Honda Civic Si 2005 on 2040-cars

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Japanese earthquakes send ripples through auto industry

The earthquakes since April 14 in Japan's Kumamoto Prefecture on the island of Kyushu are having aftershocks on the US auto industry, particularly for Toyota. The company shut down most of its factories in the country due to parts shortages, and the plants will be closed at least through April 23. "Decisions regarding recommencement of operation at plants in Japan will be made on the basis of availability of parts," the company said in a statement. According to Automotive News, Toyota's closed factories include a vast range of popular models in the US, including the Toyota Prius, Mirai, RAV4, 4Runner, Land Cruiser, Lexus ES, LS, IS, GS, RC, NX, RX, GX, and LX. The company's only sites in Japan that are still open build Hino trucks, Daihatsu models, and the Toyota Century limo. Toyota isn't yet sure whether these shutdowns could lead to vehicle shortages in the US. "As you can imagine, we are still reviewing the situation and working to learn more," company spokesperson Aaron Fowles told Autoblog. "While we know that production will be suspended in stages at most of our vehicle assembly facilities in Japan between April 18th and the 23rd, we do not know if they will continue production suspensions. Also, any effects to our inventory and/or sales have yet to be determined." He expects the automaker to know more in the coming days. Many of the affected Toyota plants aren't even in Kumamoto Prefecture, but major suppliers have factories in the region. For example, Aisin Seiki and Renesas Electronics both had to shutdown operations at plants in the area, according to Automotive News. Toyota isn't the only automaker affected. Nissan experienced a brief slowdown but was back to work on Monday, and Honda has suspended a motorcycle plant in the region until Friday. Mitsubishi had to close a production line due to the parts shortage, according to The Japan Times, but it didn't affect US models. "A supplier to our Mizushima plant has been impacted but they only supply an engine part for our mini car line. That line has been temporarily shut down due to that situation," spokesperson Alex Fedorak told Autoblog. "That same plant builds the Lancer and i-MiEv and there has been no impact to that line and production continues uninterrupted." Two major quakes hit Kumamoto Prefecture around Kumamoto city in the past week. The first on April 14 measured 6.4 magnitude, and a second on April 16 measured 7.3.

Honda asking used-car buyers to sign liability document [w/poll]

New cars under recall must be repaired before a dealer can sell them but used cars are under no such mandate.
When it comes to informing the car-buying public about potential safety hazards on used vehicles, there are two emerging schools of thought among used-car dealers.

2014 Honda Odyssey revamp only costs an extra $150*

Honda has released pricing on its 2014 Odyssey. Buyers can take home the revamped minivan for $28,825 (excluding an $830 destination fee). That price marks a $150 increase over the 2013 model, but that extra Benjamin and a half buys you a whole slate of updates. Those include a new six-speed automatic transmission in all trims, revised exterior styling and a few tweaks to the instrument cluster and dash controls. Honda's familiar 3.5-liter V6 engine provides 248 horsepower and 250 pound-feet of torque, and the new gearbox helps the van return 19 miles per gallon city and 28 mpg highway.
Of course, those who opt for the top-shelf $44,450* Touring Elite trim will get to play with the new HondaVac vacuum cleaner system. The handheld vac is built into the van's rear cargo area and recharges using the onboard 12-volt electrical system. The little vacuum features a removable debris canister as well as a replaceable filter bag and can run for eight minutes between charges. Check out the full press release below for more information.