2012 Honda Odyssey Touring on 2040-cars

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Honda demonstrates driverless valet parking system with special Fit EVs

There are many challenges that will need to be sorted out before full autonomous driving becomes a reality, but automakers are taking small steps toward this advancement with semi-autonomous technologies. Nissan, Toyota and Ford have already revealed various automated driving systems, and now Honda is getting into the game with an automatic valet parking system that was unveiled recently at the Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) World Congress in Tokyo.
Unlike Ford's recently demonstrated self-parking Focus, which is fully operational on its own, Honda's new system requires input from the parking lot via cameras. Combining information provided by the car's rearview camera as well as cameras positioned around the parking lot, drivers are able to drop their car off at a central location, and using a touchscreen display, the car can park itself and return when the driver is ready to leave. The benefit of this is that multiple cars can be parked at the same time and no additional sensors (other than a backup camera) are needed for the car, but the downside is that it can only operate on properly equipped parking lots. According to Honda's demonstration, this system can be practical by 2020.
Honda also showed off some semi-autonomous driving and non-contact electric vehicle recharging technologies at the ITS World Congress, although information is limited and there are no demonstrations available. Scroll down to read more about Honda's latest tech, including a video demonstration of the automatic valet parking system.

180,000 new vehicles are sitting, derailed by lack of transport trains

If you're planning on buying a new car in the next month or so, you might want to pick from what's on the lot, because there could be a long wait for new vehicles from the factory. Locomotives continue to be in short supply in North America, and that's causing major delays for automakers trying to move assembled cars.
According to The Detroit News, there are about 180,000 new vehicles waiting to be transported by rail in North America at the moment. In a normal year, it would be about 69,000. The complications have been industry-wide. Toyota, General Motors, Honda and Ford all reported experiencing some delays, and Chrysler recently had hundreds of minivans sitting on the Detroit waterfront waiting to be shipped out.
The problem is twofold for automakers. First, the fracking boom in the Bakken oil field in the Plains and Canada is monopolizing many locomotives. Second, the long, harsh winter is still causing major delays in freight train travel. The bad weather forced trains to slow down and carry less weight, which caused a backup of goods to transport. The auto companies resorted to moving some vehicles by truck, which was a less efficient but necessary option.

Honda recalling nearly 900,000 Odyssey minivans over fire fear

Honda is recalling nearly 900,000 2005 to 2010 model year Odyssey minivans due to a fault with the fuel pump that could cause them to catch fire.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration filling, if exposed to "acidic chemicals and a high temperature environment," the cover of the fuel pump strainer could crack and cause a gasoline smell in the minivan or possibly allow the fuel to leak out. Denso supplied the fuel pumps on the vehicles, and the report says that Honda first began studying the problem in October 2012 but didn't finally confirm the cause until March 6, 2014. The recall affects 886,815 Odysseys, and Honda has received 187 warranty claims related to the issue. However, there have been no fires or injures reported.
Unfortunately, Honda says that it currently doesn't have enough replacement fuel pumps to fix all of the vehicles and doesn't expect to have the parts ready until this summer. It's sending a letter to owners telling them about the recall and is sending a second notification when the pieces are at dealers. The entire notification including affected VINs can be viewed as a PDF here, and the shortened version from the NHTSA can be viewed below.