2001 Honda Civic on 2040-cars

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Detroit automakers observing 8:46 of silence to mark Juneteenth

GM Executive Vice President of Global Manufacturing Gerald Johnson, right, talks with employees at the Fairfax Assembly & Stamping Plant in Kansas City, Kansas. (file photo - GM)     All three Detroit automakers are observing Juneteenth, a day commemorating the end of slavery, on Friday by observing 8 minutes and 46 seconds of silence, among other companywide efforts to advance the causes of social and racial justice and equality. Juneteenth marks the date, June 19, in 1865 when Union soldiers, led by Maj. Gen. Gordon Granger, arrived at Galveston, Texas, and announced the Civil War had ended and enslaved African Americans were to be freed. President Abraham Lincoln had officially ended slavery more than two years prior via the Emancipation Proclamation, but Union forces didn't reach Texas until that time, so there was virtually no enforcement. The 8:46 timestamp is significant because it was the length of time that a police officer in Minneapolis knelt on the neck of George Floyd during an arrest, ultimately killing him and sparking waves of protests across the U.S. and overseas. Autoblog asked automakers about their plans to mark Juneteenth, what they were doing to advance the cause of social justice for Black people, and how many African Americans they employ in both blue- and white-collar jobs. We heard back from GM, Ford, Fiat Chrysler and Honda but not from Nissan and Toyota. General Motors GM’s U.S. workforce is 17.2% Black and 69.2% white, according to its most recent corporate Diversity and Inclusion Report. GM's total global employment is 173,000, and it says women and minorities represent 40% of its team of corporate officers. For reference, the Census Bureau says African Americans make up 13.4% of the U.S. population of roughly 328 million people. White people constitute 76.5%. As previously reported, GM planned to pause production at its factories on each shift today and observe silence for 8 minutes and 46 seconds. The company will also have a digital countdown clock atop the GM's headquarters in Detroit for the moment of silence. Additionally, Chairman and CEO Mary Barra has said she will lead a new Inclusion Advisory Board made up of people from within and outside GM to suggest areas for change and hold the company to its commitments to fight injustice and racial inequality.

Honda teases racing motorcycle-powered concept for Frankfurt

With upcoming models like the next-gen Civic and NSX, Honda is working to return to its performance glory days. We'll see one more manifestation of that desire at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show with the Project 2&4 concept. The single teaser image leaves the styling to anyone's guess, but the vehicle is powered by the potent 1.0-liter V4 from the RC213V MotoGP race bike. Stuffing the high-strung motorcycle engine into the car should at least make a great noise. Unfortunately, Honda is keeping the details very scant in the teaser. The Project 2&4 has no cabin and is meant to combine "the freedom of a motorcycle and the maneuverability of a car." That suggests a low-slung, minimalist body with an emphasis on handling, and the image appears to show open wheels at the front and rear. The company also doesn't say whether it has the race bike's full competition engine with over 235 horsepower or the new street version with 157 hp to over 212 hp, depending on the spec. The Project 2&4's shape is the result of a global competition among the brand's studios. The winning design is the result of cooperation from the motorcycle stylists in Asaka, Japan, and the automotive team in Wako, Japan. We're curious to see what it actually looks like in Frankfurt. Honda to Showcase Re-energized Model Range at 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show Honda 2015 model range of entirely all-new and refreshed cars Global premiere of Honda Project 2&4 powered by RC213V, modified for public road use, showcasing Honda's uniquely creative engineering Honda UNI-CUB ? to make its German debut August 26, 2015 - The 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show underlines an important year for Honda and will see the brand presenting its new model range of entirely refreshed and all-new cars displayed together. Alongside the new line-up, Honda will also showcase design concepts and advanced technologies, all demonstrating Honda's unique creativity in meeting the personal mobility challenges of today and the future. Honda Project 2&4 Powered by RC213V – embodiment of creativity and craftsmanship The 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show will witness the global premiere of 'Honda Project 2&4'. A winner of the global design competition run by Honda between its global design studios, Honda Project 2&4 represents the company's drive to inspire and reward creative thinking.

SAE World Congress: Honda FCEV fuel cell stack has cells just 1 mm thin

The only update we have for people who are paying ultra-close attention to the progress of the hydrogen-powered Honda FCEV concept is that we now know how thin the individual cells in the car's fuel cell stack are. Speaking at the 2015 SAE World Congress in Detroit this week, American Honda Motor Company Manager of fuel cell vehicle marketing, Steve Ellis, told AutoblogGreen that the fuel cell stack is now 33-percent smaller and offers a 60-percent improvement in power density. We knew this already. What we didn't know is how Honda got there. Ellis said that these improvements are due in part to a reduction in the size of the fuel cell thickness. Each cell in the stack is one millimeter thick, he said. For everyone who isn't counting the millimeters of this car, here's the broader situation. Honda and the state of California (and others) are working hard on getting H2 infrastructure up can running. "The stations are accelerating as we speak," Ellis said. Three new stations have opened in the last few months and the state has pledged $20 million per year until there are 100 stations in California. Honda has also invested in FirstElement to install stations. The production FCEV will feature a range of over 300 miles and have a three-to-five minute refueling time. The car will launch in Japan in March 2016, with US and European sales starting at some unspecified time after that.