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Honda Odyssey Hybrid greens up your minivan

Almost neglected completely at the Honda press presentation at the Tokyo Motor Show today was what could be a true game changer. Lots of people drive minivans. Lots of people like hybrids. There are even some hybrid minivans for sale in Japan. But Honda has never offered its popular Odyssey premium minivan with a gas-electric powertrain. That's about to change. Too bad this fact was not mentioned at all during the press conference. The hybrid Odyssey was on the show floor, though, and a press pack distributed by Honda says that the minivan will have an updated dual-motor Sport Hybrid i-MMD powertrain "for outstanding environmental performance and powerful acceleration." Honda also says that this is the first time is has put the IPU (the Intelligent Power Unit, made up of the battery and Power Control Unit) under the front row seats. Overall, the powertrain update offers a, "new hybrid driving experience," Honda says, and that now, "the Odyssey Hybrid makes minivan travel more enjoyable than ever." The van also seems to be of a high specification, with plush seats, dark micro-fiber decorating the dash and forward areas, and captains chairs that look primed for napping. Hauling your family the green way comes with some creature comforts, it seems. Honda isn't any details about the environmental benefits of putting a hybrid powertrain into the Odyssey, but when the rumor of this vehicle first appeared, there was talk of a 50-percent reduction in fuel use. For a number of reasons - most important being that the American and Japanese Odysseys are very different vehicles – it's unlikely that a hybrid Odyssey will be available in the US any time soon. Featuring updated SPORT HYBRID i-MMD for outstanding environmental performance and powerful acceleration The most comfortable environment possible for transporting a large number of people. In fulfillment of this concept, the Odyssey premium minivan brings together a generously roomy cabin, distinctive styling, and an exhilarating yet steady driving experience. And now the Odyssey will also be available as a hybrid vehicle. Featur- ing a new power control unit with a compact and concentrated structure for outstanding power density, the innovative dual-motor SPORT HYBRID i-MMD hybrid system offers both outstanding environmental performance and the powerful acceleration of an electric motor.

Buckeye Current back on track at Pikes Peak with new rider [w/video]

After suffering a major setback, the Buckeye Current electric motorcycle racing team of students from Ohio State University looks set to take on the 2015 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on June 28. The squad's longtime rider Rob Barber suffered a crash on the bike during practice for the event. Now, three-time Pikes Peak 450 Pro Class winner Joe Prussiano (pictured above) has taken over to challenge the mountain for the group. In some ways, Buckeye Current is the scrappy underdog of the electric motorcycle racing world. The student team has definitely shown speed, though. In 2013 and 2014, its bikes took consecutive third place finishes in the Isle of Man TT Zero with Barber in the saddle. This year the squad's sights are set on Pikes Peak with a new bike called the RW-3, and the aim is for a possible overall motorcycle record. Utilizing a frame from a Honda CBR1000RR, the students created the 7.8-kWh battery pack, carbon fiber fairing, and electronics system. The team estimates the cycle is making over 134 horsepower and is capable of an average speed of 76 miles per hour up the hill climb. Following Barber's crash, the RW-3 had to be rebuilt, but it has now passed tech inspection to race up the mountain again. Scroll down and check out Prussiano's first ride of the RW-3 on America's Mountain. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. BUCKEYE CURRENT RALLIES TO COMPETE IN THE 2015 PIKES PEAK INTERNATIONAL HILL CLIMB Buckeye Current, the student electric motorcycle team at The Ohio State University, has completed its latest all-electric racing motorcycle. RW-3 will compete in the 2015 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb June 28. This follows on the success of the team's 2013 and 2014 Isle of Man TT Zero performances in which renowned rider Rob Barber piloted the team's RW-2 and then RW-2.X vehicles to third place victories, achieving the title of the world's fastest collegiate electric motorcycle two years in a row. After earning two podium finishes at the Isle of Man, the team was looking ahead to a new challenge. This year the team had to create an entirely new bike to conquer Pikes Peak. RW-3 is designed to average 76 miles per hour through the course with a top speed of 125 miles per hour. The battery pack holds 7.8 kilowatt-hours of energy on board and contains 972 individual 18650 cylindrical battery cells.

2015 Australian Grand Prix all about grooves and trenches [spoilers]

We can't remember the last time 90 percent of the action in Formula One had nothing to do with cars setting timed laps. Yet that's was the situation at the Australian Grand Prix, continuing the antics from a scarcely believable off-season with blow-ups, driver and team absences, a lawsuit, and a clear need for some teams to get down and give us 50 pit stops. Nothing much has changed from a regulation standpoint, and at the front of the field nothing has changed at all. Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes-AMG Petronas claimed the first position on the grid like someone put a sign on it that read, "Reserved for Mr. Hamilton;" teammate Nico Rosberg was 0.6 behind in second, Felipe Massa in the Williams was 1.4 seconds back in third. Sebastian Vettel proved that Ferrari didn't do another Groundhog Day routine this off-season, slotting into fourth. His teammate Kimi Raikkonen was not even four-hundredths of a second behind, ahead of Valtteri Bottas in the second Williams, Daniel Ricciardo in the first Infiniti Red Bull Racing, and rookie Carlos Sainz, Jr. in the first Toro Rosso. Lotus, now powered by Mercedes, got both cars into the top ten with Romain Grosjean in ninth, Pastor Maldonado in the final spot. However, even though the regulations are almost all carryover, in actual fact, everything has changed this year. Mercedes is even faster. Renault is even worse. Ferrari and Lotus are a lot better. Toro Rosso is looking like anything but a junior team. And McLaren is – well, let's not even get into that yet. Furthermore, this weekend was shambles: 15 cars started the race, the smallest naturally-occurring grid since 1963. Manor couldn't get its cars ready before qualifying. Bottas had to pull out after qualifying when he tore a disc in his back and couldn't pass the medical clearance tests. The gearbox in Daniil Kvyat's Red Bull gave out on the lap from the pit to the grid, and to give misery some company, the Honda in Kevin Magnussen's McLaren blew up on the same lap. When the lights went out, Hamilton ran away and was more than a second ahead of his teammate at the end of Lap 1. The advantage disappeared, though, because behind him, at the first corner, we got our first pile-up. As Raikkonen drove around the outside of Vettel at the right-hand Turn 1 it looked like Vettel, going over the kerbing, hopped to his left and bounced into Raikkonen.