2005 Honda Odyssey Touring Mini Passenger Van 5-door 3.5l on 2040-cars

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Honda Jazz looks like a good fit for Paris

The quirky, utilitarian little hatchback that we know as the Honda Fit in the US carries the more melodious Jazz name in Europe. And while the newest Fit is already on sale in our market, folks are still waiting for it across the pond. Honda is unveiling its new Jazz Prototype to the 2014 Paris Motor Show in October, and it's nearly identical to what is currently on sale in North America. In fact, it's hard to image Honda changing much from this "prototype" before launching it for Europeans.
The Jazz's design is exactly what you would expect after even a glance at the current North American Fit. Except for a different wing at the rear, a shark fin antenna and a new set of wheels, this Jazz plays the same tune we've heard before.
The one thing keeping the Fit and Jazz from truly being identical siblings is that the European model packs Honda's new 1.3-liter i-VTEC Earth Dreams engine under the hood, rather than the 1.5-liter used in North America. But just like our Fit, the Jazz will be available with a six-speed manual or CVT. The Japanese automaker says that the Jazz goes on sale in the summer of 2015. Scroll down to read the company's announcement for its upcoming hatch.

Honda rolls out production S660 roadster in Japan

Honda doesn't do convertibles often, but when it does, they tend to be pretty small. No Cascadas or Continentals here; just nimble little two-seat roadsters like the S2000, del Sol and the legendary Beat. That's the line into which it tapped with the reveal of the S660 concept at the Tokyo Motor Show late in 2013, and now it's rolling it out in dealerships across Japan. Picking up where the Pininfarina-designed Beat left off in 1996, the S660 is heir to a proud tradition of Japanese roadsters like the Suzuki Cappuccino and Daihatsu Copen – two-seat convertibles designed to Japan's Kei car specifications and even smaller than the Mazda MX-5 Miata or Toyota MR2 Spyder. The new S660 joins Honda's minicar lineup alongside the N Series and adopts the same 660cc inline-three, but spins it around to mount it amidships and adds a turbocharger. It's got a roll-up canvas roof and a two-tone cabin that gives driver and passenger seats of different shades. 45/55 front-rear weight distribution promises to keep it fun but friendly, with brake-based torque vectoring to keep it all under control - all wrapped in a package that has barely changed any on the road to production. The Japanese automaker has still yet to reveal full specifications, including overall dimensions, output and performance. But while it won't be outperforming the Civic Type R or new NSX anytime soon, the combination of turbo power and compact dimensions promise to deliver what we can only imagine will be a fun ride. And imagine is what we'll just have to do, because for the time being, Honda will only offer the S660 in its home market. There buyers will be able to choose between a six-speed manual or continuously variable transmission, two trim levels, six paint colors and even a Concept Edition that adopts a similar color scheme as the show car. The manufacturer expects to move 800 of these little roadsters every month, but no more than 660 examples of the special edition. Related Video: Honda to Begin Sales of All-New S660 Open-top Sports-type Mini-vehicle TOKYO, Japan, March 30, 2015 - Honda Motor Co., Ltd. will begin sales of the all-new Honda S660, a 2-seater open-top sports car, on April 2, 2015, at dealerships across Japan. In addition, on the same day Honda will begin sales, in a limited quantity, of the S660 CONCEPT EDITION, a special model that commemorates the market launch of the S660. Only 660 units of this special edition will be sold in Japan.

Alonso and Button try out Honda's Uni-Cub mobility scooter

As two of the best racing drivers in the world, Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button have some pretty serious wheels at their disposal. They'll both be driving the latest McLaren-Honda MP4-30 on the track this year, will likely have access to supercars like the new Acura NSX or McLaren 650S for toying around with when they're not working, and probably each have an enviable motor pool of their own at home. This, then, must have been quite a change of pace for them both. As you can see from this video tweeted by McLaren, the two highly accomplished F1 drivers hopped on a very different set of wheels recently: namely, Honda's Uni-Cub "personal mobility device." The experimental electric motorized bar stool is controlled by shifting your weight to and fro (like a Segway), but stands just two feet tall and tops out at less than four miles per hour. At that rate, it would take them almost an hour to take one lap around the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX, where the 2015 United States Grand Prix will be held in October. In that same time span, for perspective's sake, they'd be lapped more than 30 times by their rivals... so they'd better stick to the racing machinery once the championship gets under way. What happened when @alo_oficial and @JensonButton got hold of a UNI-CUBAcA?A¦ https://t.co/YP8r9z1OsG - McLaren (@McLarenF1) February 10, 2015