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Mixed sales results, but automaker stocks rise on need for cars in Houston

DETROIT — The Big Three Detroit automakers on Friday reported better-than-expected August sales and issued optimistic outlooks for demand as residents of the Houston area replace flood-damaged cars and trucks after Hurricane Harvey, sending their stocks higher. General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler posted mixed August U.S. sales, with GM up 7.5 percent and Ford and Fiat Chrysler down. Japanese automaker Toyota improved sales by nearly 7 percent, while Honda fell 2.4 percent. Still, analysts focused on the potential for Detroit automakers to cut inventories and stabilize used vehicle prices as residents of Houston, the fourth largest city in the United States, are forced to replace tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of vehicles after the devastation from Hurricane Harvey. Mark LaNeve, Ford's U.S. sales chief, told analysts on Friday that following Hurricane Katrina in 2005 "we saw a very dramatic snapback" in demand. That said, Ford sales fell 2.1 percent in August. It sold 209,897 vehicles in the United States, compared with 214,482 a year earlier. Sales were down 1.9 percent in the Ford division and off 5.8 percent at Lincoln. Demand was down for cars, crossovers and SUVs. It was not clear how many vehicles in the Houston area will be scrapped, LaNeve said, saying he had seen estimates ranging from 200,000 to 400,000 to 1 million. Ford's Houston dealers may have lost fewer than 5,000 vehicles in inventory, he said. Ford is the No. 1 automaker in the Houston market, with 18 percent share, according to IHS Markit. The company plans to ship used vehicles to Houston dealers and has "every indication we would have to add some production" of new vehicles to meet demand, LaNeve said. Investor concerns about inventories of unsold vehicles and falling used car prices have weighed on Detroit automakers' shares most of this year. Now, automakers can anticipate a jolt of demand from a big market that is a stronghold for Detroit brand trucks and SUVs. "It's got to be a positive for the industry," LaNeve said. Investors appeared to agree. GM shares rose as much as 3.3 percent to their highest since early March. Ford increased 2.8 percent at $11.34, and Fiat Chrysler's U.S.-traded shares were up 5.2 percent $15.91, hitting their highest in more than five years. GM reported a 7.5 percent increase in U.S. auto sales in August, helped by robust sales of crossovers across its four brands.

Rumors abound over Honda's mid-engined 'Small NSX'

The "baby NSX" lately in the news has been in Honda's idea cloud since before the 2008 global financial rift. The company called it the "Small NSX" and reports said it "will really be a scaled-back version" of Acura's exotic, including the mid-engine layout and a variation of the hybrid SH-AWD. It even had a price: $50,000 to $60,000. So more than seven years on, when a series of patent images materialize for what looks like an NSX-inspired Honda sports car, it doesn't prove anything, but it fits. Motoring reports that the Small NSX will sit at the top of a lineup of three mid-engined sports cars intended for the Honda brand - but note that Motoring is based in Australia, where our Acura NSX is sold as a Honda. This Small NSX would be a "radical replacement" for the Honda S2000 that ended production in 2009. Beneath it will be a global version of the S660 roadster that could come here as an S1000 with 125 horsepower. The Civic Type R and a much sportier, reimagined CR-Z will put some long forgotten handling chops at other price points in the model mix. Motoring's sources say the Small NSX design work is, "for all intents and purposes, completed." The consistent rumor regarding engine is the 306-hp 2.0-liter turbo VTEC used in the Civic Type R. One electric motor will be in back to help move the rear wheels, two electric motors will hang on the front axle. Overall power output is put at around 400 hp, with 330 hp of that coming from the ICE, working through a nine-speed dual-clutch transmission. An aluminum frame with aluminum and carbon fiber parts will discourage heft, the final product at aiming at a weight under 3,100 pounds. Its price should be competitive with its intended target, the Porsche Cayman. The 2018 Detroit Auto Show is where we might see it, before it goes into production later that year at Honda's Performance Manufacturing Center in Marysville, OH. Related Video: News Source: Motoring Green Acura Honda Coupe Hybrid Performance honda nsx

Honda and Isuzu announce hydrogen partnership for heavy-duty trucks

TOKYO — Japan's Honda and Isuzu on Wednesday said they would jointly research the use of hydrogen fuel cells to power heavy-duty trucks, looking to expand fuel cell use by applying the zero-emission technology to larger vehicles. As part of a two-year deal, Isuzu will test Honda's fuel cell powertrain, which was designed for passenger cars, in Isuzu's commercial trucks, the companies said, which could pave the way for using the technology in a wider range of vehicles. Automakers are looking to develop more electric vehicles (EVs) to comply with tightening global emissions regulations. Many see battery-powered EVs as a solution for passenger cars in urban settings, but a growing number see hydrogen fuel cells as an effective way to power trucks, buses and other big vehicles. "Although we have done extensive R&D into passenger FCVs (fuel cell vehicles), we have not been able to study how best to apply the technology to commercial vehicles," a Honda spokesman told reporters at a briefing. "This partnership will allow us to do that." Fuel cell vehicles generate their own electricity using hydrogen stored in onboard tanks. This enables them to travel longer distances and refuel more quickly than battery EVs, while using less costly energy storage systems. "We think that FCV technology is well suited for heavier trucks which travel longer distances, and this partnership will enable us to examine this further," an Isuzu spokeswoman said, adding that the truck maker was also developing various lower-carbon powertrains including battery-electric technology for shorter-distance vehicles. With its Clarity Fuel Cell sedan, Honda is one of a handful of automakers which have developed and marketed fuel cell-powered passenger cars. Light- and medium-sized truck specialist Isuzu has for years has focused on diesel engine technology and has yet to market fully electric vehicles. But a price tag starting around $70,000 for the Clarity and scant hydrogen fueling infrastructure globally, Honda has seen limited take-up of that model and other FCVs since they began marketing them around 2015. In 2018 Honda sold just 654 Clarity FCVs, which are available only in Japan and the United States through leasing programs, compared with Honda's total annual global sales of 5.23 million cars.