand-built TLX PMC Edition at $50,945

Acura unveiled the 2020 TLX PMC Edition sedan at this year's New York Auto Show along with the MDX PMC Edition Prototype. Both models adopt the same hand-finished build processes employed at Honda's Performance Manufacturing Center to create the Acura NSX. In the case of the sedan, that means a body-in-white pulled off the line at Honda's Marysville plant so that PMC technicians can install the interior, drivetrain, suspension, wiring harnesses, and electronics. After that, the TLX PMC undergoes the same quality control checks conducted on the NSX, including a dyno run and water leak test. The price: $50,945, which includes $1,995 for handling and destination. In addition to the craftsmanship, the sedan combines two options that normally cannot be combined, the A-Spec and Advance Packages. They install the 290-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 and Super Handling All-Wheel Drive, the A-Spec's stiffer dampers and quicker steering ratio, plus sharper exterior components like the restyled bumper, larger exhaust tips, and gloss black roof panel. Comfort features include heated and ventilated front sport seats, leather and Alcantara seating, black leather steering wheel, black headliner, surround-view camera, heated rear seats, and Acura's 10-speaker ELS Studio audio system. Cosmetic go-fast changes are seen in the red instrument cluster and red accent lighting. The whole package gets drenched in Valencia Red Pearl paint formerly exclusive to the NSX but making one special appearance here, the crimson infused with mica, metal flake and "nano pigments" for keener color. Black, 10-spoke, 19-inch wheels anchor the sedan to the road. The U.S. will see just 360 examples of the TLX PMC, each one numbered with a plaque on the dash. Deliveries to dealers begin this month — each sedan transported in a single-car carrier. The entire production run is scheduled to take six months, after which we're told Acura will begin working on the MDX PMC.