2010 Acura Tsx on 2040-cars

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Turbo Honda S2000 could battle Miata and 124 Abarth

Rumors are again swirling that Honda could have a new sports car under development to slot below the forthcoming NSX. Autocar claims the model would revive the S2000 name, but offer 1.5- and 2.0-liter turbocharged units at the front to drive the rear wheels. Autocar alleges this info comes from unnamed "company insiders," and asserts the new S2000 could have a base model with a 1.5-liter turbo that makes about 180 hp – almost 60 hp down from the original convertible. However, a hotter version – possibly with Type R badging – would reportedly have a detuned form of the 306-hp 2.0-liter in the Civic Type R. Both trims would have a six-speed manual. Competing rumors contend that Honda could be developing two different performance models. Patent images suggest the company might have a smaller version of the NSX under consideration in addition to the rumored S200 revival. The mid-engine coupe would allegedly use a hybrid powertrain based on the Civic Type R's engine to make a total of about 400 hp. However, Autocar claims the S2000 successor has the higher priority of the pair, but it doesn't mention where the info comes from. The Honda S660 kei car on sale in Japan shows that the brand is willing to dabble in new sports cars, but that convertible isn't practical for the US market, according to the automaker's bosses. Dealers meanwhile continue to beg a performance model in the lineup, so it's possible one of these rumored projects eventually could arrive in showrooms. Related Video:

2023 Acura Integra looks a little Civic-like in spy photos

After a couple of fairly revealing teasers, we finally have a good look at what seems to be the real-life 2023 Acura Integra. It comes to us via a member of IntegraForums.com, and, certainly a number of the styling cues match up to the teasers, but we're also detecting a bit of Civic influence. Of course, that wouldn't be a surprise considering the size of the upcoming Integra, or even the model's history. Up at the front, the Integra is Acura business as usual. It has the hawk-eye headlights and wide pentagonal grille with a sort of starburst grille mesh. The hood has nice creases and curves that flow into the front fascia. Along the sides are where we see a bit of what seems like Civic influence bleed through, mainly with the greenhouse. The shape of the windows and frames in the doors look very close to those on the Civic hatchback. Even the door-mounted mirrors look similar. But there are aspects that differentiate it. Most notably, there seems to be a diagonal crease that starts low on the front wheel well and rises up toward the rear fenders. It gives the car a lower, more curvy look than the square-shouldered Civic. It also helps add some visual heft to the rear fenders. At the back, the hatchback design is obvious, and also lends further credence to our theory the car is Civic-based. But obviously it's been majorly tweaked for the Acura. The bottom sill for the hatch looks much higher than on the Civic, and the shut line matches the slender taillights (which seem to be dead ringers for the teaser rendering). All of this helps the tail of the Acura look low and wide, including the location of the license plate in the bumper instead of the hatch. So it seems like the Integra will be based on the Civic, but with plenty of changes. And that's pretty much how the Integra and even its interim replacement, the ILX, have been. They've all been derived from the Civic, often with major design and mechanical differences. Also, with how excellent we've found the new Civic, it's a great starting point for Acura's new entry-level model. The car will be revealed fully next spring, and we should have many more details then. Related Video: 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback Sport Touring Inside and Out | Autoblog

Hands-on with Acura's novel touchpad infotainment interface

After Acura's Precision Cockpit was unveiled here in LA, I sat in the, uh, driver's seat of the wheel-less interior mockup to get a feel for how this new touchscreen-free touch interface works. There are a lot of good ideas inside. Here are 11 things you should know. It's less like a trackpad and more like a remote-control tablet. So instead of letting you move a cursor relative to its last location like the trackpad on a laptop, each point on Acura's trackpad is mapped to a corresponding point on the center display. If you want what's in the upper right corner of the display, you touch and click in the upper right corner of the trackpad. Simple. I figured it out in two minutes. Maybe less. The whole thing is surprisingly intuitive. The ease of use is helped by the fact that the targets on the screen are pretty big – no tiny "buttons" to fiddle with. The clicks are real. The trackpad actually moves when you press down, so no need for simulated haptic feedback. In their research, Acura engineers found that accidental touches and presses are a real issue. We could have told them that – hit a bump while using a finicky remote interface like Lexus's all-but-abandoned joystick thing, and you select an item half-way across the screen from the one you intended. The placement of the trackpad in this concept interior also helps avoid unintentional inputs – it's not in the middle of the center console where it might get brushed or bumped, but instead in its own little cave at the base of the center-stack waterfall. (Acura's low-profile button-based transmission selector suddenly makes a whole lot of sense.) View 13 Photos Lots of cues cut down on distraction. You hover over the option you want before positively confirming the selection with a hard press. There's no cursor to find and reposition like in the Lexus trackpad system The red highlight gives the necessary visual cue that you put your finger in the right place. The pad is slightly dished to give you a tactile cue of where the center and edges are. It allows you to build up muscle memory, sort of like how you know generally where the "keys" are on your smartphone or tablet's virtual keyboard by now. Or at least I do on mine. You look at the screen, not what you're touching. The problem with touch screens is that they have to be low down in the car so you can reach them. That means you have to look down from the road to stab at what you want.