Honda cars

Video: Honda Officially Enters the 21st Century With HondaLink

To say that Honda has fallen behind the times in terms of automotive creativity is about as obvious as saying Fiat and Mini are overusing their respective flagship models. While nearly every other automaker is creating numerous ways to safely use your smartphone in the car and also using it to connect to cool things like Pandora radio, Facebook, and whatever other online stuff you love, Honda has been delivering the stats quo for years, sans adding light smartphone connectivity in the 2012 CR-V.

Finally, Honda has decided to get with the times and is introducing HondaLink, which is essentially a Ford Sync copycat. Then again, aren’t all of the modern connectivity systems just copying Ford’s innovative idea?

This new HondaLink system will debut in the 2013 Honda Accord and allows its user to do things like connect to Aha radio, tether and control a smartphone, listen to news, text message via speech, and even hear twitter and Facebook feeds over their audio system.

In reality, this system is actually using technology that Ford has been for the past half century, but the fact that Honda finally unburied its head and realized that it is sub-par is a miracle in itself. Maybe this new system can help Honda recoup some of the sales it has been losing to more innovative companies, like Hyundai and Kia, and earn some of its buyers back.

To help us better understand the system, Honda released a quick video describing its features, which you can see above. Click past the jump to check out Honda’s full presser on HondaLink.

Honda Civic Type-R to be confirmed at the Paris Motor Show with debut set for Geneva in 2013

Lotus’ withdrawal from the Paris Motor Show was disappointing, to say the least, but all’s not lost, especially if you’re the optimistic type.

Despite the lack of Lotus’ presence, we now know that one automaker will be making an official announcement regarding the state of one of its own cars in Paris. We’re talking, of course, about Honda and the 2013 Civic Type-R.

Spy photos of the 2013 Civic Type-R around the Nurburgring have been taken in the past months, but it’s only now that information has come from Honda insiders, who told Autocar of the Civic Type-R’s confirmation notice in Paris and subsequent preview at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. These same insiders didn’t divulge any further details surrounding the car, which of course brings back speculation on what kind of engine the new Civic Type-R will carry under its hood.

We’ve made our guesses that the Civic Type-R could carry an output of about 220-230 horsepower, alluding to our opinion that the car’s track-oriented focus will most likely lead to Honda giving full attention to the car’s chassis, handling, and engine specs.

None of this is confirmed, but we’re nevertheless ecstatic to find out that the 2013 Civic Type-R will be officially announced at the Paris Motor Show with the preview set to take place at Geneva next year.

Japan Eyeballing the 2020s for Introduction of Automated Vehicles

We do our best to keep you in the loop when it comes to new and cool developments in the automotive world. One of the hottest topics going right now in the U.S. is automated driving. Though it is still several decades away from being a national reality, although some states are legalizing autonomous cars, we are still seeing some progress. The leader in this technology to date in the U.S. is the Google Prius, but other automakers - such as Cadillac and Ford - sniffing around the automated car sector.

In Japan, however, they are taking the bull by the horns and setting up an outline for national implementation of an autonomous driving system. According to a report from Tech-On, the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MLIT) is starting to piece together how to make automated driving a reality in as little as eight years.

Starting immediately, the MLIT will start piecing together the problems related to automated driving and neatly package it in an interim report that is due for release in March of 2013. Some of the issues at hand have to include: driver attentiveness, driver override ability, handling of accidents, and infrastructure development.

The MLIT has already employed the help of Toyota, Nissan, Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd. (A.K.A. Subaru), Honda, and Mazda in this project. Heading up the entire team is Yasuo Asakura, a professor at the Tokyo Institute of Technology.

For now, this is all just talk and we will see if anything ever comes of it. If this is actually a serious deal, it could drastically accelerate the timeframe that we in the industry have set for automated cars. We will keep a close eye on this situation and update you if any new details come up. Until then, enjoy your steering wheel, while you still can.

2012 Honda CR-Z Hybrid Race Car

Honda is set to bring a new race car to the Super GT series in Japan and true to form, it’s a racing version of the the company’s resident hybrid hatch, the CR-Z.

Certainly, by one look at the car, you can pretty much surmise that this isn’t your ordinary CR-Z. Honda co-developed it with their in-house tuning company Mugen and they proceeded to build something that hopefully performs as good as it looks.

To enhance the car’s racing capabilities, Honda and Mugen enhanced a number of components on the car, including the suspension, rolling stock and aerodynamics.

Then, the attention was turned to its engine, which is to say that they completely modified it to be race-ready. Instead of its rather mundane standard power train, the CR-Z GT was fitted with a 2.8-liter twin-turbo V6 engine that comes with a competition-spec electric assist. Output has been limited to 300 horsepower on account of the car competing at the Super GT GT300 class.

We’re pretty excited to see how awesome-looking race car performs when it makes its debut in the fourth round of the 2012 Super GT series at the end of the month.

Saudi ’drifter’ sentenced to death by public beheading after killing two

Capital punishment. It’s one of the most fiercely debated issues plaguing the world and whether or not it should be performed, no matter the severity of the crime committed. This latest case is sure to spark off even more topical debate about the issue as a man from Saudi Arabia was recently sentenced to death by public beheading after killing two people.

The man, identifying himself as “Mustannish,” killed two spectators a few months back when he lost control of his ‘drifting’ car in a reckless form of outlaw driving known commonly as “Hagwalah” which takes place in the land-locked nation.

In short, it simply involves hoons taking to the streets in stock Honda’s and Toyota’s and performing dangerous slides and spins in their cars with spectators watching the action from just meters away.

If you want to find out more about these hoons, then simply head over to YouTube were you’ll find a selection of videos, including the one above, of these drivers and their idiotic ways of showing-off. Keep in mind however, that several clips posted to YouTube have depicted spectators being hit by the cars, although a select few have been removed due to their severity.

Anyway, back to the issue at hand. The following video purportedly depicts “Mustannish,” which directly translates to “he who ignores,” in one of his many failed attempts at impressing the crowd before crashing into a sand bank. Fortunately, in this particular video, no one seems to be injured.

However, the case which has landed the man in hot water occurred when he plowed into the crowd, killing two, and the aforementioned punishment was swiftly handed down: Public beheading by sword. Not pleasant.

Despite this firm punishment, it’s currently unclear if and when the penalty will actually take place, as another man who killed three in 2005 under similar circumstances had his death penalty wavered and instead faced 3,000 lashes and 20 years in prison.

Video: Awesomeness in Advertising by Hoonigan.com

Way back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I was a spritely high school graduate heading into my first semester at college as a business administration – I know, my prospective career took a detour. In between Frat parties, sports, and chasing those of the opposite sex, I found myself in classes, some of which were about marketing correctly. The key to marketing is to get your viewers’ attention, flash your product, then leave the viewers with a lasting impression to remember you by.

Well, Hoonigan.com absolutely mastered the art of “gaining your viewers’ attention” with its latest attempt to peddle its online wares. Not only does this video contain some hooning awesomeness, but it is bursting at the seams with it. Pretty much every single awesome car video we have seen in the last five (or so) years has a several-second spot in this ad. Hell, there is even some Power Wheels hoonage at the 45-second mark and some bicycle hoonage going on at the 58-second mark.

All we can do is tip our collective hats to the folks that put together this video and the countless number of hours that must have been put in watching various videos. Just finding the videos alone must have taken hundreds of hours, but then editing them, dubbing Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades” over it, and splicing it all together, Phew.

Some highlights are the Subaru WRX vs. Snowboarder downhill race at to 50-second mark, the Honda Civic passenger running for his life at the 38-second mark, and the worlds greatest drift pass at 1:23. If there is a single short car clip to watch so far this year, this is it!

2013 Honda Civic Type-R

The European version of the new generation Honda Civic made its debut last year at the Frankfurt Motor Show. And today, just a few months after, our spy photographers have the first proof that Honda is preparing a a Type-R version of the new Civic: a mule of the upcoming car has been spied close to the Honda’s technical center near Nürburgring.

The first obvious differences are on the exterior. The mule features a big rear wing fitted over the rear window, bigger exhaust pipes and a deeper front spoiler that might indicate that this is just the first mule for the Civic Type-R testing some chassis settings. The production version will also get a deep front spoiler, a new rear bumper with diffuser, wider and bigger wheels and sportier seats.

The next Civic Type R is said to be focused on track orientated customers. This means that Honda will focus on improving the chassis and the car’s handling, while the high-revving engine will probably deliver somewhere around 220-230 HP.

2012 Honda Concept S

Joining the Honda Concept C in Honda’s stand at the 2012 Beijing Auto Show is the Concept S, a car that’s widely expected the carry the design direction of the future Honda Odyssey.

Similar to the "C" in Concept C, Honda also added symbolism to the "S" in Concept S, which stands to mean "Stylish", "Smart", and "Surprise". Looking at the Concept S, it certainly appears that Honda is venturing into new frontiers with the design of their vehicles. Looking far and away more aggressive than past iterations of the Odyssey, the Concept S comes with a front that shows far more distinct styling, thanks to a completely new grille set-up, slit-like LED front lights, and a swooping hood. Meanwhile, the rear end carries lights that have been merged with the rear window and the chrome strip that runs along the bottom of the boot lid.

Honda has yet to release engine information on the Concept S, but it appears that the Japanese automaker will look in the direction of a hybrid powertrain to put into the production version.

UPDATE 09/12/12: The first official video of the Honda Concept S was released recently showing the concept vehicle out and about on the road. No word yet on whether there’s a production future for the car, but with the release of this video, it could be a positive sign.

2012 Honda Concept C

The 2012 Beijing Auto Show is fast becoming an automotive showcase for the Chinese market as more and more automakers are introducing concept vehicles that have specially developed specifically for the Chinese market.

The latest to do so is Honda, which is unveiling two concept vehicles, one of which is the Concept C sedan. Details are scarce at this point about the car, but according to a Honda press release, the "C" in the concept’s name represents "Cool", "Challenge", and "China".

Honda also said that the Concept C will be a middle-class sedan that the company is currently developing through a cooperation between development teams in both Japan and China. The production model will be made available in China next year through Guangqi Honda Automobile Co., Ltd.

As for the car itself, the Concept C is an aggressively designed vehicle that’s highlighted by its rather large dimensions and a muscular rear end, creating an aggressive yet elegant look that plays right into the tastes of the Chinese market. The concept also carries three major side veins adding to the menacing side profile while the front end receives a distinctive central grille and bumper set up with a pair of huge intakes on both ends of the bumper.

Powertrain options for the Concept C were not divulged, but rest assured that we’ll have them for you information becomes available.

Video: Honda CR-V Meets the Nürburgring, and Loses

Remember back in the late-1990s when there was all of that hubbub about top-heavy SUVs and how they roll over easily? Apparently, some people really need to be reminded of how SUVs handle. We totally understand that the Nürburgring is an awesome thing, as anyone with a car, $34, a driver’s license, and a heartbeat can take their car screaming down this famed course. We also completely understand that some SUVs belong on this track, like the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8, X6M, and so on.

That said, c’mon guys, taking an obviously stock Honda CR-V for a cruise around the ‘Ring? Are you trying to record a 20:00 time around the course to gloat about to your buddies? There comes a moment in every person’s life where you simply have to decide that the risk really isn’t worth the reward, and flying an early 2000s CR-V around the ‘Ring is one of those times.

It looks like the driver in the above video doesn’t quite grasp any of that… The first minute of the video consists of almost all high-performance vehicles, or at least modified ones. Once you get to the 1:05 mark on the video you hear a loud screeching sound of tall, skinny tires and coming around the corner sideways is a CR-V. A quick flick in the other direction to attempt to correct the spin and that’s all she wrote; over goes the CR-V into a spectacular rollover.

The CR-V then leaps over the guardrail on a single bound and sticks the landing like a pro. Keep in mind, the only reason we are so nonchalant about this horrible wreck is that according to the YouTube post, the people in the CR-V were fine, except for the fact that their mom’s gonna be mad when she sees her car.

Enjoy the video and make this a reminder, don’t race your CR-V on a track designed for racecars. It never turns out well.