Near Mint, Unmodified, Unmolestet 2005 New Formula Red S2000, Oem Hardtop. on 2040-cars

Auto blog

NSX, S660, and a 4-motor CR-Z EV that goes like hell

AutoblogGreen Editor-in-Chief Sebastian Blanco was my road dog while visiting Honda's R&D center in Tochigi. Over the course of a long day of briefings, driving demonstrations, and a variety of strange-flavored candies, we saw quite a lot of what the company is planning for the next generation and beyond. Of course, Sebastian and I see the world through very different eyes. So, while he was busy getting details about the FCV Clarity successor, and asking tough questions about electrification (in other words, the important stuff), I was fixating on a tiny, two-seat sports car that will never come to America. Oh, there was an NSX, too. Honda's pre-Tokyo Motor Show meeting really did have plenty to offer for all kinds of auto enthusiasts, be they focused on fast driving or environmentally friendly powertrains. Seb's attendance let me focus on the stuff that's great for the former, while he wrote up high points of the latter. View 15 Photos S660 I joke about salivating over the S660, but honestly I was at least as excited to take a few laps in Honda's Beat encore, as I was to sample the Acura supercar. Conditions for the test drive weren't ideal, however. Two laps of a four-kilometer banked oval is not exactly nirvana for a 1,800-pound, 63-horsepower roadster. Still, I folded all six feet and five inches of my body behind the tiny wheel determined to wring it out. The immersion of the driving experience was enough to make it feel fast, at least. I shifted up just before redline in first gear with the last quarter of the pit lane rollout lane still in front of me. The 658cc inline-three buzzed like a mad thing behind my ear, vastly more stirring than you'd expect while traveling about 30 miles per hour. The S660 is limited to just around 87 mph, but the immersion of the driving experience (note: I was over the windscreen from the forehead up) was enough to make it feel fast, at least. Even after just a few laps, and precious little steering, I could tell that everything I grew up loving about Honda was in play here. The six-speed manual offered tight, quick throws, the engine seemed happiest over 5,000 rpm, and the car moved over the earth with direct action and a feeling of lightness. Sure proof that you don't need high performance – the S600 runs to 60 mph in about 13 seconds – to build a driver's car. I could have used 200 miles more, and some mountain roads, to really enjoy the roadster (though I would have wanted a hat).

Honda sketches boxy crossover concept for Shanghai

In America we may be gearing up for the New York Auto Show, but elsewhere in the world there are other shows on the horizon. Like the Shanghai Motor Show, which will kick off later in April. That's where Honda plans to unveil a new crossover concept. The Japanese automaker isn't saying much about what's new with this concept, except to say that it's been designed specifically for the Chinese market. From this teaser image we can already see that the concept looks decidedly more straight-edged and boxy than the Pilot and CR-V we get over here, striking a form that almost begins to resemble a Kia Soul, but not so much that we'd characterize it at this early stage as a potential successor to the Element. We'll just have to sit tight to find out more, but with the doors in Shanghai set to open to the press on April 20, it won't be too long now. Honda to Exhibit World Premiere of All-new Concept Model at the Auto Shanghai 2015 - Overview of Honda Exhibit - BEIJING, China, March 31, 2015 – Honda Motor (China) Investment Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned Honda subsidiary in China, today announced plans to exhibit the world premiere of an all-new concept model as well as other all-new Honda models at Auto Shanghai 2015 (The 16th International Automobile & Manufacturing Technology Exhibition, press days: April 20-21, 2015, public days: April 22-29, 2015). ?Overview of Honda exhibit Jointly with Guangqi Honda Automobile Co., Ltd. and Dongfeng Honda Automobile Co., Ltd., Honda will exhibit the world premiere of a concept model for a new SUV exclusively developed for the Chinese market. Other models on display will include the all-new City, which underwent a full model change, and the new CR-V equipped with a completely new powertrain. ?A new SUV concept model (world premiere) Design sketch Design sketch ?City (China premiere) ?CR-V (China premiere) ?F1 machine - McLaren-Honda MP4-30 ?GL1800C, NC750S ?Accord Hybrid (the U.S. model) ?Odyssey special-needs vehicle (equipped with side lift-up sheet)

Honda Ridgeline to take two-year dirt nap before resurrection

Three years ago, Honda said there would be no new-generation Honda Ridgeline coming in 2011. In late 2011, when there was still no word on a replacement for the little truck that's been carrying on pretty much the same since 2006, within the space of a month both Honda's US truck planner and the CEO of American Honda said the Ridgeline would continue and that it was an integral part of the lineup.
But that doesn't mean it can't take a two-year timeout. A report in Ward's Auto says that the Lincoln, AL plant that builds the Ridgeline will cease its production in September, 2014 and a new one won't arrive until 2016. That's a walk-back from when the plan was to have the current truck run until a week before the next-generation truck went into production. Even so, Honda still says the Ridgeline isn't going away forever, a company spokesman telling Ward's, "Ridgeline continues to be an important part of our lineup."
2016 is a long way away, though, and we all know how quickly a product line put into a coma can end up suffering fatal consequences. Even though we keep talking about the Ridgeline, perhaps what Honda is actually saying is that the small pickup market is important to them, and they're working on a way to take better advantage of it than the Ridgeline was doing. We'll find out one way or the other in three years.