2003 Honda S2000 Base Convertible 2-door 2.0l on 2040-cars

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Surprise! McLaren and Honda finally call it quits

It's been coming for a long while, so it should surprise no one to learn that McLaren and Honda have finally called it quits. Sources confirmed to Motorsport.com and Sky Sports that the two companies have finally settled on a deal that will end a partnership that has been nothing but heartache and tears. McLaren has reportedly inked a three-year deal to use Renault engines, ending in 2020 along with the current engine regulations. This also means McLaren driver Fernando Alonso is likely to extend his contract beyond the end of this season. When Honda first announced it was returning to F1 with McLaren, fans had visions of Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button reliving the glory days of Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost in the late 1980s. The truth couldn't be further removed. At points, McLaren has struggled to make it the full race distance, much less win races and fight for championships. Frankly, it's been embarrassing for both Honda and McLaren. No one comes out a winner here. Honda has sullied any reputation it had in F1, while Alonso's talent and McLaren's engineering expertise were both wasted the past few seasons. According to Motorsport.com, McLaren will get the same engine parity as the factory Renault Sport team as well as Red Bull Racing. Assuming that McLaren can provide a competitive chassis, that should vault it at least into the middle of the pack. Team principal Zak Brown hasn't been quiet about his frustrations. After both McLaren drivers failed to finish in Italy, Brown told Sky Sports, "We need to get more competitive. This weekend showed we're not making any significant progress." Meanwhile, Toro Rosso will switch from Renault to Honda power, with Toro Rosso driver Carlos Sainz Jr. making the move to Renault. What that means for Red Bull's junior team is unclear. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

2013 Honda Accord Coupe V6 6MT

One of the first cars I reviewed for Autoblog was - say it with me now - a 2010 Honda Accord Coupe EX-L V6 w/Navi 6MT, perhaps the rarest of all modern Accord models. I mean, think about it: Of all the different Accord variants on the road, how many are coupes? And how many of those have the larger V6 engine? And how many of those are fully loaded with leather, navigation and all the trimmings? And finally, how many of those have option sheets where the only box that isn't checked is the automatic transmission?
That has to be something like one percent of one percent, right?
So when Honda started rolling its all-new 2013 Accord into the test fleet, I was happy to hear that yet another Coupe EX-L V6 w/Navi 6MT model was available out of the Detroit pool. And while this really isn't the car that serves as the control for judging the entire Accord line, it's still one heck of a sweetheart.

Mixed sales results, but automaker stocks rise on need for cars in Houston

DETROIT — The Big Three Detroit automakers on Friday reported better-than-expected August sales and issued optimistic outlooks for demand as residents of the Houston area replace flood-damaged cars and trucks after Hurricane Harvey, sending their stocks higher. General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler posted mixed August U.S. sales, with GM up 7.5 percent and Ford and Fiat Chrysler down. Japanese automaker Toyota improved sales by nearly 7 percent, while Honda fell 2.4 percent. Still, analysts focused on the potential for Detroit automakers to cut inventories and stabilize used vehicle prices as residents of Houston, the fourth largest city in the United States, are forced to replace tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, of vehicles after the devastation from Hurricane Harvey. Mark LaNeve, Ford's U.S. sales chief, told analysts on Friday that following Hurricane Katrina in 2005 "we saw a very dramatic snapback" in demand. That said, Ford sales fell 2.1 percent in August. It sold 209,897 vehicles in the United States, compared with 214,482 a year earlier. Sales were down 1.9 percent in the Ford division and off 5.8 percent at Lincoln. Demand was down for cars, crossovers and SUVs. It was not clear how many vehicles in the Houston area will be scrapped, LaNeve said, saying he had seen estimates ranging from 200,000 to 400,000 to 1 million. Ford's Houston dealers may have lost fewer than 5,000 vehicles in inventory, he said. Ford is the No. 1 automaker in the Houston market, with 18 percent share, according to IHS Markit. The company plans to ship used vehicles to Houston dealers and has "every indication we would have to add some production" of new vehicles to meet demand, LaNeve said. Investor concerns about inventories of unsold vehicles and falling used car prices have weighed on Detroit automakers' shares most of this year. Now, automakers can anticipate a jolt of demand from a big market that is a stronghold for Detroit brand trucks and SUVs. "It's got to be a positive for the industry," LaNeve said. Investors appeared to agree. GM shares rose as much as 3.3 percent to their highest since early March. Ford increased 2.8 percent at $11.34, and Fiat Chrysler's U.S.-traded shares were up 5.2 percent $15.91, hitting their highest in more than five years. GM reported a 7.5 percent increase in U.S. auto sales in August, helped by robust sales of crossovers across its four brands.