2004 Honda Odyssey Ex Mini Passenger Van 5-door 3.5l on 2040-cars

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Honda's next-gen fuel cell concept will debut in LA, along with more Civic updates

Honda is bringing a new concept to the this month's Los Angeles Auto Show called the FCEV Concept. "FCEV" stands for something, and no, it's not "funky chicken earns victory" or other such nonsense - it's short for fuel-cell electric vehicle, a market that Honda has played in, most recently, with its hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity.
The FCEV is nothing more than a styling exercise (click above to enlarge the sketch) for an eventual production fuel-cell vehicle set to hit US and Japanese dealers in 2015 (sorry Europe, you're stuck waiting). It's not heading to LA to tell us anything about the wider application of the technology used in the FCX Clarity, so fans of hydrogen power shouldn't get too excited. Still, the news that Honda is still pondering a wider-spread for its fuel-cell technology is quite exciting.
"The Honda FCEV Concept demonstrates the company's vision for the future of personal mobility and our commitment to developing advanced alternative fuel vehicles. As we work toward the introduction of our next-generation fuel-cell vehicle in 2015, our long-term experience with fuel-cell technologies will help us pave a way towards a zero-emissions future," said Mike Accavitti, senior vice president of American Honda.

Consumer Reports explains its disdain for infotainment

One of the perks of reviewing all manner of cars and trucks is that we're exposed to all the different infotainment systems. Whether Cadillac's CUE, Chrysler's UConnect, BMW's iDrive or MyFord Touch, we sample each and every infotainment system on the market.
Not surprisingly, some are better than others. It seems consumers have come to a similar consensus, with Consumer Reports claiming that Ford and Lincoln, Cadillac and Honda offer the worst user infotainment experiences. Not surprisingly, you won't find much argument among the Autoblog staff.
Take a look below to see just what it is about the latest batch of infotainment systems that grinds CR's gears. After that, scroll down into Comments and let us know if you agree with the mag's views.

McLaren confirms Alonso, keeps Button

Every year a big game of musical chairs breaks out in the Formula One paddock, as some drivers try to hold on to their seats, some try to grab new ones and others are left without a seat for the following season. McLaren has been extremely reluctant to announce who would be sitting in its carbon-fiber seats next season, but it's finally spilled the beans. McLaren was strongly rumored to have hired Fernando Alonso for next season, speculation over which was all but confirmed when the two-time world champion announced his departure from Ferrari. He's now been officially confirmed to be returning to Woking for next season. But the bigger question over who would be his wingman has now been answered as well, as the team has decided to keep Jenson Button on board for at least one more season. Long regarded as a top driver, Button started out with Williams back in 2000, then spent a couple of seasons in Enstone with Renault before switching to Honda in 2003, finally winning the championship in 2009 when the team went out on its own as Brawn GP (now Mercedes). He switched to McLaren in 2010 to form a dream team with Lewis Hamilton (who in turn left for Mercedes last year), but though Jenson has been unable to rack up another world title, he's remained a favorite especially of Honda's, which returns to F1 next season to rekindle its once-dominant engine-supply partnership with McLaren. Alonso, meanwhile, made his grand prix debut with Minardi (now Toro Rosso) just one year after Button, then switched to Renault first as a test driver and then got the race seat, winning back-to-back world championships in 2005 and 2006. He subsequently spent one tumultuous season alongside Hamilton at McLaren before going back to Renault and then to Ferrari, which which he spent five years, scoring eleven checkered flags to finish in second place in the standings, three times. Alonso's signing and Button's retention spell bad news for Kevin Magnussen, the young Danish driver who got his start with McLaren earlier this season after winning the Formula Renault 3.5 Series title last year. With all the other seats already spoken for, Magnussen was left with no choice but to accept a test-driver role with McLaren in the hope that he might be promoted back again in the future. McLaren-Honda prepares for 2015: laying the foundations for future domination McLaren-Honda is delighted to announce its new driver line-up for 2015: Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button.