Honda
Honda Kills Boxy Element After 9-Year Run
By Michelle Krebs December 3, 2010Honda announced this morning that it will drop the boxy Element model from its line-up at the end of the 2011 model year. The Element had become long in the tooth, having remained virtually the same with only powertrain and safety upgrades since it was introduced in December 2002 as a 2003 model. At the same time, its box-car competition increased with the introduction of the first- and second-generations of Toyota's Scion xB, the new Kia Soul and the Nissan Cube. Honda's statement on the demise of the Element said "utility-seeking customers have more recently embraced other vehicles in more
Honda Trails Only Toyota in NHTSA Braking Complaints
By Bill Visnic November 23, 2010The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration yesterday said it will consider a request for the agency to investigate complaints about braking for 2005-model Honda Accord Hybrid and Civic Hybrid models, while NHTSA data analyzed by Edmunds.com indicates that since 2005, Honda has trailed only Toyota Motor Corp. in the number of braking-related complaints to NHTSA. The incidence of braking-related complaints to NHTSA appears to be outsized for Honda, because while the company is second only to Toyota in the number of braking-related complaints per 100,000 vehicles, since 2005 Honda has the lowest number of overall complaints per 100,000 vehicles among more
Consumer Reports: Honda, Toyota Still Tops in Reliability; GM Improves
By Michelle Krebs October 26, 2010Consumer Reports magazine revealed the results of its 2010 reliability survey Tuesday and here's the upshot: - Toyota, despite numerous large recalls, and, to an even greater degree, Honda reign supreme in reliability. - General Motors, which shed its debt in bankruptcy along with problem-plagued brands, showed vast improvement, especially with its newest models. - Ford, on a continuous improvement path for the past half-dozen years, showed more incremental improvement. - Hyundai and Kia is making "extraordinary" progress. - Chrysler still trails everyone. - European automakers fell off a cliff in reliability. more
Look Out Toyota, There's a New Honda Minivan in Town
By Bill Visnic September 9, 2010The minivan segment has been in decline since 1995, and among the ashes of this once heavily-contested sector, three players remain: Chrysler Group LLC (Dodge Grand Caravan/Chrysler Town & Country); Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (Odyssey) and Toyota Motor Corp. (Sienna). Honda's launching the new-generation 2011 Odyssey this month, heaped with thoughtful functionality improvements, only the best family-friendly tech gear and an all-new top trim level. But of the Odyssey's two competitors, only one - Toyota - truly has to worry, because only about one in 10 Odyssey shoppers even considers the Chrysler minivans, according to Edmunds.com data. more
Hyundai Sonata Speeds to Top of Sales Charts; Nudges Honda Accord Among Midsizers
By Michelle Krebs September 7, 2010The Hyundai Sonata is racing to the top of U.S. sales charts. In August, Sonata grabbed third place among midsize cars for the third time since it was vastly redesigned earlier this year as a 2011 model; it is nudging the rear bumper of the Honda Accord. The Toyota Camry remained in first place in sales among midsize sedans, but the Sonata easily overtook Nissan Altima in August; it already had passed by the Chevrolet Malibu and Ford Fusion. Overall, the Sonata has soared to sixth place among all vehicles sold in the United States -- it's highest ranking ever. It has been No. 1 for 22 of more
Honda Owners Shocked by Civic Hybrid's Browned-Out Batteries
By Bill Visnic August 16, 2010Honda Motor Co. Ltd. is following-up a big recall last week for faulty ignition interlocks with another quality hit that may be more potentially damaging to the automaker's dependability reputation: it appears thousands of Honda's Civic Hybrids may be experiencing accelerated deterioration of the car's crucial and expensive nickel-metal hydride battery pack. Edmunds.com's Green Car Advisor confirmed over the weekend that Honda is offering a software upgrade to owners of 2006-2008 Civic Hybrids that the company said will address numerous recent reports of markedly deteriorating battery performance. In the Civic Hybrid, the nickel-metal hydride batteries power a small electric more
What's Wrong at Honda? Maybe Everything
By Bill Visnic May 26, 2010It's unusual for Honda Motor Co. Ltd. to deviate from its rigid model-replacement schedule, particularly for its bread-and-butter volume models such as the Civic. But that's just what the company is doing with the planned Civic replacement, pushing back the car's introduction from this fall until sometime next year. The next-generation Civic apparently was not on competitive target -- and Honda sent it back to the garage for tinkering. Although some analysts and industry insiders think Honda's choice to rejigger the Civic is a positive signal, the fact the Civic has to go back to the drawing board at more
How Honda Spent Its Record-High April Incentive Money
By Michelle Krebs May 4, 2010American Honda, which includes the Honda and Acura brands, spent more money on incentives in April than it had ever spent in a month, and its investment paid off with the highest Honda sales since last August, according to Edmunds.com's analysis. Still, Honda's April sales were up only 13 percent from a year ago, far below the industry average of 20 percent. more
Honda Odyssey Owners Report Transmission Troubles, Inconsistent Response from Maker
By Michelle Krebs March 10, 2010Toyota vehicles are dominating headlines lately with recalls and rebuttals, but just as annoying to Honda Odyssey owners are the transmission problems they are experiencing -- problems some owners believe Honda is unwilling to acknowledge or address. Since October 2006, members of Edmunds' CarSpace Forums have contributed more than 1,400 individual posts to a thread called Honda Odyssey Transmission Problems that details not only their Odyssey transmission issues but also the action - or inaction - they've seen from Honda dealers and parent company, American Honda, in response. more
Honda Plays It Safe With 9th-Generation 2012 Civic
By Paul Seredynski January 13, 2011Honda took the wraps off concept versions of its 2012 Civic Si coupe and Civic sedan Monday at the Detroit auto show. In typical Honda fashion, the concept vehicles are just lightly modified versions of the production cars that will go on sale in the U.S market this spring. Also in Honda fashion, the concepts previewed a design that takes little risk and seeks to serve the compact market with the widest variety of models in the segment. more