2001 Honda Odyssey on 2040-cars

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McLaren MP4-30 marks Honda's hotly anticipated F1 return

McLaren's Formula One fortunes have drastically dropped in performance over the past couple of seasons. The Formula One team with a dozen Drivers' Championships, eight Constructors' Titles and 182 grand prix victories to its name hasn't won a race since 2012, and finished the past two seasons down in fifth place. But now it begins a new era – or rather, restarts one. And this is the machine that's kicking it all off. After a 23-year parting of ways, McLaren has brought Honda back onto the grid for this season, and will be the only team running the Japanese automaker's brand-new RA615H turbocharged hybrid power unit. Both parties are undoubtedly hoping the rekindled partnership will bring them back to the winning days of the late Eighties when Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost memorably drove their equipment to four consecutive World Championships. Largely an evolution of last season's Mercedes-powered MP4-29, the new chassis features a new front-end design to comply with the latest adjustment to the regulations from the FIA, and also incorporates a slimmer rear end built around the new Honda engine and gearbox. It also features a revised livery that adds more black to the red and silver color scheme, and does without a title partner for the time being, but includes the logos of sponsors Mobil1, SAP, TAG Heuer, Johnnie Walker, Hilton, CNN and KPMG, as well as that of Honda. Though this season will likely be more of a transition and development year for McLaren and Honda, all eyes will surely be fixed on the team to see how the new MP4-30 will fare. Fortunately, they've lined up a compelling roster of drivers, lead by former World Champions Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button. McLAREN-HONDA BEGINS NEW ERA WITH MP4-30 #McLarenHonda #MakeHistory McLaren-Honda – the name evokes stirring memories of the past; of Ayrton Senna battling Alain Prost for supremacy; of classic red and white machines dominating for season upon season; of an iconic team writing one of the defining chapters in the motor racing history books. Reuniting such an illustrious partnership brings with it the heavy weight of expectation, but all at McLaren and Honda are working to write a fresh chapter in Formula 1, one that respectfully nods to the past, but boldly looks to the horizon. Today's reveal of the new McLaren-Honda MP4-30 – McLaren's first Honda-powered car for 23 years – speaks volumes about the progressive nature of both companies.

Honda readying Veloster-rivaling concept for Beijing?

Maybe the rumors of the CR-Z's death have been exaggerated. Honda has just released the first teaser of a new concept that it plans to debut at the Beijing Motor Show at the end of April. It shows off a sporty looking coupe that looks like the child of a CR-Z and Hyundai Veloster. However, the concept looks to be for the Chinese market, as it's a joint proposal with one of its domestic partners there, Guangqi Honda Automobile.
Unfortunately, we don't have any other details about the concept yet - not even a name. The teaser also doesn't give a very good indication of the car's size. It appears to be roughly the size of a small coupe, and if Honda hadn't already tried the idea with the CR-Z, you could almost see it as a modern CRX, but it could be a little bit larger, too.
In addition to the coupe concept at the Beijing show, Dongfeng Honda will premiere the concept for the next Spirior, which is the foreign version of the Accord. Guangqi Honda will also bring a mid-size SUV and the third-generation Fit. Acura will also be there and will have both the NSX Concept and a model of its powertrain. Scroll down for the full release about everything Honda will show in China.

No S660 for US, but Honda wants sporty cars

Honda, best known lately for being a mainstream player rather than the brand that brought us the CRX Si, NSX, Integra Type-R, and S2000, apparently wants to builds sporty cars for the US again. With that in mind (or not), Honda has ruled out bringing the tiny, sporty S660 roadster across the Pacific. "I wouldn't put my chips on [the S660]," American Honda Executive Vice President John Mendel told Automotive News. At nearly 11.1 feet long, the S660 slots in between the 12.8-foot Mazda MX-5 Miata and the 8.8-foot Smart ForTwo. Yet Mendel says the tiny two-seater wouldn't work here. "When the practicalities of the market come in, and the car only so big, that might not be the best car for the US market," Mendel said. "It might be better for India or China or somewhere else." Honda is considering its options here in the US, though. As AN reports, after his takeover earlier this year, new CEO Takahiro Hachigo promised more sporting models, like the new, US-bound, 300-horsepower Civic Type R. And while it's no secret that Honda has filed patent drawings for a mid-engine model, Mendel offered little to indicate that it'd become a reality. Calling the project from Honda's Silicon Valley research and design facility a "design study," Mendel wouldn't answer AN when it asked whether this new model was successor to the S2000 or a more attainable, lower-powered NSX. He did, however, say his company was getting pressure from dealers over the lack of verve in the company's lineup. "They want anything in the sports car world," Mendel told AN. "They're going, 'Gimme a sports car.' They want a retractable hardtop; they want a high-horsepower $20,000 sports car. Because that's the nature of what they do." There you are, Honda. Your dealers want it, which means your consumers are probably are asking for it, and your CEO wants it, too. Make something happen.