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2015 Mexican Grand Prix is a lot like old times

The last time Formula One visited Mexico, in 1992, 26 cars powered by eight engine manufacturers (counting Honda and Mugen-Honda separately) lined up on the grid; it would have been nine engine makers but the Brabham-Judd cars failed to qualify. In 1992 Lewis Hamilton was seven years old, Sebastian Vettel was five, Max Verstappen was still five years away from being born. Two of the current Sky Sports F1 commentary team, Martin Brundle and Johnny Herbert, were drivers. The starting three were Nigel Mansell on pole – 39 years old, this the year he'd win his only World Championship – and Riccardo Patrese both driving Williams-Renault cars, followed by Michael Schumacher in a Benetton-Ford. Only 13 of the 26 starters would finish. The circuit is has been reworked to today's safer standards, the track surface is brand new and slippery, but the atmosphere and packed grandstands haven't changed. Nico Rosberg was another point of consistency, scoring pole position for the fourth race in a row to beat his now-World-Champion teammate Hamilton by almost two-tenths of a second. The last time Rosberg turned pole position into a victory? The Spanish Grand Prix back in May. Vettel locked up third for Ferrari, followed by the Infiniti Red Bull Racing duo of Daniil Kvyat and Daniel Ricciardo. Williams went two-up as well, Valtteri Bottas in sixth ahead of Felipe Massa in seventh. Max Verstappen turned in a great late lap to reserve eighth place, Sergio Perez did all he could in front of his home crowd to get ninth, teammate Nico Hulkenberg the caboose in the top ten. In that 1992 race the first three on the grid finished the race in the same order after Mansell dominated, and it was almost the same in 2015. If Rosberg had driven the whole season like he drove today the Driver's World Championship would still be up for grabs. He got a great start and held his line through the first corner, coming out ahead of Hamilton through the initial kinks, pulling away as soon as he got to the straight. Hamilton was never more than a few seconds behind, but every time the Brit inched closer the German found a few more tenths to keep his distance. The field got bunched up when the Safety Car came out on Lap 53 after Vettel spun and got stuck in the barriers, but Rosberg handled the restart perfectly. Both drivers made small mistakes in the last few laps while driving on the edge, but Rosberg earned a strong victory, crossing the line two seconds ahead of his teammate.

Honda squeezes in 9 Fit customs at SEMA

Honda is displaying a heap of customized Fit hatchbacks at this week's SEMA in Las Vegas. Nine of the modded little econoboxes are on the floor showing off wildly divergent takes on the Japanese automaker's most affordable offering. The company has reason to celebrate the new vehicle, too, because it's been dubbed this year's "Hottest Sport Compact" award at the event.
Six of the custom Fits come from a contest that Honda ran online challenging various tuners to come up with their own take on the new model. People could then follow along online as Tjin Edition, Bisimoto Engineering, Kontrabrands, MAD Industries, Spoon Sports USA and Kenny Vinces worked on the cars. In the end, the version from Tjin (pictured above) with its subdued green paint, huge fender flares and ground-hugging stance was named the fan favorite.
In addition to those cars, Honda also has three other modded Fits on display. Honda Performance Development is showing off one in full B-spec racer trim, Honda Genuine Accessories has an example displaying all of its dealer-installed parts, and there's another model tuned by Bisimoto, as well.

SEMA Honda Civic show cars prove the model's continuing tuner appeal

Anyone familiar with the import tuning scene knows that the Honda Civic has been a staple for decades, and Honda's display at the 2016 SEMA show shows its potential to continue the tuning legacy. The company tapped three outside companies to create custom Civic models, and also showed its own work. First up is a bright yellow Civic Coupe from perennial SEMA show builder, TJIN Edition. In addition to giving it a name that will give editors nightmares, TJIN gave the Civic modifications to its appearance and handling with the goal of making it the "ultimate street cruiser." Up front is a front lip spoiler from Apollo Top One Auto Part, and the side skirts and rear bumper are Honda Factory Performance accessories. The car is lowered on BC Racing BR Series coilover suspension, and sits atop Rotiform OZT wheels. For stopping, the Civic uses Baer brakes. The yellow color scheme is also carried inside with Katzkin leather and suede seats. MAD Industries took a similar tack to TJIN Edition in focusing on handling and appearance. The company gave it carbon fiber ground effects from Carbon 2 Carbon, along with some special touches such as a single, center-exit exhaust out the rear bumper. The car also features Eibach Pro Kit springs and Toyo T1R tires wrapped around Rotiform QLB wheels. Inside, black leather and suede seats get blue stitching, and various parts of the dashboard received a splash of blue as well. Meguiar's Civic X Concept was apparently inspired by '90s tuner cars. The company lowered its 2016 Civic sedan on a coilover suspension and gave it some classic SSR mesh wheels. The hood has been replaced with a carbon fiber version, and black accents on the mirrors and door handles complement it. The interior is finished in red and black Alcantara, and gets an upgraded sound system with multiple amplifiers and subwoofers. Some modifications by Greddy have been made under the hood as well, but no details were given. We do spot a front-mounted intercooler, so we imagine this Civic is a bit more potent than the standard turbo model. Honda also showed a race-prepped version of the Civic Coupe that will be eligible for racing in America and around the world. Among the modifications done to it are an FIA-certified roll cage and an absolutely enormous wing. The car will make its racing debut at this year's 25 Hours of Thunderhill in December.