2008 Honda Civic Lx Sedan 4-door 1.8l on 2040-cars

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Five signs Honda cares about enthusiasts, again

It's a great time to be an enthusiast. From high-horsepower Hellcats to the purist BRZ, engaging automobiles are found in nearly every segment of the market. Everyone wants to join the performance parade. Everyone it seemed, but Honda. The company that built some of Formula One's most successful engines, helped launch the tuner market and gave the world a seminal supercar, has watched competitors of all stripes surge by it for the hearts, minds and dollars of enthusiasts. Until now. Honda put the rest of the auto world on notice at the New York Auto Show, revealing a jaw-dropping Civic concept, confirming the Type R will come to the United States and even adding a hatchback to the 2016 Civic line. Throw in the Acura NSX and much-improved ILX for Honda's luxury sibling, and it's undeniable the company is regaining its swagger. Once again, Honda is serious about performance, and here's five reasons why enthusiasts should believe. The Honda Civic Concept Looks Great We're psyched about the Civic concept, which was a surprise reveal earlier this month at the New York Auto Show. Clad in bright neon green, the concept edged out the Lincoln Continental for first place in our Editors' Choice awards at the show. As Editor-in-Chief Sharon Carty put it, "The color hurts so good." Yes, the green is blinding, but you don't have to squint to see the 10th generation of the Civic. Honda's concepts are the real deal, and this is the car (mostly) that will launch this fall. It's attractive, with a long hood, curvaceous sides and a simple but sporty grille. The powertrain lineup will include a 1.5-liter VTEC turbo four-cylinder paired with a six-speed manual, which should be a treat for enthusiasts. With its fresh looks and intriguing mechanicals, the concept previews an everyday driver you can get excited about. Obviously, we are. The Hatchback Returns Yep, the Civic is getting a five-door hatch in the United States. It's been a while. Honda last offered a Civic hatch for a brief time in the mid-2000s, and only as the lower-volume Si model. The new hatch will be produced at Honda's factory in the United Kingdom and imported to the United States. That's a win-win for Honda: it's using excess capacity in the UK to satiate a niche market for US buyers. The annual hatch production is reportedly expected to be 30,000 to 40,000 units, which is a drop in the bucket for the Civic lineup and its massive though declining sales.

Honda Accord, Civic are America's most stolen cars

The National Insurance Crime Bureau has released its latest Hot Wheels study on the most popular stolen cars and trucks for 2012. The study has changed a bit from past years, with the new findings listing only the make and model of each vehicle, while taking into account all model years in its totals. Previous iterations only focused on the most stolen vehicles of a particular model year, with that make and model not appearing anywhere else on the list so as not to appear to call out a particular car. Confusing, eh? Said another way, in previous studies, if the three most stolen vehicles were the 2006, 2007 and 2008 Belchfire Turbo from Fictitious Motors, only the model year with the highest number of thefts would make the list.
The new study takes all model years into consideration while breaking down the number of vehicles stolen per model year in a full, in-depth report. Separately, the NICB is also listing the top 25 new vehicles stolen in 2012. That list is limited exclusively to model year 2012 entries.
Honda took the top two spots in the most stolen vehicles list, with 58,596 Accord models stolen and 47,037 Civic models stolen. The study is interesting, though, in that the most recent model year for the Accord is 1997, while the most recent the Civic is 2000. In fact, Hondas from 1990 to 2000 make up 16 of the top 20 cars stolen in 2012, according to the NICB. Compare that with the MY2012 list, where Honda's vehicles are eleventh and fifteenth, and it looks like the Japanese brand has been beefing up its theft control.

Honda to power new Formula Lites open-wheel racing series

Open-wheel racing is almost always incredibly exciting to watch, whether it's the constant passing of the Indy 500 on an oval or the technological tour-de-force from Formula 1. However, both of those disciplines are essentially impossible for a normal person to enter. Of course, there are already cheaper, more amateur-friendly open-wheel competitions, like Formula Vee. A new SCCA Pro Racing series called Formula Lites aims to be a step in the ladder between those, offering a development opportunity to young drivers who want to be professionals.
The series already has some impressive backers. One of the biggest needs is now filled, as Honda has signed on as the engine supplier. All of the cars in Formula Lites will use the company's K24 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine. The automaker didn't specify power output for the competition engine, but in production models the K24 has made in the neighborhood of 190-200 horsepower in many applications. That should make the racers plenty potent.
All of the cars are using the new carbon fiber FL15 chassis from Crawford Composites, and Pirelli is the series' tire supplier. The organizers' goal for the cars is to keep racing costs down, while offering a reliable platform. Formula Lites plans to start racing with a few events later in 2014, and the full calendar begins in 2015. Scroll down to read the full announcement about Honda's involvement.