2007 Honda Accord Lx Special Edition on 2040-cars

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Total auto recalls already on record pace in 2014

If you've noticed that there have been more recalls than usual this year, you may be on to something. According to a report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the US market is on pace to break a record for recalls. In 2013, 22 million cars were recalled. We're only a third of the way through 2014, though, and we've already halved that figure, with 11 million units recalled. That's wild.
Considering the past few months, it shouldn't be a surprise that General Motors is leading the charge, with six million of the 11 million units recalled coming from one of the General's four brands. Between truck recalls, CUV recalls and the ignition switch recall, 2014 hasn't been a great year for GM.
Other recall leaders include Nissan (one million Sentra and Altima sedans), Honda (900,000 Odyssey minivans), Toyota (over one million units in a few recalls), Volkswagen (150,000 Passat sedans), Chrysler (644,000 Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee SUVs) and most recently, Ford (434,000 units, the bulk of which were early Ford Escape CUVs). So while it's been a bad year for GM so far, its competitors aren't doing too well, either.

Honda to offer $184k street legal version of MotoGP racer [w/videos]

Fancy yourself a motorcycle racing talent on par with MotoGP factory riders like Dani Pedrosa and Marc Marquez? Have $184,000 to spend on a bike to prove it? Then get an order in on the Honda RC213V-S when the Japanese motorcycle maker begins taking global reservations on July 13. RC213V-S is designed to be the closest thing possible to legally riding Honda's two-time championship winning RC213V MotoGP racer on the street. Outside of the US, buyers can even spec an optional kit to make the bike track-only but raise the performance even higher. All versions use a 1.0-liter V4 and six-speed gearbox making 157 horsepower and 75 pound-feet of torque or over 212 hp and 87 lb-ft with the tuning package. That's not as much power as the Kawasaki Ninja H2R, but the Honda is a lightweight at 375 pounds for the street version or 353 lbs with the kit. In comparison, the factory racing example weighs just 348 lbs and produces over 235 hp. Being rideable on the road means losing some of the race bike's high-tech features, though. For maintenance reasons, the engine now uses coil-sprung valves, rather than the pneumatic units in MotoGP, and the seamless-shift transmission is replaced with a traditional one. Also there's some added equipment for legal reasons like lights, mirrors, and a muffler, plus useful things like a speedometer and starter. Honda has put out a few videos showing Marquez riding an RC213V-S and one opening up on track. Both are embedded below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. HONDA TO LAUNCH RC213V-S BY TURNING RC213V COMPETING IN MOTOGP RACES INTO A MODEL FOR PUBLIC ROAD RIDING 11/06/15 The RC213V is a machine exclusively for racing that has won consecutive championships in the MotoGP class of the FIM Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix (hereinafter called "MotoGP") in 2013 and 2014. Honda has made changes to some of the specifications of the RC213V, and will now introduce this as the RC213V-S. It is possible to ride the RC213V-S on public roads, and Honda will start accepting order entry for this new model on July 13, 2015. In 1954, Honda declared its intention of participating in the Isle of Man TT races, which were a part of the Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix at the time.

Fire up your 3D printer! Honda releases data for several of its past concepts [w/video]

Futurists have been treating 3D printing like it is the second coming of the Industrial Revolution for years. Everyone will have a 3D printer in their garage and be able make practically anything at home before you know it, right? Well... not quite.
While we can imagine a piece of trim breaking on our car and being able to download the file to print a new one at home, the reality is that 3D printing is still in its earliest stages as a consumer device. Still, Honda is capitalizing on the technology by allowing people to make models of its concept cars at home.
The Honda 3D Design Archive currently consists of five models based on the Fuya-Jo, FSR, Kiwami, Puyo, and NSX concepts. The printer files can be downloaded from the web and carry Creative Commons 4.0 licenses, which allow them to be freely shared. Honda promises that more files will be added to the archive soon.