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New Odyssey ads feature Honda Vac, star power

Honda has released a string of new ads highlighting its refreshed, 2014 Odyssey minivan. While the Japanese brand hasn't started bragging about attaining the first Top Safety Pick+ for minivans, it's all too happy to brag about another first - the world's first van with a built-in vacuum cleaner.
In three spots, anthropomorphic children's rubbish discusses the merits of the new minivan, only to be sucked up by the built-in vacuum, which is only available in the top-end Touring Elite model. There's also quite a bit of star power floating around for those that watch a lot of TV. Neil Patrick Harris from Doogie Howser, MD and How I Met Your Mother voices a character in one of the spots, while Rainn Wilson from The Office stars in another. Take a look below for all three ads from Honda.

First production HondaJet nearly completed

We may mention Honda around here mostly for its cars, but the Japanese industrial giant makes a whole lot more than that. The company builds motorcycles, ATVs, marine engines, power equipment and - soon enough - jet airplanes.
Honda has been working on its first private jet since before 2006, and after a good eight years or so of prototype testing, began building its first production version a bit over a year ago. And now it's almost ready for delivery.
The first production HondaJet is nearing completion and has had its GE Honda HF120 jet engines installed, after which it will conduct initial ground tests before taking its first flight this summer. The jet is painted in a new shade of pearl green with a gold stripe, added to the color catalog alongside the silver, red, yellow and blue options.

Honda adopts English as its official language in meetings worldwide

Japanese was clearly the language of operation while we visited Honda's global headquarters in Tokyo last week, as well as its newest factory and principal test track. Chief executive Takanobu Ito (pictured above) spoke to us through an interpreter. But according to the latest reports, the Japanese language is being phased out at Honda in favor of English.
This according to Bloomberg, which points out that tire manufacturer Bridgestone and rival automaker Nissan have implemented similar measures, as have Japanese retail giants Fast Retailing Co. and Rakuten Inc. Honda's shift from Japanese to English comes as part of a shift in focus from central decision-making to a more regional model, but while English has clearly emerged as the international language of business, it's no coincidence that it's also the dominant language here in America. Bloomberg points out that over the 12-month period that ended this past March, North America accounted for a massive 47 percent of Honda's revenues worldwide.