May 14, 2008
ASIMO Presents Award to Cellist Yo-Yo Ma
DETROIT -- Prior to a sold-out concert by Yo-Yo Ma and the Detroit Symphony Orchestra last night, the renowned cellist was presented with the Orchestra's "Changing Lives through Music" Highest Achievement Award.
The award is bestowed to individuals in the field of music who provide extraordinary and exemplary leadership, sharing their artistry and knowledge with future generations, and serving as an inspiration to the world on behalf of music.
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Posted by Frank at 3:06 PM
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May 13, 2008
Erik Berkman Named Honda Racing Chief
Erik Berkman is in his first full season as president of Honda Performance Development, but he could easily be celebrating a decade in the racing business.
"Ten years ago Tom Elliott talked to me about the job [general manager] Robert Clarke eventually accepted, but I had four kids to help raise and it didn't seem like the best time to be traveling all over the world," recalled Berkman.
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Posted by Frank at 4:38 AM
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May 12, 2008
2008 Fuel Economy Guide Available for Download
The EPA has issued a comprehensive PDF guide to fuel economy of all 2008 vehicles, which you can download by right-clicking here.
In today's gas market, buyers are more sensitive than ever about buying cars that get good mileage, and more important, they want the government ratings to be as accurate as possible -- nobody wants to buy a vehicle that gets 10% worse mileage in the real world than the sticker rating.
To address this situation, the EPA has started using an updated test to assign more accurate MPG ratings to new vehicles, and you can learn about that by watching the video in this post.
Posted by Frank at 3:04 PM
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Honda at the Turkish Grand Prix
The Turkish Grand Prix ended in frustration for the Honda Racing F1 Team as Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello finished in 11th and 14th places respectively.
At the start, Rubens got too much clutch slip away from the line, which allowed Jenson - who started one place further back in 13th - to pass him into turn one. However, no sooner had the race started than the Safety Car was deployed after a collision at the back of the field between Fisichella and Nakajima.
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Posted by Frank at 4:45 AM
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Dixon Claims Indy 500 Pole
It took a second qualifying attempt, but Scott Dixon successfully knocked his Target Chip Ganassi Racing teammate -- 2005 Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon – off the top of the time sheets to claim his first “500” pole in first-day qualifying Saturday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
After initially slotting into third behind Wheldon and Motegi race winner Danica Patrick at 225.178 mph, Dixon elected to withdraw that qualifying time just after 3:30 p.m. and make a second run (of three permitted).
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Posted by Frank at 1:34 AM
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Rain Prevents Indy Second-Day Qualifying
Continuing rain showers Sunday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway forced the cancellation of second- day qualifying for the 92nd running of the Indianapolis 500.
It’s the second time in the last three years that rain has interrupted qualifying at Indianapolis, as the entire first weekend of qualifying attempts was washed out in 2006.
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Posted by Frank at 12:33 AM
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May 6, 2008
Honda Reports an Increase in April Sales
TORRANCE, Calif. -- American Honda Motor Co., Inc., posted an April sales result of 135,180 vehicles, a decrease of 1.3 percent over April 2007 sales of 126,419 vehicles, on a daily-selling-rate basis*, the company announced today.
American Honda posted April car sales of 82,252 units, up 7.1 percent over last year, and April light-truck sales of 52,655 units, a decrease of 12.1 percent compared to year-ago results. Year-to-date American Honda total vehicle sales rose 0.5 percent over the same period last year, to 487,822 units.
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Posted by Frank at 8:10 AM
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Acura Announces April Sales Results
TORRANCE, Calif. -- The TL performance luxury sedan was Acura's top-selling model with April sales of 4,291 units, eclipsing MDX sales for the first time in months.
Acura sales for April tallied 13,025 units, down 20.9 percent based on the daily selling rate* compared to April 2007. Year-to-date** Acura vehicle sales totaled 50,565 units, down 14.9 percent compared to 2007.
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Posted by Frank at 5:39 AM
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May 4, 2008
Top twenty best selling small cars for April 2008
Americans rediscovered cars in April 2008, with small cars in particular accounting for nearly one in five of all vehicles sold in an otherwise down month.
Toyota had four vehicles in the top twenty, General Motors had three; Nissan, Hyundai and Kia had two apiece. And Dodge has a hit with the Caliber, which made the list at number 9.
With people paying nearly $4 per gallon of gas nationwide, it appears that the free market has achieved what environmentalists have been clamoring about for years -- to conserve fuel by buying smaller vehicles.
The top twenty best selling small cars for April 2008:
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Posted by Frank at 10:56 AM
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Top ten best selling crossovers for April 2008
Overall, pickups and SUV sales were down 17.4% in April and are down 13.5% for the year to date. The one bright spot is the crossover and small wagon category, which was down 0.4% for the month but has edge up 1.9% for the year.
In general, crossover utility vehicles are built on car platforms, while traditional SUVs are built on truck frames. CUVs are smaller, lighter and get better gas mileage than big SUVs -- one way to think of them is that they are really modern station wagons, but shorter and with a higher profile.
This months list of the top ten selling crossovers features three vehicles from General Motors, and two each from Ford and Toyota. Also of note, the new Nissan Rogue made the list at number ten.
The top ten best selling crossovers for April 2008:
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Posted by Frank at 10:47 AM
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Top ten best selling cars for April 2008
With gas prices at record highs in the U.S., consumers are buying cars in greater percentage than light trucks and SUVs, a reversal of a long-term trend.
In April, 52.6% of vehicles sold were cars, a gain of 5.2% over the same month last year.
Of particular note is that both General Motors and Toyota both notched three cars apiece in the top ten.
The top ten best selling cars for April 2008:
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Posted by Frank at 10:29 AM
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May 2, 2008
Preliminary Honda Sales Report Shows April Increase
TORRANCE, Calif. -- Due to technical difficulties, American Honda Motor Co., Inc., is forced to delay the posting of final April 2008 sales numbers until the issue is resolved.
All reported numbers are approximate and are expected to show increases when final results are tallied. Preliminary sales tabulations show that American Honda April sales will exceed 134,000 vehicles, compared to 126,419 vehicles for April 2007.
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Posted by Frank at 4:47 AM
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April 30, 2008
TRW Plant in Mexico Receives Honda Quality Award
LIVONIA, Mich. -- TRW Automotive Holdings Corp. today announced that its Queretaro, Mexico, plant operated by its subsidiary Frenos y Mecanismos, S.A. de C.V., has received the Honda de Mexico 'Excellence Award'. This is the second consecutive year the plant has earned Honda's highest quality award.
The plant was selected due to its outstanding customer service record. In terms of quality metrics, the Queretaro plant achieved 0 PPM (parts per million) quality defects and 100% on-time delivery while meeting Honda's cost targets.
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Posted by Frank at 4:03 AM
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April 29, 2008
Honda to Report Service Information to Carfax
CENTREVILLE, Va. -- Carfax today announced that American Honda Motor Co. has joined the Carfax Service Link program. Service and maintenance information will be reported to Carfax for vehicles serviced by Honda dealers participating in Carfax Service Link.
The free program creates a virtual directory of trusted dealerships that new owners can bring their car back to for maintenance.
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Posted by Frank at 7:24 AM
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April 25, 2008
Honda Motor Co Reports Financial Results
TOKYO -- Honda Motor Co., Ltd. today announced its consolidated financial results for the fiscal fourth quarter and the fiscal year ended March 31, 2008.
Honda's consolidated net income for the fiscal fourth quarter ended March 31, 2008 totaled JPY 25.4 billion (USD 254 million), a decrease of 85.6% from the same period in 2007, due to, among other things, increased income taxes.
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Posted by Frank at 6:34 AM
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