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UK auto magazine says this is the best car commercial of all time [w/videos]

There have been many great car commercials over the years, but is it possible to define the best? Well, Ad Week recently took a crack at it by rating the top commercials of the year by looking at their view counts on YouTube, but Auto Express took a more democratic approach by putting the decision to a vote. Just after Thanksgiving, Auto Express came up with a list of the 20 popular commercials, and it tasked its readers with choosing the winner for the best car ad of all time. The winner? Honda's 2003 commercial for its then-new European Accord titled "The Cog."
While the ad never aired in the US, most car people have surely seen the impressive Rube Goldberg-style spot. In fact, the only commercial on this list that we saw on US television was the Volkswagen ad "The Force," but many of the others have become viral videos, including transforming and dancing Citroën C4. Of the 19 other commercials that vied for the title of best ad of all time, only the Ford Puma "Steve McQueen" commercial gave Honda a run for its advertising money.
Scroll down to watch Auto Express' top five commercial in order and to check out a press release, then let us know some of your favorite car commercials in Comments.

One lucky customer got the first HondaJet for Christmas

The wait is finally over – for one fortunate customer, at least. After an extensive gestation period, the Honda Aircraft Company has delivered the first HondaJet to its eagerly awaiting new owner. And with it, the Japanese industrial giant has stepped into yet another territory of motorized transportation. Though Honda first started experimenting with aircraft as far back as the 1980s, the development of the HondaJet as we now know it dates back to the late 1990s when designer Michimasa Fujino – now chief executive of the Honda Aircraft Company – first penned its form. The company has been working on getting it into the air and into customer hands ever since, with that process culminating now on no less fitting a day than just this past Christmas Eve. Following the type certification received from the Federal Aviation Administration earlier this month, the handover of the first customer aircraft took place at the company's headquarters at Piedmont Triad International Airport in Greensboro, NC. That's where Honda will be producing all its aircraft, performing service and maintenance, and training its customer pilots, which has already begun on its on-site, full-motion flight simulator. A network of dealers handles sales across North America, South America, and Europe. The company did not disclose the identity of the first customer, but suffice it to say it was not Jenson Button – even though he is, once again, driving a Honda-powered F1 car. The HondaJet HA-420 is classified as a very light business jet, measuring 42 feet and 7 inches long with a 39'9" wingspan. Power comes from a pair of turbofan engines produced by Honda and General Electric, each good for over 2,000 pounds of thrust and together are capable of propelling the aircraft to a cruising speed of 435 miles per hour or a top speed of 483 mph. That makes the HA-420 far and away the fastest vehicle Honda makes across numerous modes of transportation. In addition to cars, trucks, and jets, the company produces motorcycles, ATVs, marine engines, and lawnmowers, making it one of the most diverse manufacturers in the industry. Related Video: Honda Aircraft Company Begins HondaJet Deliveries Dec 23, 2015 - GREENSBORO, N.C. Honda Aircraft Company today announced it has begun deliveries of the HondaJet, the world's most advanced light jet. The company delivered the first aircraft today at its world headquarters in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Honda's hot new Civic Type R finally hatches in production form [w/video] [UPDATE]

UPDATE: A previous version of this article incorrectly indicated that the vehicle in question is the most powerful hot hatch ever made. As some commenters pointed out, the Ford Focus RS500 was more powerful by some 40 horsepower. We've updated the text below accordingly. Takanobu Ito may be stepping down as president and CEO of Honda, but as far as performance machinery is concerned, he'll be leaving the company in good shape. Not only has he ushered Honda back into Formula One – reviving the legendary partnership with McLaren – but he's also brought back two performance icons: the NSX and the Civic Type R. The former is making its European debut here at the Geneva Motor Show after its premier in Detroit, but alongside it we're seeing for the first time the production version of the latter. Not that it's exactly our first look at the new hot hatch. We've seen it testing, seen a couple of concept versions and even drove an early prototype. But after that whole lengthy process, it's finally here. (Or there, we should say, because it won't be coming to America. At least not in its current form.) What we're looking at, according to the manufacturer, is not only the fastest and most powerful front-drive hot hatch it's ever made, but on the market altogether. It packs a 2.0-liter VTEC turbo four kicking out 306 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque – the most powerful production engine the company has ever offered – said to be enough to propel the new Civic Type R to 62 in 5.7 seconds and on to a top speed of 167 miles per hour. That's a whole lot of muscle to channel to the front wheels, but Honda's surely done its best to keep it all under control. It's got an old-school six-speed manual transmission, electric power steering, 19-inch wheels, Brembo brakes, adaptive dampers and a suspension designed to combat torque steer and tuned to enhance high-speed stability and support hard cornering. In addition to extensive testing at locations including the Nurburgring, Suzuka and the company's own Takasu test track, the new Civic Type R has also undergone considerable CFD and wind tunnel testing to tune the aerodynamics. The resulting appendages may be toned down slightly from the concepts, but still make quite a visual impact – to say nothing of generating much-needed downforce to keep this sucker glued to the road or track.