1997 Honda Civic Ex Coupe 2-door 1.6l, No Reserve on 2040-cars

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Honda's next-gen fuel cell concept will debut in LA, along with more Civic updates

Honda is bringing a new concept to the this month's Los Angeles Auto Show called the FCEV Concept. "FCEV" stands for something, and no, it's not "funky chicken earns victory" or other such nonsense - it's short for fuel-cell electric vehicle, a market that Honda has played in, most recently, with its hydrogen-powered FCX Clarity.
The FCEV is nothing more than a styling exercise (click above to enlarge the sketch) for an eventual production fuel-cell vehicle set to hit US and Japanese dealers in 2015 (sorry Europe, you're stuck waiting). It's not heading to LA to tell us anything about the wider application of the technology used in the FCX Clarity, so fans of hydrogen power shouldn't get too excited. Still, the news that Honda is still pondering a wider-spread for its fuel-cell technology is quite exciting.
"The Honda FCEV Concept demonstrates the company's vision for the future of personal mobility and our commitment to developing advanced alternative fuel vehicles. As we work toward the introduction of our next-generation fuel-cell vehicle in 2015, our long-term experience with fuel-cell technologies will help us pave a way towards a zero-emissions future," said Mike Accavitti, senior vice president of American Honda.

Honda, Nissan and Mazda recalling 3 million vehicles for airbag inflators

Three million more vehicles can be added to the worldwide tally to be repaired for the faulty airbag inflators supplied by Takata. Honda, Nissan, and Mazda have all issued recalls to replace the bad part, including about 1.2 million of them in North America. NHTSA has been investigating all three companies, plus Chrysler and Toyota, for potentially affected vehicles.
Honda is recalling roughly 1.02 million Civic, CR-V, Odyssey and Element models In North America, built between April 2000 and October 2002. Mazda needs to repair 14,794 units of the RX-8 and Mazda6, and Nissan has 228,000 vehicles in North America to be fixed.
Chrysler is also starting what it calls a "regional field action" to replace the inflators in the 2006 Dodge Charger, according to a company spokesperson. The company says that it has not yet found the problem in any of its vehicles, but it's being done "out of an abundance of caution." The final number of Chargers affected will be announced later this week.

Honda China struggling with high-end Accord because Chinese covet German cars, too

It's not particularly unusual to see cheap cars in China, or those with designs stolen from foreign competitors, but increasingly the best-selling vehicles there would be very recognizable to just about any auto enthusiast. There appears to be one fact of life whether looking at car buyers in Sacramento, Stuttgart or Shanghai: People who can afford to buy premium cars often look first at the Germans.
Honda recently thought that it could challenge this perceived wisdom by including a premium Accord in the ninth-generation sedan's Chinese launch last year. The market-exclusive version was priced against the Audi A4. The venture failed, miserably.
According to Automotive News China, sales for the new Accord in China are down 37 percent through May of this year. Honda's overall sales are actually up by about 11 percent there on the strength of smaller, less profitable models. However, the company is still off its forecast 19-percent rise.