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Texas teen is 10th Takata airbag victim

A 17-year-old high school senior from Richmond, Texas, died in a 2002 Honda Civic on March 31 after the Takata-supplied airbag inflator ruptured. This is the 10th fatality linked to the faulty parts in the US. Honda and US regulators confirmed that the airbag exploded, according to Reuters. The fatal incident occurred when the Civic's driver rear-ended a Honda CR-V. The teen was wearing a seatbelt and wasn't speeding. "Everybody should have walked away from this," Fort Bend County Sheriff's Deputy Danny Beckwith told Reuters. However, a piece of shrapnel from the inflator cut the driver's carotid artery, and the person died. With this latest fatality, there have been 10 deaths and over 100 injuries in the US from exploding airbag inflators. Nine of the deaths have happened in Honda vehicles. The other was in a Ford Ranger pickup. Investigators at the Independent Testing Coalition placed the cause of the explosions on a combination of the inflator's chemical, design, and the weather. The ammonium nitrate propellant can explode with additional force when exposed to moisture, like in high humidity areas. The part's construction is also part of the problem because it allows this humidity to access the chemical. Takata has recalled roughly 24 million airbags in 19 million vehicles in the US. The latest tally from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration showed that as of March 11, 2016, about 7.5 million inflators have been replaced. All the parts with ammonium nitrate inflators may need replacing someday, which could affect 100 million vehicles. Related Video: Statement from Honda Concerning Confirmed Texas Rupture Statement from American Honda Motor Co., Inc. Re: Confirmed Rupture of Takata Airbag Inflator in Fort Bend County, Texas Statement date: April 6, 2016 During an inspection today, accompanied by representatives of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Sherriff's Department of Fort Bend County, Texas, and Takata, American Honda confirmed that the Takata driver's airbag inflator ruptured in the crash of a 2002 Honda Civic on March 31, 2016, in Fort Bend County, Texas, resulting in the tragic death of the driver. Our thoughts and deepest sympathies are with the family of the driver during this difficult time. Honda has shared all available vehicle history information collected to date with NHTSA and will continue to cooperate with NHTSA throughout the process of investigating this crash.

Honda, Hyundai and Kia get best word-of-mouth recommendations in US

Forget advertising, incentives and, yes, even our excellently crafted vehicle reviews, sometimes the best way for automakers to sell cars is still good ol' fashioned word of mouth. In an attempt to measure this "word of mouth" power, The Boston Consulting Group, a management consulting firm, has created a new study called the Brand Advocacy Index (BAI). The index takes a look at how various industries perform from person to person. Those industries include automotive, smartphones, grocery, mobile telecommunications and banking.
The study polled more than 32,000 individuals across Europe and in the US to come up with the top 55 brands in these various industries. On the automotive side of things, the top brands in the US were Honda, Hyundai and Kia, all tied at 63 percent. On a global scale, Volkswagen and Toyota scored the highest with a 65-percent BAI rating (both in France). The average BAI for auto industry players tallied 50 percent.
As for companies in other industries, Apple's iPhone was the index's top-rated smartphone, Trader Joe's was the highest recommended grocery store, Virgin was sat atop the mobile telecom industry and USAA was the top retail bank. Scroll down for the full press release on the new study.

Honda already working on NSX roadster

Honda doesn't do many convertibles. There was the original Sports 360, the Civic del Sol, the S2000 and the Beat. But so far, that's pretty much it. The previous NSX was offered with a targa-style top, but the latest reports indicate that the Japanese automaker is already working on a proper convertible version of the new NSX, to be sold once again as an Acura in North America and a Honda in other markets.
Although it's not yet known whether the NSX roadster will offer a hard or soft top, sources indicate that it won't be a mere removable roof panel. Whatever form it does take, however, expect it to arrive a good couple of years after the tin-top version launches in 2015 with a similar form to the concept but with different underpinnings and a radical interior.