2012 Honda Cr-v Ex-l on 2040-cars

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2016 Honda HR-V: Long-Term Introduction

From the moment we first drove Honda's new HR-V, it was clear that this car would be a hit in the now-booming small crossover segment. Through October of this year, Honda moved 33,727 examples of its new HR-V, and last month alone, the CUV outsold its platform-mate Fit nearly three-and-a-half times over. Considering its importance not only for the segment, but for Honda as a brand, we knew a longer test of the cute little HR-V was in order. Enter our latest addition to the Autoblog long-term fleet, a mid-level HR-V EX with all-wheel drive. We chose EX because it's the volume model, representing the majority of the cars out on the road. Even so, it's incredibly well-equipped with 17-inch wheels, heated seats, a seven-inch infotainment system (that lacks navigation on this model), tinted windows, a sunroof, foglamps, a standard array of tech features, Honda's Lane Watch camera system, and more. Adding all-wheel drive was a no-brainer, considering Autoblog's headquarters in snowy metro Detroit, though this meant being forced to live with the continuously variable transmission. (Front-wheel-drive HR-Vs can be had with a pleasant six-speed manual.) Our car features the light cloth interior, and we'll be interested to see how it holds up over the course of a year. All in, the Alabaster Silver Metallic car you see here stickers for $24,115. All in, the Alabaster Silver Metallic car you see here stickers for $24,115, including $900 for destination. That means the HR-V is the least-expensive car we've ever had in the long-term fleet. Every HR-V comes with one powertrain: a 1.8-liter, naturally-aspirated inline-four, good for 141 horsepower and 127 pound-feet of torque. That's adequate considering the 3,094-pound curb weight, and allows the HR-V to return EPA-estimated fuel economy ratings of 27 miles per gallon city and 32 mpg highway. Our car arrived with only 130 miles on the odometer, so we're going to let the engine fully break in before we start tracking our observed fuel economy data. That said, the HR-V has been a hot commodity in the Autoblog fleet ever since its arrival. In its first week on the job alone, the Honda handled a road trip to northern Michigan and helped one of our staffers move. (The Magic Seats and 55.9 cubic-feet of cargo space are fantastic, by the way – more on that in a future update.) "Control layout is a lot simpler than other recent Hondas.

Takata airbag recalls add another 5 million vehicles

The Takata airbag inflator recall expanded by about 6.5 million vehicles recently when Toyota and Nissan announced global expansions to replace the faulty parts. You can add another 5 million more as Honda and Daihatsu also broaden their replacement campaigns. Although in this latest case, none of the affected models are in the United States or Canada. Honda is recalling 4.89 million more vehicles globally, and Daihatsu has about 260,000 to repair in Japan, according to Automotive News. With these latest expansions, all of the affected automakers have needed to fix about 36 million vehicles globally for these faulty airbags since 2008. Some of the first instances of these problems were found in an Isuzu campaign in 2001. This latest round of recalls was sparked by a study from Takata that found the inflators' propellant could be affected by moisture over time. While the automakers received this information in March, it took time to determine the number of vehicles in need of repair and where they were located, according to Automotive News. To make sure all of the affected vehicles in the US are repaired in a timely fashion, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is reportedly considering a strategy to force things to speed up. Honda and Toyota are already using outside suppliers for the parts they need. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Shizuo Kambayashi / AP Photo Recalls Honda Daihatsu Safety Takata airbag recall

Honda and Isuzu announce hydrogen partnership for heavy-duty trucks

TOKYO — Japan's Honda and Isuzu on Wednesday said they would jointly research the use of hydrogen fuel cells to power heavy-duty trucks, looking to expand fuel cell use by applying the zero-emission technology to larger vehicles. As part of a two-year deal, Isuzu will test Honda's fuel cell powertrain, which was designed for passenger cars, in Isuzu's commercial trucks, the companies said, which could pave the way for using the technology in a wider range of vehicles. Automakers are looking to develop more electric vehicles (EVs) to comply with tightening global emissions regulations. Many see battery-powered EVs as a solution for passenger cars in urban settings, but a growing number see hydrogen fuel cells as an effective way to power trucks, buses and other big vehicles. "Although we have done extensive R&D into passenger FCVs (fuel cell vehicles), we have not been able to study how best to apply the technology to commercial vehicles," a Honda spokesman told reporters at a briefing. "This partnership will allow us to do that." Fuel cell vehicles generate their own electricity using hydrogen stored in onboard tanks. This enables them to travel longer distances and refuel more quickly than battery EVs, while using less costly energy storage systems. "We think that FCV technology is well suited for heavier trucks which travel longer distances, and this partnership will enable us to examine this further," an Isuzu spokeswoman said, adding that the truck maker was also developing various lower-carbon powertrains including battery-electric technology for shorter-distance vehicles. With its Clarity Fuel Cell sedan, Honda is one of a handful of automakers which have developed and marketed fuel cell-powered passenger cars. Light- and medium-sized truck specialist Isuzu has for years has focused on diesel engine technology and has yet to market fully electric vehicles. But a price tag starting around $70,000 for the Clarity and scant hydrogen fueling infrastructure globally, Honda has seen limited take-up of that model and other FCVs since they began marketing them around 2015. In 2018 Honda sold just 654 Clarity FCVs, which are available only in Japan and the United States through leasing programs, compared with Honda's total annual global sales of 5.23 million cars.