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Mazda3 sales off to rocky start despite massive critical acclaim

Like just about every other auto publication we've seen, we loved the way the Mazda3 drove when we reviewed it a few months ago, but those glowing reviews apparently aren't helping its sales. The new compact may be falling victim to a sales war between the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic, with the newcomer getting squeezed out by those with more established names and bigger marketing budgets.
According to Automotive News, Mazda3 sales have fallen every month since last August, and its sales are down 27 percent in the first two months of 2014. It certainly isn't helping that the entire compact segment is down five percent this year as well.
The biggest problem for the new model seems to be its price compared to rivals. Mazda is not offering the incentives that are on the hood of competitors. With the previous generation, the company offered more than $2,700 on the hood to move them out, but the current model only carries about $1,233 in markdowns, according to AN.

Honda making hydrogen from solar power in UK

Honda is going to launch a hydrogen-powered production vehicle (its second, really) next year, but the all-important H2 infrastructure question hasn't been fully answered yet. One possible solution is being tested over in the United Kingdom, where Honda is turning solar energy and water into hydrogen at its Swindon plant. SHD Logistics says the plant is the UK's "first commercial-scale hydrogen production and refuelling facility powered by solar energy." Despite the presence of an FCX Clarity in some pictures from the ribbon cutting, it's unclear if the station will be able to fuel any passenger cars. SHD Logistics talks about sending the hydrogen from where it is generated on the Honda plant grounds into the plant using 300-meter underground pipes so that hydrogen forklifts can refuel as needed. Two hydrogen fuel cell trucks used by Briggs Equipment UK, Honda's partner in the station, will also refuel at the plant. Honda said earlier this year that it, along with partner GM, would work to reduce the costs of a hydrogen refueling infrastructure. Solar-powered hydrolysis – which is what the Swindon facility uses – doesn't sound cheap to us, but at least it reduces the overall environmental costs, compared to using electricity generated from fossil fuels.

2015 Pikes Peak Hill Climb: Practice Day 1

Based on what we learned from the first day of practice for the 2015 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, the quickest race pace up the paved road to more than 14,000 feet above sea level may not be from internal combustion locomotion anymore. "If it all goes well, and the planets align, [under nine minutes] shouldn't be out of the question," said Paul Wilding, team manager for Nobuhiro "Monster" Tajima's Rimac Automobili Monster Sport E-Runner entry. Wilding added that if Tajima's car held up during the week it could finish first overall, which would be the first time an EV takes the overall crown at the hill climb. Last year, the gap between overall winner Romain Dumas' Norma M20 RD Limited and the fastest EV was just over two seconds. In the 2014 race, Tajima finished third in his class. "We think this car is the fastest way up now," said Wilding. "There's no affect from the altitude – this car is a monster, our driver is a monster." The practice, which isn't mandatory but is sanctioned by race officials, concluded Tuesday morning with a few surprises ahead of Sunday's race. Tajima will be racing for the fourth consecutive year in the all-electric modified division. Wilding said today's conditions weren't ideal and the race Sunday could be more challenging than initially expected. "It was a lot bumpier than we expected today," he said. "But today means nothing. It was all [reconnaissance]. Tomorrow means everything." The Honda ARX-04B LMP2 prototype brought to Pikes Peak had a difficult start to the week. Honda Racing spokesman Eric Mauck said the car struggled and didn't run in practice Tuesday. "We're looking for data and research more than anything else," Mauck said. "We're not going for Sebestain's record this year, we're just looking to gather information for years to come." Colorado-native, Honda driver, and Formula E racer Justin Wilson will pilot the LMP2 up the mountain Wednesday – assuming the car is ready. "He's obviously a guy that Honda thinks very highly of. Anytime we have an opportunity to put Justin behind the wheel of anything we want to," Mauck said. Honda driver Tetsuya Yamano, who is driving an all-electric Honda CR-Z in the exhibition class, echoed Mauck's assessment. "We're not making a racecar," Yamano said through an interpreter. "This is part of [research and development] and we're looking to get as much data back to engineers in Japan as possible ...