2007 Honda Civic Hybrid Sedan 4-door 1.3l on 2040-cars

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Honda expands Takata airbag recall to 5.4M units in the US

While Honda already announced plans to take its front driver's side Takata airbag inflator recall nationwide, the automaker has now officially reported on the number of affected vehicles and the specific models in need of repair. The expanded campaign covers an estimated 5.4 million units across the US, including those already being fixed under the previous regional actions. That number is an expansion of the five million units initially reported by NHTSA. The affected models under the nationwide recall are the 2001-2007 Accord with a four-cylinder engine, 2001-2002 Accord V6, 2001-2005 Civic, 2002-2006 CR-V, 2003-2011 Element, 2002-2004 Odyssey, 2003-2007 Pilot, 2006 Ridegline, 2003-2006 Acura MDX, 2002-2003 TL and 2002 CL. For customers who expressed concern about their vehicle's safety, Honda had already been replacing the inflators nationwide. It's possible for the inflators in these vehicles to rupture when inflating the airbag, spraying metal fragments at occupants. This problem has been blamed for at least five deaths worldwide and at least 139 reported injuries. In its statement, Honda said that it worked with Takata to test the recalled inflators in the original high-humidity recall regions, and there were no abnormal deployments in these evaluations. Honda will begin notifying owners by "over time," according to its statement. Priority will be put on the geographic areas with the highest risk of ruptures. Those in the original recall region were contacted in September. Earlier in December, Honda partnered with Autoliv to supply the automaker with replacement inflators for this campaign. Autoliv predicted it would take six months for deliveries to start. Takata also increased its production of substitute components. Scroll down to read the company's announcement of this nationwide expansion. Statement by American Honda Regarding National Safety Improvement Campaign: Driver's Front Airbag Inflator Supplied by Takata Dec 8, 2014 - TORRANCE, Calif. Honda will voluntarily expand a regional Safety Improvement Campaign initiated in June 2014 (NHTSA No. 14V-351) into a national Safety Improvement Campaign affecting certain 2001 through 2011 Honda and Acura vehicles in the United States to replace the driver frontal airbag inflator, free of charge. Honda is expanding this Safety Improvement Campaign to address concerns raised by its customers whose vehicles were not included in the regional campaign.

The 2017 Honda Ridgeline's innovative bed

Today most truck makers put their emphasis on high-zoot comfy interiors, towing bragging rights, and macho styling (aka my grille's bigger than yours). The "work area," aka the "bed," for the most part, is often an afterthought. Yeah, there have been improvements, but they've come slowly; and frankly most to date have not been very innovative and/or have been poorly executed. A thinking man's truck Since the very first Ridgeline was introduced, and now with the new 2017 model, Honda has done a lot of serious thinking when it comes to the bed – how it's used, and how to make it even more user-friendly. For the most part great ideas abound, while some like the in-bed audio system seem really silly. The two-way tailgate is flat-out brilliant, even if the idea was borrowed from 1970s Detroit station wagons. Other trucks offer optional bumper steps, fold-out steps, or a tailgate step to aid bed access. Good ideas for sure, but Honda's swing-out tailgate solution is so simple and so elegant it hurts; plus it's standard. The Ridgeline's ability to lay 4x8 building material flat on the floor of the bed is a no-brainer, especially for someone who likes to do home projects; yet Honda is the only mid-size truck to offer that capability. The storage trunk in the bed is another super idea – most of the time. Is it perfect? Nope. Some say accessing the bed trunk with a load of mulch is a problem. No argument there, so you plan ahead. Same with accessing the spare tire; it could be a BIG problem with a loaded bed. Then again, how often do you see a Harry Homeowner truck with a loaded bed? The odds are, if you're going to get a flat tire, most likely the bed will be empty. If not, well then you must have angered the gods. Speaking of flat tires, Honda blew it big time here by giving the Ridgeline a temporary spare tire. no truck should ever have a temp tire; full-size spare all the way, baby! No way do I want to have to use a temp tire while carrying a load or towing a trailer. Hopefully they will offer a full-service spare as an option. The funny thing is, the previous model sold in Mexico came with a full-size spare standard. From what I've heard, the reason the American-spec model comes with a temp tire is to save weight; and Honda will do anything to save weight, to improve EPA mileage ratings, even if it's unwise for real-world conditions.

Honda CR-V named Motor Trend SUV of the Year for 2015

Motor Trend has announced the results of its 2015 SUV of the Year competition, and from a field that included the new Porsche Macan, Cadillac Escalade, Subaru Outback, Chevrolet Suburban and BMW X5, the buff book has awarded the gold calipers to the 2015 Honda CR-V. If that result surprises you just a little, well, get to the back of the line.
MT looked at six different categories ranging from overall design to efficiency - both fuel economy and carbon footprint - to safety and value to pick its winner, singling out the refreshed Honda while paying particular praise to its new 2.4-liter Earth Dreams four-cylinder engine and continuously variable transmission. A tighter steering ratio was also cited as a big source of improvement.
"There was a lot of contentious debate," MT Technical Director Frank Markus told Autoblog, indicating that nearly half the judges approached the final round of voting with an eye towards the redesigned Jeep Cherokee. "This year's field included some pretty fancy and fast iron, but the thoughtful changes made by Honda to hone its best-seller entry in that crowded compact cross-over segment really did the trick."