2014 Honda Cr-v Ex-l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Racy, mysterious Honda spied in Spain

The next-gen Honda Civic five-door has been spotted near the IDIADA Proving Grounds in Spain, and Pistonudos was able to snap several photos of it covered in camouflage there. However, compared to the last spy shots we saw of this body, there have been some odd changes made for the latest test car. In front, the grille still wears a similar look to the pre-refresh Acura ILX like in the last photos. Although, this version might be a bit closer to production because as in the patent drawings, the air dam now sports three lower intakes. In profile, this Civic is largely the same as the earlier shots too, but now you get a better look at the tail's shape. The big, lightweight wheels and small brake discs are certainly odd on this example, though. The rear is where things get really strange because of the three exhaust pipes right in the middle of the bumper. Making things even weirder, the center one has a smaller diameter than the others. Because the Honda Civic Concept used a single, center-mounted setup, perhaps this is a way to test that design. Taken in total, this Civic test car is a head-scratcher. The bizarre exhaust layout and big wheels suggest a performance version, but the rest of the design doesn't look aggressive enough. One possible explanation is that Honda is testing a few components for the next Civic SI here. That would explain why some bits look racy but not the whole car. Related Video:

Happy 40th birthday, Honda Accord!

The Honda Accord exemplifies the idea that if you make something great, people will flock to it. This is a car that has always offered something for everyone – quality, fuel economy, value, comfort. But why we really love the Accord is because, as former Car and Driver Editor in Chief Csaba Csere says in the video above, "it always drove a little bit better than the competition." Today the Accord turns 40 years old. Over the past four decades Honda sold more than 12.7 million of them, making its iconic sedan the best-selling car in America during that time frame. Honda likes to point out that the Accord is still young at heart, as it's the most popular sedan with the under-35 crowd. View 29 Photos Like most people, the Accord has grown larger and heavier through the years. But the appeal remains strong. The current Accord is one of our favorite family sedans, and a target that the competition rarely hits. It's the car that's synonymous with Honda in America, and in fact the first car built here when the Japanese company started production in Ohio in 1982. Honda has taken a look back at the car with the video above, which chronicles the Accord's history. The video below is a nice (if cheesy) comparison of the original 1976 model and the 2016 Accord Hybrid. And below that there's a neat infographic that compares those two cars as well as what was going on in the world in 1976 versus now. So happy birthday, Accord. We hope we're still going as strong as you when we get to your age.

2015 Honda Fit shapes up for America [w/video]

The Fit may be Honda's smallest (and, starting at $15k, most cost-effective) model, but it has never sold in quantities that even approach those of the brand's larger offerings - at least not in the United States. Where American Honda typically sells hundreds of thousands of Civic and Accord models - even CR-V crossovers and Odyssey minivans - annual sales for the Fit typically amount to tens of thousands. But the Japanese automaker hopes to expand its sales in the segment with the introduction of the new 2015 Honda Fit.
Having launched the all-new model several months ago in the Japanese Domestic Market, Honda is presenting the new Fit to the North American market here at the Detroit Auto Show. By and large, it's the same model that will be sold around the world, having been redesigned with more aggressive styling, a larger footprint on the road and more interior space. Only now it will be built for North American consumption at Honda's new plant in Celaya, Mexico, where the automaker plans to also build its new Vezel crossover (or whatever it'll be called here).
The North American Fit ditches the hybrid setup offered in the JDM model in favor of a new Earthdreams 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine with direction injection and i-VTEC valve timing to help it deliver 130 horsepower and 114 pound-feet of torque. That's 13 more horses and 8 more torques than the previous model, and the engine can be paired to either a six-speed manual or Honda's new continuously variable transmission. With the latter, Honda projects the Fit will get 33 miles per gallon in the city, 41 on the highway and 36 on the combined cycle. Lighter and more refined than the outgoing model's powertrain, the new engine sits in a lighter and more rigid frame as well, which Honda expects will earn it top ratings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.