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1964 Honda SM600 roadster gets elemental in Jay Leno's Garage

Honda has made a handful of sports cars in the past, with examples like the Acura NSX and Honda S2000 standing as noteworthy examples. But before either of them came along, there was the Honda S600. And Jay Leno has a beautiful example from 1964 in his garage for this latest video installment. The inspiration for the new JDM S660, the original S600 came out in 1964 – which just happened to be the same year that Honda broke into Formula One. And you can hear that relationship when the dual-chain-drive 600cc inline-four revs up to its 9,500-rpm redline. It may not have had the power of contemporary British roadsters from MG and Triumph, but it had plenty of character. When Leno got a hold of this one – a top spec SM model – he and his team took it apart nut and bolt, powder-coated the chassis, resprayed the body and put it all back together better than new. But you'll want to hear Jay tell the story himself in this fifteen-minute video clip. News Source: Jay Leno's Garage via YouTube Celebrities Honda Convertible Classics Videos Jay Lenos Garage

Watch Evo pick its 2015 Car of the Year in this epic video

With just a few days left in 2015, it's the perfect time to check out Evo's annual Car of the Year test to determine the greatest performance vehicle of the last 12 months. The writers' picks for the 11 finalists spanned a breadth of engaging models and included: Peugeot 208 GTi by Peugeot Sport, Lamborghini Aventador SV, Seat Leon Cupra Sub8, McLaren 675LT, Porsche 991 GT3 RS, Porsche Cayman GT4, Honda Civic Type R, Ferrari 488 GTB, Chevrolet Camaro Z/28, Lotus Evora 400, and Mercedes-AMG GT S. For the venue to test the mettle of these performance machines, Evo stuck close to home this year and visited the twisting roads at the beautiful north coast of Scotland. Racing brothers Marino and Dario Franchitti also came along for the ride to provide two more voices in the competitive challenge to determine a winner. Evo's video explains why each model deserves to be among such rarified company but doesn't gloss over their faults either. There can be only one winner, though. We don't want to spoil it, so check out the clip for magnificent views of these performance machines through the Scottish countryside.

Major automakers post mixed US June sales figures

General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV posted declines in US new vehicle sales for June on Monday, while major Japanese automakers reported stronger figures. Once again, demand for pickup trucks and crossovers offset a decline in sedan sales. Automakers' shares rose as overall industry sales still came in above Wall Street expectations. The US auto industry is bracing for a downturn after hitting a record 17.55 million new vehicles sold in 2016. Analysts had predicted that overall, US vehicle sales would fall in June for the fourth consecutive month. As the market has shown signs of cooling, automakers have hiked discounts and loosened lending terms. Car shopping website Edmunds said on Monday the average length of a car loan reached an all-time high of 69.3 months in June. "It's financially risky, leaving borrowers exposed to being upside down on their vehicles for a large chunk of their loans," said Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds' executive director of industry analysis. GM said its sales fell about 5 percent versus June 2016, but that the industry would see stronger sales in the second half of 2017 versus the first half. "Under the current economic conditions, we anticipate US retail vehicle sales will remain strong for the foreseeable future." GM shares were up 2.4 percent in morning trading, while Ford rose 3.3 percent and FCA shares jumped 6 percent. "US total sales are moderating due to an industry-wide pullback in daily rental sales, but key US economic fundamentals clearly remain positive," said GM chief economist Mustafa Mohatarem. "Under the current economic conditions, we anticipate US retail vehicle sales will remain strong for the foreseeable future." Ford said its sales for June were hit by lower fleet sales to rental agencies, businesses, and government entities, which fell 13.9 percent, while sales to consumers were flat. But it sold a record 406,464 SUVs in the first half of the year, with Explorer sales increasing 23 percent in June. And sales of the F-150 had their strongest June since 2001. On a media call, Ford executives said an initial read of automakers' sales figures indicated a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of around 17 million new vehicles for the month, which would be better than 16.6 million units analysts had predicted. FCA said June sales decreased 7 percent versus the same month a year earlier.