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Honda Jazz Prototype is brand's latest production-ready 'concept'

Another auto show, another Honda "prototype." The brand has made something of a habit of showing very thinly veiled production models at the world's auto shows, ranging from the Accord, to the Civic and Civic Type-R, as well as the CR-V. And yes, this is far from the first time we've railed against this particular trend (it's not even the first time at this auto show). Now, it's time to preview the production-ready Jazz, known to American consumers as the recently released Fit.
As we covered in our original post on the Jazz Prototype, this car is pretty much a twin to the Fit, aside from its 1.3-liter engine. Sitting in place of the US-market 1.5-liter four-cylinder, the Earth Dreams 1.3 is probably a bit more suited to the tighter urban environments of the European Union. While the engine might be different, the six-speed manual and continuously variable transmission will be plenty familiar to US consumers.
We have a full live gallery of the new Jazz Prototype at the top of the page. Take a look at that, and then scroll down for Honda's press release and official images.

2016 Honda Civic pricing leaked, starts at $19,475

You're going to get a whole load of 2016 Honda Civic information very, very soon. As a teaser, take a look at this pricing information on Honda's latest compact sedan, leaked by the folks at the civicx.com forums. As you can see, both invoice and retail pricing is included in this dealer ordering guide, and, assuming it's all legit, it looks like Honda has done a very good job of keeping its 2016 Civic competitive with its rivals in the compact segment. At the low end, a 2016 Civic LX with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and six-speed manual transmission will cost $19,475 (including an $835 destination fee). That's a $150 increase from 2015. Considering that the new car is larger and more powerful than it was last year, that small additional cost initially strikes us as reasonable. If you want an automatic, in this case a continuously variable unit paired to that same naturally aspirated base engine, you're looking at a minimum of $20,275. More good news comes in the form of the EX trim, which, at $21,875, is actually a little bit less than it was last year. Upgrading to the 1.5-liter turbocharged powerplant, which Honda promises will be the most powerful engine it has ever offered in a Civic not labeled Si, brings the asking price to $23,035. If you want leather and more bells and whistles, the Civic EX-L will start at $24,535. The Civic range tops out at $27,335 in Touring trim, assuming these leaked prices are accurate. We'll be able to confirm these prices, along with a whole heck of a lot more, on Monday morning. In other words, Civic fans, stay tuned. And get excited. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2016 Honda Civic Sedan News Source: www.civicx.com Honda Car Buying Sedan pricing

China's auto sales continue to drop

The days of unending growth of carmakers in China look to be over, and some analysts are even forecasting a net drop in volume this year, The Detroit News reports. After falling numbers in June and July, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers tallied total sales, including trucks and buses, in August to 1.7 million, down 3 percent from 2014. There were some tiny specs of good news in China, but there's no turnaround in sight. Total vehicle sales from January to August are actually still up but only 2.6 percent. Like the rest of the world, SUVs are booming with numbers up 45.6 percent from the previous year. Honda managed a very impressive 50.7 percent gain on the strength of the CR-V and Vezel (the HR-V here), according to The Detroit News. Also, the country's domestic automakers, which generally offer less expensive products, posted a 2.5 percent growth in sales. The news continues to look bad for Detroit's automakers, though. Volume from General Motors dropped 4.8 percent in August, and Ford fell 3 percent in August. Both of them have invested significant amounts there in the past years. The vehicle industry in China grew last year, but there was burgeoning evidence of weakness. At the end of 2014, dealers there pushed back against huge inventories pushed by automakers. Even before the big drops began in June, GM saw the writing on the wall and started cutting prices. BMW responded to the slump by cutting back production to deal with the changing demand. News Source: The Detroit NewsImage Credit: Mark Schiefelbein / AP Photo BMW Ford GM Honda Car Buying