2011 Honda Odyssey on 2040-cars

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Honda to compete in seven Pike's Peak classes in 2014

The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is one of the greatest events on the international motorsports calendar. Its Unlimited class harkens back to the old days of racing, when teams built vehicles to be the fastest with whatever they had. Honda is returning to the event for 2014 for its second year as a sponsor and participant, and it's bringing some cool machines of its own.
The company is fielding seven entrants this year, which is somewhat smaller than last year. In 2013, it brought 11 factory-supported vehicles in 10 classes, including an insane Honda Odyssey with a 532-horsepower turbocharged V6 engine. There's no need to be too disappointed by the shorter list, though. Former 24 Hours of Le Mans-winner Romain Dumas is back piloting a Honda-powered Norma chassis up the hill in the Unlimited class. Dumas attempted to race the car last year, but it broke down during his run. Other competitors include an NSX (pictured above), Fit B-Spec and an S3700, which is an S2000 with a 3.7-liter V6 engine.
In its role as sponsor, Honda says it has also worked with the sanctioning body to add an AirFence safety barrier along some corners for the motorcycle and ATV riders. This year's Pikes Peak is being held on Sunday, June 29. Scroll down to read the full details about Honda's team and start getting excited for this year's running.

McLaren F1 team sets deadline for engine decision amid Renault speculation

BUDAPEST - McLaren says the next five weeks will be the key to deciding which engine it will use next season, with speculation mounting that the former world champions could ditch Honda and switch to Renault. Chief operating officer Jonathan Neale told Reuters at the Hungarian Grand Prix that "everybody is talking to everybody," but time was running out. "We've got to land those decisions in the next four or five weeks," he said, speaking from a design perspective and because drivers like McLaren's Fernando Alonso were waiting to see what engines teams had before committing to new deals. "I think there is a solution out there for everybody and I hope it's one that will be able to retain Fernando in this team." McLaren scored their first double-points finish of the season in Budapest on Sunday with double world champion Alonso finishing sixth, a day after his 36th birthday, and Belgian Stoffel Vandoorne 10th. The nine points lifted McLaren off the bottom of the standings just before the August break and factory shutdown, a result that Neale compared to scoring a goal before halftime. Alonso's future is a key concern, with the Spaniard out of contract and saying McLaren needs to provide a competitive car to keep him. Honda's power unit has been beset with problems since the partnership started in 2015, the engine neither reliable nor competitive. Hungary, the slowest permanent circuit on the calendar, reduced those shortcomings, but the next two races in Belgium and Italy are two of the fastest, where engine horsepower is of critical importance. McLaren is Honda's sole team in Formula One. A proposed partnership with Sauber terminated last week with the Swiss team choosing to stay with Ferrari. A split from McLaren could force the Japanese manufacturer out of the sport, but Neale hinted at an alternative. "You'll have seen the media speculation that there's discussions with Toro Rosso," he said. Toro Rosso use Renault engines, but a switch to Honda — which could bring welcome funding to a team whose Red Bull parent has considered a sale in the past — would free the French units for McLaren. The Renault engine has won a race this season with Red Bull and could satisfy Alonso, who won both his titles with the French manufacturer. The other alternatives to Honda are Mercedes and Ferrari, but Neale recognized that putting a Ferrari engine in a McLaren, the Italian team's historic arch-rivals, was highly unlikely.

Will states start to prevent you from registering cars that have pending recalls?

The impact of 2014 – henceforth known as Year of the Recalls – will have long-ranging consequences on the auto industry. One of the biggest changes, though, might not be in the way manufacturers inform the government of pending recalls or in the way Uncle Sam punishes automakers that violate its rules, but in the ability to sell cars with pending recalls. And strangely enough, the charge is being led by an automaker. Honda Executive Vice President Rick Schostek, pictured above, argued during a meeting of the Senate Transportation Committee that the government needs to take a role in mandating that consumers have recall services performed. That could include withholding registration for vehicles with pending recalls, Bloomberg reports. Honda is just one of the automakers currently embroiled in the massive Takata airbag recall. "It's a good idea," safety advocate Clarence Ditlow said, according to Bloomberg. "California won't give you a registration if you have an emissions recall. Why not a safety recall?" "Honda is going to use any innovative tools to find customers and get these recalls done," Schostek told the Transportation Committee. The exec, aside from echoing Ditlow's viewpoint, also argued for requiring dealerships and garages to inform vehicle owners of incomplete recalls, regardless of the service provided. Schostek also made an argument that state governments could step in, as well. Whatever ends up happening, it's fair to say that between Takata and General Motors, the future of recalls for American consumers are set for significant changes. News Source: BloombergImage Credit: J. Scott Applewhite / AP Government/Legal Recalls Honda Ownership Safety