Barber Honda

Have you heard the news? Honda has plans to build cars exclusively for the growing Chinese auto market. Its first step in this process is debuting two new concept cars at the Beijing Motor Show, occurring April 27-May 2, 2012. These new vehicles have been kept tightly under-wraps by the Japanese automaker, as only two minimal sketches of the vehicles have been revealed thus far. These sketches could represent minivan and coupe/sedan models, but we can't be sure until they are actually unveiled at the Show.

April Fool's Day has come and gone, but we won't soon forget the hilarious prank Japanese automaker Honda pulled this year. The company "created" a new anti-theft system by the name of TERII, which it claimed harnessed the wisdom gleaned from ten years of research by cognitive psychologists and FBI hostage negotiators, as well as a large amount of engineering voodoo. As Sidney Finch, pretend TERII Project Lead at Honda explains, "Car alarms have become less and less effective as a deterrent. The technological advancements of late have been focused on the quick recovery of a stolen vehicle. Our goal was to prevent the theft in the first place. And we have that in TERII."¹

Honda has been working on its new Earth Dreams Technology for quite some time now, but now the new technology is ready to be implemented in the new Honda NSX supercar and the majority of Honda lineup that will premiere this year. The first new Earth Dreams engine for the North American market will be the new 2013 Honda Accord, which will feature a 2.4-liter inline four-cylinder engine, while the first Earth Dreams engine in Europe will be a 1.6-liter diesel for the European model Civic.

There are only ten coveted spots on Kelly Blue Book's kbb.com "10 Best Family Cars of 2012" list, and this year, Honda has taken three of them. As Michael Accavitti, Vice President of Marketing Operations for Honda America explains, "We are honored to have three members of the Honda lineup recognized as benchmark family cars by Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com. To be recognized as providing the kind of safety, features and value required of the modern family machine speaks to the core attributes of every Honda vehicle."¹

Honda has really grown in the past few years, and the company isn't done yet. The auto manufacturer has set plans to enlarge its plants in Russells Point and Anna, Ohio to build its next-generation transmissions. The Anna plant will add an 84-thousand-square foot area that will make components for the new CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission), and the Russells Point plant will now make a continuously variable transmission that will up fuel economy and lower emissions. The Anna plant predominantly makes engines currently.

This year, many automakers and manufacturers allowed U.S. consumers to preview their Super Bowl advertisements by releasing "snippets" of the full ads. Among these auto brands was Japanese auto manufacturer Honda, which released a short ad preview that rose to the top spot in its Super Bowl preview category last week. The RPA-produced spot, which was shown during Sunday's game, is a "Ferris Bueller"-themed ad, and its "snippet" collected more than four million views the week prior to its air date. And, that didn't end the ad's success. "Matthew's Day Off" was, no doubt, one of the most creative broadcasted during the big game this year.

Honda is known for its innovative style and forward-thinking tactics. That's why the Japanese automaker is currently hatching plans for a new Honda Civic-based compact SUV/crossover, to be released in Europe. This comes on the heels of competitor Nissan's successful release of the Qashqai off-road vehicle across the ocean.

The Japanese automaker Honda wants to announce to the whole world, "I'm back!" Though the recent natural disasters may have interfered with production and new Honda offerings for a while, the company is back up-and-running, and will be offering revisions of its top three best-sellers in the U.S. for the 2013 year: the Honda Civic, the Honda Accord ,and the Honda CR-V (for the 2012 year).

We know, we know. Spying on movie sets probably isn't the best idea. That's why we left it up to paparazzi to do the dirty deed. Rumor has it, the next successor in the Honda NSX line was spotted on the Avengers movie set, a blockbuster film that is set to debut next summer. Honda hasn't denied that the rumors are true. We don't blame the company. Why wouldn't it want its vehicle to be spotted alongside the likes of Robert Downey Jr.?  The first clues about the new NSX will be officially debuted at the Detroit Motor Show in January 2012. A hybrid concept is reportedly known internally as the "Super Sport."

Here in America, we tend to focus more on larger, more gas-hungry vehicles than our European friends do. And, although that seems to be changing, Honda doesn't believe America is quite ready (yet) for the new Honda N BOX. The company has announced its debut in Japan, which will take place December 16, 2011. The N BOX is the first vehicle of the new mini-vehicle Honda N Series. The N BOX is a sort of mini-minivan. It has enough room inside to comfortably hold four tall adults. In fact, the rear seat has limo-like legroom and includes a flip/fold feature that accommodates the storage of large objects in the passenger compartment. Honda has always embraced the man maximum/machine minimum concept, and this is just another example of this innovative idea.