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Honda slowing US production due to ports dispute

The labor dispute that idled 29 ports on the West Coast last the weekend, including Los Angeles and Long Beach, CA, is about to make its effects felt on the showroom floor, according to Reuters. Honda, Toyota and Subaru have been trying to work around the labor disagreement, cutting overtime and airlifting parts to factories, but Honda says parts shortages at plants in Indiana, Ohio and Ontario, Canada, are now severe enough to impede production. The lack of transmissions and some electronic components will slow output of the Honda Accord, Civic, and CR-V – as well as unnamed Acuras. The three affected factories will rework their production schedules from Feb. 16-23. The ports have reopened this week, and US Labor Secretary Tom Perez has flown to San Francisco to mediate a new agreement between the 20,000 dockworkers represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents the terminals and shipping companies. Talks have been going on for almost nine months and the issues aren't settled; meanwhile, the West Coast ports that handle half the nation's maritime cargo and 70 percent of cargo from Asia are putting all kinds of industries on the ropes, and it's estimated to cost the economy $2 billion a day. Related Video: News Source: ReutersImage Credit: MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images Government/Legal Plants/Manufacturing UAW/Unions Acura Honda Crossover Sedan

Acura recalls 10k RLX models for headlight replacement

Acura is recalling 9,700 examples of the 2014 and 2015 RLX in the US to replace their headlights. The problem is that the reflective backing material inside the units can potentially delaminate. If this happens, then the luxury sedans no longer conform to federal safety guidelines. The automaker knows of no injuries or crashes related to this issue, though. The 2014 RLX has been subject to two other recalls. One covered loose bolts in the rear suspension, and the other was to replace the front seat belts. RLX owners should receive mailed notification of the recall around February. This campaign comes hot on the heels of Acura issuing a stop-sale for the TLX V6 for a risk of possible rollaway. Scroll down to read the company's entire announcement of its latest recall. Statement by Acura Regarding Headlight Recall: 2014-2015 Acura RLX Approximately 9,700 model-year 2014-2015 RLX vehicles affected in the U.S. Headlight assemblies in affected vehicles to be replaced, free of charge TORRANCE, Calif. – Dec. 11, 2014 – Acura will voluntarily recall approximately 9,700 model-year 2014-2015 RLX vehicles in the United States to replace both headlight assemblies, free of charge. The reflective film backing material inside the headlights may delaminate, which may result in the vehicle no longer conforming to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 108. No crashes or injuries have been reported related to this issue. Acura is announcing this recall to encourage all owners who purchased an affected vehicle to take it to an authorized dealer as soon as they receive notification of this recall from Acura. Mailed notification to customers will begin in early-Feb. In addition, owners of these vehicles can determine if their vehicles require repair by going to recalls.acura.com or by calling (800) 382-2238 and selecting option 4. # # #

Acura Integra Luggage Test: How big is the trunk?

The new 2023 Acura Integra, just like the original 1986 Acura Integra, has four doors and a hatchbacked trunk. That lends it more versatility than a regular enclosed trunk, and judging by the official cargo capacity numbers, more space, too. On paper, it wows with 24.3 cubic-feet, which would in theory be better than some small crossovers like the Mazda CX-30 and Subaru Crosstrek. It should also kick the luggage-testing snot out of the Honda Civic, with which it shares so much. That car, including the Civic Si, has a 14.8 cubic-foot trunk.  In theory, the Integra should be able to stuff 10 cubic-feet worth of extra luggage in its hatchbacked cargo area than the Civic can. Let's not bury the lede, here: Ah, no it can't. Not even close. The Integra can carry less stuff than a Civic sedan. Ditto a Mazda CX-30 and Subaru Crosstrek, for that matter. No matter what else is about to follow, though, this shot is ultimately an important one. Look at that opening! It's huge and obviously makes loading so much easier. Remove the cargo cover and lower the seats, and you also have substantially better maximum cargo capacity and versatility than any sedan could provide.  It also lets a 2-year-old do this. OK, now that small people storage is out of the way, let's talk about the cargo cover. It is a gigantic mesh piece bracketed my rigid plastic. This means that you're pretty much screwed if you suddenly need space beyond what's below the cover. You ain't storing this thing inside the car. There is a slight silver lining, however, which I'll get to momentarily.  First, let's see how many bags fit with the cover in place (ish).  As in every luggage test I do, I use two midsize roller suitcases that would need to be checked in at the airport (26 inches long, 16 wide, 11 deep), two roll-aboard suitcases that just barely fit in the overhead (24L x 15W x 10D), and one smaller roll-aboard that fits easily (23L x 15W x 10D). I also include my wife's fancy overnight bag just to spruce things up a bit (21L x 12W x 12D). That's all the big bags up there, but as you can see (above right), the blue bag is totally smashed. I couldn't do that if there was actually something in the bag. Ergo, forget this. This would be the four biggest bags plus the fancy bag, which is still a bit squished but usable. There is still an issue, though. The black bag at the upper right forced the cargo cover up and out of its bracket when the trunk lid was closed. The trunk still closed, though.