2016 Honda Civic Coupe - 600hp AWD rally car

Honda Civic Debuts with Podium Finish in Phoenix

• Sebastian Eriksson captures third-place finish in the Honda Civic's debut
• First podium finish of the 2016 season for Olsbergs MSE
• Honda scores its first points in the Red Bull GRC Manufacturers' Championship

Olsbergs MSE, with driver Sebastian Eriksson, scored Honda its first podium finish in The Red Bull Global Rallycross Championship in the 2016 Honda Civic Coupe's first weekend of competition.

In Round One on Saturday, Joni Wiman and Eriksson advanced to the final via a pair of second-place finishes in the semi-finals and for Eriksson, the Last Chance Qualifier. In the final, Wiman and Eriksson battled through the 10-car field. Both drivers experienced contact throughout the race, but Wiman managed to finish sixth while Eriksson finished ninth.

Round Two action began early on Sunday with Eriksson and Wiman powering the 2.0 Liter turbocharged Red Bull Honda Civics around the .929 mile, 12-turn Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park circuit. They advanced to the final by way of second- and third-place finishes in the first semi final.

In the final, Eriksson started on the inside of the three-car second row with Wiman on the outside. On the first lap, Eriksson charged past Patrik Sandell for third while Wiman ran in fifth position. The teammates maintained their spots until the third lap when Wiman suffered mechanical damage, forcing him out of the race.

Eriksson held off Sandell in the turbocharged Honda Civic Coupe to capture third place and Honda's first podium in Red Bull GRC. The podium finish places Honda in a tie for second place in Red Bull GRC's season-long manufacturers' championship.

After the doubleheader weekend in Phoenix, Red Bull GRC heads to Dallas, Texas for the third round of the 12-race championship, June 4. Live coverage begins at 2:30 p.m. EST on NBC.

Sebastian Eriksson (#93 Red Bull Honda OMSE) on today's victory: "I am really happy to give Honda its first podium in Red Bull GRC. The team [Olsbergs MSE] worked through the night fixing the car after the damage from Saturday's race. It was an absolute team effort to get this finish, but we're not satisfied. Dallas will be a great track for us and the Red Bull [Honda] Civic."

Nicholas Lee (National Advertising Manager, American Honda Motor Co, Inc.): "This weekend was a thrill for Honda and Honda Performance Development. To achieve a podium finish in our first weekend in Red Bull GRC speaks volumes to the hard work put in by OMSE, Red Bull and Honda. We're looking forward to continuing our success at the upcoming Global Rallycross event in Dallas."

2017 Honda CR-V confirmed? - Interesting Apple Car Play information hints yes

From CR-V owners club forum.  Member zroger73 found and posted this.

The HondaLink iPhone app received a minor update today. I was bored and reading the disclaimers when something caught my eye. Two different disclaimers make reference to a 2017 Honda CR-V. The second disclaimer is in reference to a "send to car" navigation feature that only just appeared on the 2017 Honda Ridgeline which gets the latest version of Honda's Display Audio system. This disclaimer seems to imply that the 2017 CR-V will be getting this same system. Since it is very unlikely Honda will update the current CR-V's Display Audio system for only one year model until all all-new model arrives for 2018, this find just really shifted my guess toward seeing an all-new 2017 CR-V this year rather than squeezing one more year model out of the current generation.

2017 Honda CR-V Artist Illustration from spy photos

Spy Photos of the all-new 2017 Honda CR-V

2017 Honda Freed Scoop

NEW: A recent spy photo of the all new Honda Freed testing in Indonesia.

Honda Freed is a JDM market minivan based on the Honda Fit/Jazz that is due replacement soon.  The Honda Freed replaced the Honda Mobilio back in 2008.  Several artist concepts shown here.  Are these different versions? Freed, Freed - Spada, and Freed - Spike

Big rumors are this new model will use the all-new Honda 1.0 liter straight 3 cylinder turbo.  Current Hybrid version uses the older Honda IMA + 1.5 liter.  New Freed will use the newer i-DCD hybrid from the Fit Hybrid.

Current Honda Freed Hybrid

Current Honda Freed SPIKE

2017 Honda Ridgeline Styling - Good Looks Matter

Honda needed only a silhouette to show that the polarizing "flying buttress" profile of the original Ridgeline was gone, replaced on the forthcoming 2017 model with the conventional cab/bed style found on nearly every pickup built in the last 100 years.

Honda learned the hard way with the original Ridgeline that you can be innovative with the features and bones of a truck, but not the design. It took that lesson to heart while developing the latest model, going to extraordinary lengths to get the visual details right.

The effort started early in the second-generation Ridgeline's design process. Honda held clinics in California and Texas with pickup buyers and showed them a variety of trucks without their brand labels.

The research found that buyers made assumptions about toughness and payload based on the gaps in the wheel arches between the tire and the truck body, and the height of the bed. If a pickup had a trailer hitch, people assumed it could tow more.


"Those things were honestly kind of "aha' moments or big surprises to us as a project team," Jim Loftus, a Ridgeline engineer, said at the media launch here in early May. "And of course, we went back and incorporated all of those messages into the next-generation Ridgeline."

Engineers tilted the Ridgeline up about half a degree from back to front to make the bed look like it was sitting higher. They also increased the gap between the wheel arch and tire by lifting up the chassis by about an inch.

"Based on the understanding that people are going to make some assumptions just visually, we said, you know what, we need to raise this up just to convey that image," Kerry McClure, chief engineer on the Ridgeline project, told Automotive News.

A trailer hitch is now standard on all new Ridgeline models, not only to convey a sense of toughness (all-wheel-drive models can tow 5,000 pounds), but also because the structural elements needed for a hitch were already in place.


The flying buttress style was partly due to a desire -- especially among executives in Japan -- to make it visually obvious that the Ridgeline was different and not a traditional body-on-frame truck.

There was also evidence at the time that a new school of truck design was emerging -- think Ford Explorer SportTrac or Chevy Avalanche. When the recession walloped the auto industry, buyers shied away from the unconventional, and Ridgeline sales plummeted.

"I think the challenge we faced with the old Ridgeline, part of it was the styling that wasn't so well-accepted," Jeff Conrad, general manager of Honda, said at the Ridgeline launch.

"And when the market did turn, it was very difficult to sustain that or get it back."


The company hopes annual sales will work their way up to the previous version's peak of 50,193.

But Honda is realistic about the kind of buyers it's going to attract. "We're not going after the buyer that is looking to take this vehicle and climb rocks up the side of the mountain," Conrad said.

http://www.autonews.com/article/20160515/OEM04/305169938/hondas-ridgeline-lesson-looks-matter

2016 Honda Civic "Black Pack" option unveiled

From Honda in Australia!   Honda-spy is not a fan of this package.

The genuine Honda accessory pack is available across all five grades of the all-new Civic sedan range.

The Black Pack models see the fitment of black 17-inch wheels (upsized from 16s on the VTi and VTi-S – but those tyres cost extra), a black front bumper lip spoiler, black side skirts, black mirror caps, a black ducktail spoiler on the boot lid and a black grille.


The Black Pack has previously only been offered on the Jazz, but Honda Australia director, Stephen Collins, said that the brand expects a bit more widespread appeal for the Civic Black Pack.

“Many Honda customers really enjoy being able to individualize their cars,” said Collins. “The all-new Civic is already a stunning looking car but adding the eye-catching Black Pack edition really does set the car apart.”

Honda Australia has stated that there are about 200 pre-orders in for the new Civic sedan, which should jump to 300 by this month.

“The last time we had such strong interest from prospective customers was when we were launching the HR-V and it has now become one of the strongest competitors in the small SUV segment,” Collins said. “With the arrival of the Civic, it’s becoming clearer by the day that Honda has got its mojo back.”

The Civic will arrive in showrooms from June.

Plug-in Honda CR-V planned?

PHEVs not only help automakers fulfill their regulatory obligations but also can be cheaper to buy and own than basic hybrids, once the more generous government incentives are factored in, noted Dave Zuchowski, CEO of Hyundai Motor America.

Plug-in hybrids have been a rare bright spot in an otherwise dismal green-car industry. U.S. sales of PHEVs grew 40 percent in the first quarter of 2016, according to Edmunds.

Honda, with its recently announced goal of electrifying two-thirds of its vehicles by 2030, will also add plug-in hybrid variants of its core models, separate from its forthcoming Clarity line.

"Globally we're committed to offering a plug-in variant on our major core models in the future," John Mendel, executive vice president of American Honda Motor Co., said in announcing the Clarity plans last month.

Honda's next-gen CR-V, due next year, is a likely candidate to get a plug-in hybrid variant.

It will share a platform with the current Civic and the next Accord, which is also due in 2017 and is also a likely landing spot for a PHEV powertrain.