2021 Honda Cr-v Ex-l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Watch this perfect parody of Ken Block's Gymkhana videos

Every one of Ken Block's Gymkhana videos is bigger and more ridiculous than the last. The goal at this point seems to top the previous production, be it with a custom AWD Mustang ripping through the streets of Los Angeles or a rally-prepped Ford Fiesta drifting around Dubai. Well, the YouTube channel Car Bros decided that the format was ripe for parody and have produced their own short video. It's called "Gympkhana: A #Viral Car #Action Video" and it captures everything that is overwrought and fun about the Gymkhana series. While the scale of Block's videos has increased and the productions are still entertaining, every new Gymkhana seems to rehash the same sights and sounds without really trying anything new. Rev the engine here, drift around there, spin 10 times inside this box, and then circle around that object. Rinse and repeat and repeat and repeat. Car Bros have produced a number of parody videos and the group seems to really get the finer details of the subjects they're spoofing. Everything you would expect from a Block video is here. Gympkhana features shaky title cards, gratuitous slow-motion camera work, and multiple drone shots with helicopter sounds dubbed in. It's obvious that the group took their time to plan out and capture the perfect low-budget Gymkhana. These guys prove that you don't need big, expensive productions with exotic vehicles in exotic locations to have some fun with a few cameras and a car.Related video: Auto News Humor Honda Wagon gymkhana

NHTSA gives okay for three automakers to skirt tire-related recalls

BMW, Honda, and Mercedes-Benz are all going to avoid small recalls, after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued petitions for "findings of inconsequential noncompliance" to the three manufacturers, according to Tire Business. Basically, the petitions allow the brands to avoid recalls for some very, very minor issues.
BMW had tire placards on 364 X6 M CUVs that stated the car could only handle four passengers, when in reality it had room for three in the back. Actual plausibility of fitting three real humans in the slope-roofed Bimmer aside, the Munich-based manufacturer argued it was inconsequential, as the placards were correct regardless of the number of passengers.
Honda's case focused on 212 2011 and 2012 Acura TSX sedans equipped with 18-inch wheels. The TPMS systems on these cars were set for 17-inch wheels, rather than the larger hoops, but even with the lower settings, the tires maintain adequate load capacity.

Finalists for 2014 Green Car of the Year announced

The list of finalists for the 2014 Green Car of the Year has been announced, and in a genuinely bizarre twist, there's only one hybrid and no electric vehicles among the five contestants, despite the arrival of cars like the BMW i3 and Tesla Model S. Taking the place of the EVs are a pair of diesels, repping a technology that last won a Green Car of the Year award in 2009, when the Audi A3 TDI took the title. No diesel was in the running for last year's award.
Naturally, both of the diesel finalists are fielded by the Germans - with BMW's 328d and Audi's A6 TDI getting the nod. In the case of the 3 Series, BMW installed a 2.0-liter, turbodiesel, capable of delivering 180 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque, while returning 45 miles per gallon on the highway. Audi and its larger, 3.0-liter, V6 turbodiesel produce quite a bit more grunt, with 240 hp and 428 lb-ft of grunt, but net a very impressive 38 mpg on the highway in the A6.
Finalists for this year's awards include two diesels, three gas-powered cars and a plug-in hybrid.