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Honda fielding 11 entrants at Pikes Peak, including 532-hp Odyssey

Is it possible for a minivan to be more exciting than an Acura NSX? Well, Honda is trying to find out by entering a 532-horsepower Odyssey into the 2013 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with IndyCar racer Simon Pagenaud behind the wheel.
Starting with a stock Odyssey, Honda dropped in a turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 producing an estimated 532 hp and 460 pound-feet of torque as well as racing suspension, tires and brakes and one of the biggest roll cages you're likely to ever see. If this van looks familiar to you, you aren't alone - it's a veteran of the Tire Rack One Lap of America.
In addition to this super minivan, Honda will also be entering a first-gen NSX, CR-Z hybrid, Fit EV and Acura TL into the competition as well as five motorcycles and an all-terrain vehicle. Scroll down for the full details on Honda's comprehensive assault on Pikes Peak.

2016 Honda Civic revealed in patent drawings

Thanks to the sleuths at CivicX.com, we've now got our first glimpse at the production 2016 Honda Civic. The forum found these patent drawings from Honda, showing the next-generation Civic in both coupe and sedan body styles, and we're happy to report that the car seen here is very, very close to the concept we saw in New York earlier this month. Shortly after Honda debuted the Civic Coupe concept at the New York Auto Show, we spoke to the car's lead designer, Guy Melville-Brown, about how this bold two-door would transform into a production model. He told us the Civic should be "a halo product for Honda," and that the concept showed "elements of what we can expect from the production car." The showcar is "what a true Honda Civic should be," Melville-Brown said. Now that we see these patent drawings, a lot of that makes sense. Sure, it's all been toned down for production spec (as expected), but a lot of the bolder design cues are still present. We like the angular shape of the headlamps and front fascia, and we're glad the wraparound taillamps were left alone (on the coupe, anyway – the sedan uses a slightly different design). See all of the patent drawings in the slideshow above, and scroll down for photos and video of the showcar from New York. CivicX.com has more information, including side-by-side comparisons between the patent pictures and the bright green concept. Related Video:

Honda Project 2&4 is our kind of sidecar sideshow [w/video]

Honda makes cars and Honda makes bikes. It makes a whole lot of other things, too, but those are the two areas of expertise that have given rise to the thoroughly enticing Project 2&4 concept. It's one of the smallest vehicles unveiled here at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, but also among the most enticing. The result of a global in-house design competition, Project 2&4 was envisioned by the company's motorcycle studio in Asaka and brought to fruition with help from the automotive studio in Wako. It's powered by the 1.0-liter V4 engine Honda developed for MotoGP competition, driving 212 horsepower and 87 pound-feet of torque through a six-speed, dual-clutch transmission. With less than 900 pounds to motivate, that adds up to blistering performance of the kind we'd give most anything to experience firsthand. The 14,000-rpm redline would be enough to make our heart sing all on its own, but the novelty of Project 2&4 is its design. As you can see, it hands the driver's seat and controls off the side, with room for a hold-on-for-dear-life passenger seat on the other side. The neo-retro styling is inspired by the company's RA272 grand prix racer from the Sixties, but gives up on the center driving position for an altogether more original configuration. The result looks ready to take on the likes of the Ariel Atom and BAC Mono... to say nothing of the curbs of Suzuka and Fuji. If only Honda were (able) to put it into production.