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Honda Civic poised to get new Earth Dreams engines

When Honda executed its emergency refresh of the Civic for 2013, it didn't do any massive powertrain reworking. But that doesn't mean new things aren't already in the works for Honda's compact. According to Automotive News, Honda has confirmed that it will offer the Civic with a new Earth Dreams powerplant sometime in the future, though details on timing and exactly what sort of engine are unclear as of this writing.
The confirmation comes from Honda's executive vice president and regional director for North America, Tetsuo Iwamura, who says that the Earth Dreams engine will come when the Civic is re-engineered or redesigned, not during a refresh. There is also no mention of whether these changes will apply to just the standard Civic, or if the Si and Hybrid models will receive some Dreamy new tech, as well.
The entire Earth Dreams group of technologies encompasses more than just naturally aspirated engines with direct injection. A turbo-diesel engine is also part of this suite, as are new continuously variable transmissions and new gasoline-electric hybrid powerplants. Honda launched its 2.4-liter and 3.5-liter Earth Dreams engines in the redesigned 2013 Accord.

Honda adopts English as its official language in meetings worldwide

Japanese was clearly the language of operation while we visited Honda's global headquarters in Tokyo last week, as well as its newest factory and principal test track. Chief executive Takanobu Ito (pictured above) spoke to us through an interpreter. But according to the latest reports, the Japanese language is being phased out at Honda in favor of English.
This according to Bloomberg, which points out that tire manufacturer Bridgestone and rival automaker Nissan have implemented similar measures, as have Japanese retail giants Fast Retailing Co. and Rakuten Inc. Honda's shift from Japanese to English comes as part of a shift in focus from central decision-making to a more regional model, but while English has clearly emerged as the international language of business, it's no coincidence that it's also the dominant language here in America. Bloomberg points out that over the 12-month period that ended this past March, North America accounted for a massive 47 percent of Honda's revenues worldwide.

Honda, Nissan and Mazda recalling 3 million vehicles for airbag inflators

Three million more vehicles can be added to the worldwide tally to be repaired for the faulty airbag inflators supplied by Takata. Honda, Nissan, and Mazda have all issued recalls to replace the bad part, including about 1.2 million of them in North America. NHTSA has been investigating all three companies, plus Chrysler and Toyota, for potentially affected vehicles.
Honda is recalling roughly 1.02 million Civic, CR-V, Odyssey and Element models In North America, built between April 2000 and October 2002. Mazda needs to repair 14,794 units of the RX-8 and Mazda6, and Nissan has 228,000 vehicles in North America to be fixed.
Chrysler is also starting what it calls a "regional field action" to replace the inflators in the 2006 Dodge Charger, according to a company spokesperson. The company says that it has not yet found the problem in any of its vehicles, but it's being done "out of an abundance of caution." The final number of Chargers affected will be announced later this week.