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Honda recalls 2012-13 Fit Sport models over stability control issue

Honda is recalling 43,782 examples of the 2012 and 2013 Fit Sport in the US and close to 2,000 more in Canada. During federal compliance testing it was discovered that the software for the Vehicle Stability Assist allows an excessive tilt angle before applying the brakes to prevent a crash. The issue only affects Fit Sports equipped with a certain kind of tire.
Honda will notify owners in mid-May, at which time owners can take their cars to dealers to have the stability control software updated free of charge. There's a press release from Honda below with more details.

Bisimoto 2014 Honda Odyssey packs 1,029 hp plus the kids

You know, the last time I drove a Honda Odyssey, I thought, "Man, this thing could really use another 781 horsepower." Thank goodness for the folks at Bisimoto, then, who have brought this "Power-Van" to the 2013 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. It's your standard seven-passenger Honda Odyssey with massive powertrain tuning to deliver a full 1,029 horsepower. Honda has not listed the torque output, but we imagine it's roughly eleventy billion foot-pounds.
That crazy power bump has been achieved through the use of - *deep breath* - an Infinity ECU, Arias pistons, ARP headstuds and bolts, Bisimoto's own 360-degree oil cap, a cat-back exhaust system, stainless mufflers, an improved fuel pump, new spark plugs, custom headwork, R&R custom steel rods, Turbonetics BTZ7265 twin turbochargers, a wastegate, blowoff valve, VP racing fuels and a whole lot more. Honda says the only chassis/suspension modifications come in the way of Fifteen52 wheels, 225/30-series Toyo T1 Sport tires and Young Guns performance exhaust coatings. So as far as we can tell, this thing still uses a front-wheel-drive setup. I bet it'll do somersaults.
Of course, this is SEMA, where we assume there's a four-modification minimum for any car that enters the Las Vegas Convention Center, so the Odyssey has been given added visual flair, as well. Outside, that means there's a Denmatic design theme, a whole mess of Honda accessories (check out that roof tub) and some new paint. Inside, upgraded upholstery has been fitted, as have Recaro seats.

Lawsuit reveals gruesome details of Takata airbag victim's death

The accident was minor. The aftermath was horrific. Carlos Solis was waiting to turn left into a Houston-area apartment complex on January 28 when oncoming traffic struck the front-left corner of his 2002 Honda Accord, pictured above. He was stopped, according to a police report of the accident. The other car traveled at under 30 miles per hour. He should have walked away from the fender-bender. Instead, the 35-year-old married man was killed when a defective airbag exploded and sent a large piece of metal shrapnel into his neck, his estate's lawyers allege in a lawsuit filed Thursday in Harris County, Texas. He bled to death while his younger brother and an 11-year-old cousin tried to save him. Solis is one of at least six motorists killed by defective airbags made by Takata, a global automotive supplier. He may also be a posthumous poster child for federal legislation introduced earlier this week that would ensure car owners receive more timely information about safety recalls. Currently, federal law does not require car dealers to tell prospective buyers about open recalls on used cars or whether defects have been repaired. Legislation introduced by Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) wouldn't require that directly of dealerships, but it would mandate that car owners be notified of recalls when they apply for registration and at the time of registration renewal. "Important recall notices can get bogged down with legalese, and busy consumers can miss a life-saving update," Blumenthal said. "This legislation provides a common-sense avenue to ensure every driver is reminded and encouraged to make the necessary repairs." Such a law may have prevented Solis' death. Although his '02 Accord had been recalled in late 2011, his wife and lawyers say he had no knowledge of the recall when he bought the car used from All Star Auto Sales in 2014, nor did he know of the dangerous flaw when he set out to visit his parents on Jan. 18. Only one month earlier, Congress held hearings on Takata and Honda's long-standing inaction related to the defective airbags. Documents showed both companies were aware of problems with the airbags as early as 2004, and a report in The New York Times detailed secret airbag tests, the results of which alarmed Takata engineers. Yet the company withheld the information from federal safety administrators.