Honda Odyssey gets makeover for 2011

Here's a nice little article explaining the basic changes for the next gen Honda Odyssey....
The industry's best-selling minivan, the Honda Odyssey, has been completely redesigned for 2011, and goes on sale in early fall.

No prices have been announced yet, but there will be a new fully equipped top model called the Touring Elite, which comes with a long list of standard equipment, including leather seating and navigation.

Other special features include an ultra-wide rear entertainment system with split-screen capability so two programs can be shown at one time; and there is even a small refrigerator, which Honda calls a “cool box,” that works when the engine is running.

This is the fourth generation of the Odyssey, and it was first shown at the Chicago auto show in February.

Honda says the new Odyssey “seeks to redefine the concept of the minivan with its aggressive stance and sporty ‘lightning-bolt' beltline.”

The roof is more steeply raked toward the rear than the current Odyssey, making the vehicle 1.6 inches lower than the current model, which was introduced for 2005 and given a mid-cycle makeover for 2008.

While there are many changes, the new model is still quite recognizable as an Odyssey. Besides the lower stance, the 2011 Odyssey is 1.4 inches wider than the 2010 model, and has improved aerodynamics to help boost fuel economy.

The new model is 202.8 inches long, 78.5 inches wide and 68.3 inches high, with a 118.1-inch wheelbase.

There are improvements inside to make the vehicle more family-friendly, and that's really where Honda makes its mark both in the minivan and sport utility segments. Nobody does family friendly interiors better than Honda. Busy families spend a lot of time in their minivans, and the Odyssey's designers kept that in mind.

“The Odyssey established its reputation by providing families with what they most want in a minivan — great functionality, an emphasis on safety and good fuel economy," Vicki Poponi, American Honda's product planning chief, said during the Chicago introduction. “The next-generation Odyssey promises to take these strengths to a higher level while adding more style and personality.”

Even with its sportier exterior styling, the new Odyssey has better outward visibility for those sitting in the third row.

Outside, the Touring Elite model comes with high-intensity-discharge headlights, 18-inch alloy wheels, 12.6-inch ventilated front disc brakes, power side mirrors with integrated turn signals, and a power-operated tailgate.

Interior features of the top model include an AM/FM/XM/CD premium audio system with 12 speakers; the Honda voice-activated navigation system; the rear entertainment center; a 110-volt power outlet for game consoles and other electronic devices such as laptops; a media tray with integrated cup holder; a removable first-row center console with hidden storage; a 10-way power driver's seat with memory; enough anchors for up to five child safety seats; a total of 15 cupholders; second- and third-row sunshades.

There's even a ring to hold a trash bag. Trash can pile up in a hurry on a road trip while the kids having their snacks.

Among other new features are projector beam headlights, LED taillights and “form-fit” fog lights, Honda said.

Advancements in engine design and the vehicle's aerodynamics give the new Odyssey EPA fuel-economy ratings as high as 19 mpg city/28 highway.

The current model has ratings as high as 17 city/25 highway when equipped with Honda's three-mode Variable Cylinder Management. It cuts out either two or three cylinders at cruising speeds to save fuel. Without the cylinder management, the 2010 model is rated at 16 city/23 highway.
Under the hood will be the latest version of the 3.5-liter V-6 engine used in the 2010 model, which puts out 244 horsepower and 240 foot-pounds of torque. Honda hasn't released final performance data for the 2011 model, however.

The new Odyssey will have room for seven or eight passengers, depending on the seating configuration chosen. The middle row has two captain's chairs with a smaller seat in between that can be folded out of the way to create a pass-through to the rear seat.

The third row, which seats three (and is best left to the kids) is Honda's so-called “Magic Seat,” which has a 60/40 split and can be folded completely flat into the floor either in sections or all together to create a larger cargo area when the seat isn't needed for passengers.

The new Odyssey faces stiff competition from the redesigned 2011 Toyota Sienna, which is already on sale and has been its most formidable import-brand competitor.

Standard safety features include four-wheel antilock disc brakes, electronic stability control with traction control, front seat-mounted side air bags, and roof-mounted side-curtain air bags for all three rows.

The vehicle also features Honda's Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body structure, designed to lessen its impact on pedestrians and other vehicles in the event of a collision.

Honda assembles the new model at its plant near Birmingham, Ala. Design and engineering work were done in California and Ohio, rather than in Japan.

Source;
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/topdown/detail?entry_id=70599

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Facebook’s ‘Car Town’ Gains Honda Ads in Games Shift

Aug. 23 (Bloomberg -- Honda Motor Corp.’s campaign for its new CR-Z car features the hybrid vehicle in some colorful roadside billboards that can’t be seen from a freeway.

The ads are on display in Facebook Inc.’s virtual game “Car Town,” as Honda advertises on the social-network site for the first time today. The game, which allows users to collect and customize cars, has 3.1 million users. It was released on Facebook two weeks ago by Cie Games Inc.

Brands are turning to social networks to reach an audience with leisure time on its hands and the patience to sit through branded messages. Walt Disney Co., Electronic Arts Inc. and Google Inc. have all bought games makers in recent months to benefit from millions of users signing up to play.

“You can have 200,000 people drive past a billboard on an L.A. freeway every day, but you don’t have the same level of engagement as when people select “Car Town,’” Steve Center, Honda’s vice president for advertising, said in an interview. “Marketers and game developers will discover they are building powerful channels and that there’s enormous property for sale.”

Dove Soap and Breyers Ice Cream are running ads on “TikiFarm,” while Energizer batteries are promoted on “Family Feud.” Microsoft Corp., Cascadian Farm Organic and 7-Eleven have all marketed themselves on “Farmville,” a game with more than 62 million users that lets users try their hand at farming. A player grows and harvests crops, purchases items like shovels tractors and rakes and raises livestock.

Farmville, Mafia Wars

Global advertising in social games and applications will total $293 million next year, a 60 percent increase from 2009, according to researcher EMarketer Inc. in New York. By comparison, expenditure on television advertising was $166.9 billion in 2009, according to ZenithOptimedia.

As ads move online and marketers follow consumers to the Internet, traditional advertising in print newspapers and magazines has suffered declines. Internet ads are forecast to make up 17.1 percent of the ad market in 2012 from 12.7 percent in 2009, ZenithOptimedia Group Ltd. a London-based ad buyer owned by Publicis Groupe SA, said last month.

Zynga Inc., the top maker of Facebook games whose titles include “Farmville,” “Texas HoldEm Poker” and “Mafia Wars Game,” said it’s in talks with numerous brands about advertising.

“We believe that advertising will play a larger role at Zynga by providing brands the reach of TV, the measurability of online and the most engaging ad integrations available,” said Manny Anekal, director of brand advertising at the company.

Microsoft’s Bing

“A lot of the growth around Facebook has been because people play social games so much,” said Simon Mansell, chief executive officer of TBG Digital, a London-based digital ad agency that also sells ads on Facebook. “Users spend so much time playing that during downtime in the game they can respond to offers.”

Microsoft Corp. gave virtual currency to “Farmville” users who became fans of the Facebook page of the Bing search engine, according to Lynn Rowe Girotto, senior director for Bing marketing. Users then received status updates linking Bing search results to “Farmville.”

The result was 425,000 new fans of Bing on Facebook and 70 percent of those fans visiting Bing in the next month, she said.

“As long as it’s done well, and it’s not overly intrusive, I think it’s a good thing,” John Schappert, Electronic Arts’s chief operating officer, said in an interview. “It does offset the development cost and provide an early revenue stream for these games, for which many people don’t spend a dime on now.”

Google’s Games

Earlier this month, Google bought Jambool Inc., a provider of virtual-currency software and Slide Inc., a maker of games and apps for social sites. Walt Disney snapped up Playdom Inc., the second-biggest maker of games on Facebook, in July for $563 million. Japan’s Softbank Corp. invested 13.5 billion yen ($158 million) in Zynga and Electronic Arts in November bought games maker Playfish Inc. for $400 million.

More than just advertising in games, brands are also spending money developing social applications to attract consumers. American Family Insurance created the “IamFam” game that allows a user to build an avatar, settle into a neighborhood, outfit a house and shop at a local store.

Nestle SA’s Purina PetCare Co unit created the “Friskies Wonderland Quest II’’ game, where users find hidden food ingredients like salmon and chicken to move onto higher levels.

‘Still Too Small’

“We’re running 20-odd campaigns now on Facebook with advertisers,” said Dave Madden, a vice president for ad sales at Wild Tangent, a games company that worked with American Family Insurance and Nestle Purina. Wild Tangent also developed an in-game ad platform where brands air short commercials in return for users receiving virtual currency and items.

“These ads have to add value and they cannot take away from the game,” he said. “We’ve seen solid growth in our ads business and to say they would triple is a relatively achievable forecast.”
Not everyone is embracing in-games advertising, including some of the developers. Bigpoint GmbH, one of the world’s largest online-game providers, sees the market as “still too small for it to be interesting for us,” Chief Executive Officer Heiko Hubertz said in an interview last week.

“For now we make more money from promoting our own games than by selling ads for the games,” he said, estimating that casual players of social games on Facebook spend 10 euros a month on value-added services versus hard-core gamers who can spend 40 euros.

Vital to Marketers

With total ad spending on Facebook estimated at $1.28 billion this year, according to EMarketer, social media is vital to marketers.

Companies view social media as a core part of their online marketing spending, and not an “experiment,” said Victoria Ransom, the founder of Wildfire Interactive Inc., which has helped Nestle SA, The Gap Inc. and PepsiCo Inc. build social marketing campaigns.

“One of the ways we’re going after younger folks is to be in the places they are,” Honda’s Center said. “Young people are online; they live online and communicate online. We want to catch people where their interests lie.”

Source;
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-08-23/facebook-s-car-town-gains-honda-ads-in-games-shift.html

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Toyota Evokes James Bond in New Push for Sports Cars

Aug. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Maurizio Raffone bought a Toyota Motor Corp. Prius hybrid for its top-of-the-line fuel efficiency. In his current search for a new sportscar, he said the Japanese carmaker hadn’t sprung to mind.

“Would I consider buying a Toyota high-end sports car?” said Raffone, a London-based director at Commerzbank AG. “I might think about it, but ultimately I’d choose something with a trident, a prancing horse or a bull on its hood,” he said, referring to cars made by Fiat SpA’s Maserati and Ferrari marques, and Volkswagen AG’s Lamborghini.

As the world’s largest carmaker tries to rebuild its reputation for quality following record recalls, President Akio Toyoda, a racing fan, has said he wants to add more fun to his cars. Under Toyoda, who became president in June 2009, the company has taken orders for the Lexus LFA $375,000 supercar, is readying an “affordable” rear-wheel drive coupe and may even add a sporty version of the Prius.

“Cars like the LFA are brand-builders in the overall product portfolio,” said Ashvin Chotai, London-based managing director of Intelligence Automotive Asia Ltd., an industry consultant. These cars, at the periphery of Toyota’s business model, “are less about volume and more about excitement.”

The projects fall under a new Sports Vehicle Management Division set up in January, a month before Toyoda flew to Washington to face congressional questioning on the company’s recalls for problems related to unintended acceleration.

The unit expands a similar group spearheaded by Toyoda in 2007 and aims to “reinforce sports vehicle product planning,” according to a company statement.

‘Affordable’ Sports Car

The “affordable” sports car, known as the FT-86, is being developed with affiliate Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd.’s Subaru unit. Toyota plans to introduce the model by the end of 2011.

Toyoda touts the role of racing in car development and started participating in a 24-hour endurance race in 2007 in Nurburgring, Germany, where various versions of the LFA were tested.

His fervor for racing is reflected on his business card, where a cartoon image of Morizo, his race-car driver alter ego, flashes a peace sign with one hand and cradles a helmet in the other.

The carmaker has firm orders for all 500 units of the limited-production LFA, according to the company. The car will enter production in December.

Toyota gained 1.8 percent to close at 3,085 yen in Tokyo.

‘Technologically Brilliant’

“The LFA is technologically brilliant, but completely overpriced” at almost triple the price of Porsche SE’s 911 Turbo, said Mark Sweeting, an investment banker in London who has owned numerous sporty European cars.

Toyota’s sports cars no longer in production include the Supra, built between 1986 and 2002 and featured in the 2001 racing movie “The Fast and the Furious,” the MR-S roadster that ended production in 2007, and the Celica, made between 1970 and 2006. The company’s first supercar was the 2000GT, which was featured in the 1967 James Bond movie, “You Only Live Twice,” starring Sean Connery.

“Toyota used to have cool sports cars like the Supra and Corolla Levin,” said Kosuke Kakizawa, a sports car fan in Tokyo who owned a Toyota Cynos coupe in the mid-1990s. “Now, when you think of sports cars, you think of the foreign brands,” he said. Kakizawa now owns an Audi TT coupe.

Raffone, the Prius owner, agreed.

“Toyota should really focus on its cutting edge eco- friendly technology and leave the sports cars to the niche manufacturers,” he said.

Lowered Suspension

Last month, Toyota held a test-drive event for its new “G Sports” versions of the Noah and Voxy minivans, which were developed and tuned with the help of race-car drivers and have lowered suspensions, more responsive steering and high- performance brakes.

“These are cars that are sporty without being hardcore sports cars,” to be enjoyed by drivers with families, said Tadashi Yamashina, a senior managing director in charge of the company’s development of sports cars in an interview at the event in Yamanashi prefecture, northwest of Tokyo.

Sports models contribute little to sales volume and profit, Intelligence Automotive’s Chotai said. Toyota sold 1,300 units of the MR-S in Japan in 2006, the last full year it was offered. That compares with 2.27 million cars sold domestically in the fiscal year ended March 2007.

Japanese rival Honda Motor Co. also cut back on sporty cars over the last decade, axing plans for a revamped NSX supercar and ending production of the S2000 roadster in 2009. Instead, Honda introduced the sporty hybrid CR-Z in February.

Toyota displayed a concept hybrid sports car, the FT-HS, at the 2007 Detroit auto show.

Flagship GT-R

Nissan Motor Co., Japan’s third-largest automaker, came out with a more powerful version of its flagship GT-R sports car in 2007.

“The sporty push is understandable since the whole industry is so fixated on improving vehicle fuel economy, which leaves something to be desired” for enthusiasts, said Koji Endo, an auto analyst at Advanced Research Japan in Tokyo.

More sports models may also raise morale inside the company. “Sports cars keep the engineers motivated,” said Edwin Merner, president of Atlantis Investment Research Corp. in Tokyo.

“They are worth doing on a limited scale.”

Source;
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-08-19/toyota-evokes-james-bond-in-new-push-for-sports-cars.html?chan=autos_autos+--+lifestyle+subindex+page_top+stories

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Quakecon 2010 Attendee sells raffle ticket to 2010 Shelby GT500

Ouch, this has gotta hurt....

Quakecon 2010: Attendee Blunder of the Year from Daniel Harris on Vimeo.

Source: www.autoblog.com

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Tested: 2010 Honda Element, Dog-Friendly Package

We've always thought of the Honda Element as one of the best vehicles for dog owners. Thanks to its tall cabin, easy-clean cargo floor, and versatile seating arrangement, it's long been a favorite among active folks with dogs.

For 2010, Honda finally took advantage of the Element's usefulness—or pawtential, we've said—by introducing a new Dog Friendly Element. Our own pooch, Owen, is usually a willing adventurer, if a little anxious as a passenger, so it seemed like a no-brainer for us to hop in a Dog-Friendly Element, test out its creature comforts, and head for a hiking trail.

The Dog Friendly package includes a host of additional accessories, which Owen and I put through the paces on the way to and from our hike. Special second-row seat covers allowed Owen to be belted in with his harness (you should never let a dog ride shotgun, or be loose in the vehicle) in a special dog pattern, as well as rubbery bone-pattern floor mats.

The centerpiece of the Dog Friendly package is a soft-sided car kennel, made by the safety supplier Takata, of seatbelt-grade vinyl webbing. Owen fit into it perfectly, the floor is soft, and it includes a ventilation fan and water dish. All that said, it was a little too claustrophobic for him, especially when we zipped up the screen; but plenty of dogs dig that.

The package also includes an extendable (five foot or so) ramp that stows under the kennel floor in a separate compartment. It would surely be handy for the smaller or arthritic pups, but my hound just didn't get the need for this either.

As we've reported about other Honda Element models in the past, including the 2010 Element, this utility vehicle is hard to beat for people who often have one or two people plus gear to carry.

The Element's suicide-type door setup (back doors are hinged at the rear) allows a very wide opening for loading, and the back seats fold down easily, with the tall, boxy body enabling more useful cargo capability than in most other utility vehicles.

Only when you try to fit adult passengers in back do you run into the tradeoffs: flat, short cushions back there that aren't very comfortable for longer trips, as well as a door arrangement that requires back doors to be closed before the front ones.

The Element's 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine doesn't have awesome thrust, but it's quick enough, and the five-speed automatic shifts smoothly most of the time (except when rolling back onto the throttle out of a tight turn, when it would often hesitate between gears for a moment). The most surprising thing about the Element, for those who've never driven one, is that it doesn't at all feel tipsy, and even with some crosswinds on the highway it still tracks straight. At lower speeds especially, the Element feels confident and nimble—credit underpinnings that are shared with Honda's small cars.

And it's frugal: Over a week, I covered about 250 miles in all, with and without Owen, and averaged about 25 mpg—beating the 4WD test vehicle's 19 mpg city, 24 highway EPA rating.

The Dog Friendly package costs just $995, which brought the price of our top-of-the-line 2010 Honda Element EX (with navigation) up to $27,365. I'm pretty convinced that's a good value, but Owen is still hinting that it could buy the mother lode of kibs.

Source;
http://www.thecarconnection.com/marty-blog/1048529_tested-2010-honda-element-dog-friendly-package

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Canada: Honda Accord also gets a 'Special Edition' for 2011

It's official, Honda Canada is sending out the slightly revised 2011 Honda Accord with a "SE" edition, no word on what that SE will have, however in the US they have confirmed that it adds heated leather seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, power lumbar on the driver’s seat, and SE (Special Edition) badging. It is available only with the 177-hp version of Honda’s 2.4-liter iVTEC four-cylinder engine, mated to either a five-speed manual or automatic.

From what I see this is how the 2011 Honda Accord Sedan lineup will look like;
-SE
-EX
-EX-L
-EX-L Navigation
-EX-V6
-EX-L-V6
-EX-L-V6 Navigation

Seeing as the SE is replacing the LX and is lower than the EX, I can't see leather as being the option, however I'd love to see heated cloth seats! Honda hasn't done that in the Accord since 2002!

Source;
Honda Canada

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Mercedes-Benz India launches E Class Cabriolet, priced at Rs. 64.5 Lacs, Mercedes Cabriolet Convertible Photos, Images

German Luxury car maker Mercedes Benz its successful E Class in convertible version "Cabriolet" in the Indian market at a price tag of Rs. 64.5 Lakhs. Mercedes-Benz E-Class till date has sold over 12,700 units and the new E-Class has already sold 1268 vehicles between January to July 2010.

Dr. Wilfried Aulbur, Managing Director, Mercedes-Benz India Pvt. Ltd. said,

“The E-Class Cabriolet heralds a new era of Open top motoring. The E-Class has seven offerings for the discerning customers who seek individuality, expression and dynamism through the cars they drive”

The top can be opened or closed with the touch of a button in 20 seconds flat – even while driving at speeds of up to 40 kmph. The E-Class E 350 Cabriolet sports a 3.5 litre engine delivering a powerful output of 272 hp and a torque of 355 N.

Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet Photos:

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