Honda

Airbag defect prompts large recall for Japanese automakers

Mark Brush — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 15:48:14 +0000

There are regular-old recalls, and then there are big recalls.

This recall fits in the big recall category.

Reuters reports four Japanese automakers are recalling 3.4 million vehicles sold around the world because of faulty airbags supplied by the Takata Corp.

The move announced on Thursday is the largest recall ever for airbags made by Takata, the world's second largest supplier of airbags and seatbelts. Shares of Takata tumbled almost 10 percent in Tokyo trading.
The recall is the largest since Toyota pulled back more than 7 million vehicles in October. The scale of the recent safety actions underscore the risk of huge global supply chain problems as automakers increasingly rely on a handful of suppliers for common or similar parts to cut costs, analysts have said.

Here's the problem with the airbags according to Toyota:

The involved vehicles are equipped with front passenger airbag inflators which could have been assembled with improperly manufactured propellant wafers. Improperly manufactured propellant wafers could cause the inflator to rupture and the front passenger airbag to deploy abnormally in the event of a crash.

The recall affects Toyotas, Hondas, Nissans, and Mazdas manufactured in or after 2000.

Go to these links to find out if your vehicle is under recall:

Honda recalls

Toyota recalls

Nissan recalls

Mazda recalls

Autoblopnik's funny take on Honda Civic: L.A. Auto Show

Tracy Samilton — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 21:43:59 +0000

Honda revealed its refreshed Civic at the L.A. Auto Show this week.

The automaker made some very significant changes to the car, just a year after the new version was launched.

Consumer Reports and many auto reviewers slammed the car's styling and interior.

Despite that, customers turned a blind eye to the criticism, making the Civic the best-selling compact car in the U.S. this year.

The always irreverant website Autoblopnik has a nice, Onion-style entry about the car and the controversy.

Honda recalling 572,000 Accords

Mark Brush — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 20:00:40 +0000

Honda is recalling around 572,000 Accord midsize cars in the U.S. to fix a defective power steering hose that can leak fluid and catch fire.

The recall affects Accords from the 2003 through 2007 model years that are equipped with V-6 engines.

Honda says one fire was reported but no injuries.

From Honda:

American Honda has expanded a May 2012 power steering hose recall to additionally include approximately 572,000 model-year 2003-2007 Accord V6 vehicles in the United States.

Honda Fit's 82-mile range leads the pack

Tracy Samilton — Wed, 06 Jun 2012 21:43:01 +0000

Honda is back in the battery electric car business.

The company's Fit EV is rated as having the longest range of any electric vehicle sold in the U.S. so far.

Federal regulators say the Fit EV can go about 82 miles on a fully charged battery.

That's six miles more than the electric Focus and nine more than the Nissan Leaf.

Japanese car companies 1 year after tsunami

Tracy Samilton — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 14:38:27 +0000

Japanese car sales in the U.S. have nearly recovered, a year after a tsunami devastated parts of Japan.

The disaster affected many Honda and Toyota suppliers, and the companies’ car inventories in the U.S. plummeted.

Michelle Krebs is with Edmunds.com. She says Hyundai and Kia, along with Ford, General Motors and Chrysler, all benefited from the situation.

Honda revives NS-X sportscar, will build it in Ohio

Micki Maynard — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 18:07:30 +0000

Honda made history in 1990 when it introduced the high powered Acura NS-X sports car. But it discontinued it in 2005 to focus on more fuel efficient models.

Increased competition for small cars forces Honda to revamp new Civic

Mark Brush — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 18:45:46 +0000

Car companies revamp their models just about every year now. Honda recently announced that they'll revamp their Civic model mid-year. From the Associated Press:

Honda is revamping its Civic ahead of schedule because of intense competition for small-car buyers in the U.S.
The company is telling dealers it will have a revamped model by the end of next year, even though the 2012 Civic just hit showrooms over the summer.
The move is unprecedented for any carmaker because new models aren't usually revamped for at least three years.

Honda executives confirmed the Civic is being redone early. They say they're trying to stay ahead of the competition. There are more compact models available to consumers now.

But Honda might also be reacting to poor reviews of their latest Civic model.

The Detroit News reports that criticism new Civic "has shown a chink in the automaker's product line...":

A new Civic was introduced this summer and has been criticized for conservative styling, cheap materials in the interior and unimpressive driving characteristics. The car scored too low in Consumer Reports testing to be recommended.

Big boost in September auto sales expected

Steve Carmody — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 20:01:01 +0000

Analysts expect the auto industry to post very good sales numbers on Monday.

IHS Global Insight automotive analyst Rebecca Lindland says September was a very good month at car dealerships. She says the number of car buyers increased last month. At the same time, Honda and Toyota were finally able to get more vehicles to showrooms, as the disruptive effects of last March’s earthquake and tsunami began to fade.

Honda recalling 1.5 million vehicles in U.S.

The Associated Press — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 18:59:41 +0000

Honda is recalling about 1.5 million vehicles in the U. S. to update the software on the automatic transmission to decrease the possibility of transmission damage.

The recall affects certain 2005-2010 4-cylinder Accord,2007-2010 CR-V and 2005-2008 Element vehicles.

The company said Friday that without the change, the transmission's secondary shaft bearing can be damaged when the car is shifted too quickly. Honda said that can happen when a driver tries to get the vehicle dislodged from mud or snow.

Honda profits plunge as it seeks to recover from earthquake

Mark Brush — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 14:28:08 +0000

The Japanese automaker saw profits fall sharply as it struggled to reorganize in the wake of the earthquake and tsunamis that struck the island nation last March.

From the Associated Press:

TOKYO (AP) - Honda says profit for the fiscal year through March 2012 is expected to plunge 63.5 percent as vehicles sales slipped amid a parts shortage caused by the quake and tsunami in northeastern Japan.
Honda Motor Co. gave the forecast Tuesday, more than a month later than usual. Like other Japanese automakers, the maker of the Odyssey minivan and the Fit compact needed more time to assess the
aftermath of the March 11 disaster.
Honda is projecting a profit of $2.4 billion for the fiscal year ending March 2012, down sharply from the previous fiscal year.

Reuters reports that Honda released the numbers later than usual:

Honda, like other Japanese automakers, had delayed providing financial forecasts because of uncertainty over when parts supplies would recover after the magnitude 9.0 quake in Japan's northeast. In late April, it announced a 52 percent drop in January-March operating profit after production came to a virtual halt in the second half of March.
"These figures are pretty bad," said Koichi Ogawa, chief portfolio manager at Daiwa SB Investments in Tokyo, adding they could temporarily push Honda's stock lower.

Fumihiko Ike, Honda's chief financial officer, said the company plans to ramp up production in the second half of the year to make up for losses - that includes boosting production at its U.S. facilities in Indiana and Alabama "to achieve a more than 20 percent output rise beyond autumn."

Hydrogen fuel cell cars fight possible funding cuts (video)

Tracy Samilton — Tue, 19 Apr 2011 03:51:42 +0000

Battery electric cars like the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt count the federal government as a good friend these days. The government has spent two and a half billion dollars in just a few years to boost battery technology.

But there’s another way to propel an electric car– with hydrogen. And proponents are making a last-ditch effort to convince the Obama administration that fuel cell cars are ready for prime time.

Take Honda’s fuel cell electric car, the FCX Clarity. It can go about 240 miles on a tank of hydrogen fuel. About 60 miles to the gallon if you want to compare it to gasoline. The only emission from the car is water so pure you could drink it

(Here's a video of me taking the FCX Clarity for a test drive)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTobZgVEIPo

There are emissions from the process used to create hydrogen, from natural gas. But the emissions are about 60% less than comparable emissions from cars using internal combustion engines.

Honda to recall Civics from 2011

Mark Brush — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 14:53:39 +0000

The Detroit News reports that Honda will recall 2011 model year Civics for possible problems in rollover accidents. From the News:

Honda said the recall...is to inspect and replace a part that could fail to prevent fuel from leaking out of the fuel tank and into the evaporative emissions canister in a rollover.

The fuel pump module is equipped with a rollover valve but because of improper welding of the plastic case, it may break or crack, Honda said.

Japanese car exports to U.S. threatened by tsunami

Tracy Samilton — Fri, 11 Mar 2011 22:43:12 +0000

Many car plants in Japan remain closed as a result of the massive earthquake and tsunami.

Japanese carmakers say it’s too early to know if the disaster will hurt their exports to the U.S.

Toyota, Nissan, Subaru and Honda suspended most of their operations in Japan after the disaster, and many plants remain closed today.

Nissan says small fires broke out at two plants but the fires were quickly extinguished.

One Honda employee in Japan was killed when a cafeteria wall collapsed at Honda’s Research & Development Center in Tochigi.

More than thirty Honda employees were also injured in Honda facilities in Tochigi due to ceilings collapsing and other damage that took place during the earthquake.

Exports to the U.S. are threatened not just by damage to plants but damage to Japanese ports.

There could also be parts disruptions from damage to Japanese suppliers.