The Demo Site

Sports Modulo S2000 Concept and friends

Detroit's not the only auto show kicking off on January 11. The annual Tokyo Auto Salon (think "Japanese SEMA") also kicks off this Sunday, and Honda has announced the vehicle lineup it'll display at Makuhari Messe. The two headliners are the Sports Modulo S2000 and Fit concepts. The former is a somewhat ghastly take on Honda's two-seat sports car, with a face that belongs in an aquarium and side cladding straight from a '90s Pontiac stylist's wildest fantasies. Inside, the Sports Modulo S2000 Concept is actually very nice, with swanky brown leather adorning a variety of surfaces. It still doesn't atone for that clock-stoppingly ugly body kit, though. Read on for some brief commentary on a pair of other concepts headed to the show, and check out the gallery below for the complete model rundown.

Ross Brawn, who joined the Honda F1 team as Technical Director in 2007 after an extremely successful stint across the paddock at Ferrari, has said that the now-ownerless ex-Honda F1 team he manages would like to ink a deal with its Italian competitor for engines to power its Formula 1 racers. Now that Honda has officially pulled its factory support from the program, the team will need a good, reliable powerplant if it has any chance remaining competitive, and Ferrari already supplies engines to Scuderia Toro Rosso and Force India in addition to its own Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro factory effort.

Regardless of what powerplant Brawn's team chooses, it isn't likely to get an early shot at testing. At this point, the team is just looking to stay on the track as it attempts to find itself a new buyer and any success found on the track for the '09 season would just be icing on the cake. Thanks for the tip, Eric!

[Source: F1 Fanatic - Photo: Tim Wang CC 2.0]

Euro-spec 2009 Honda Insight

We're still six days away from the official unveiling of the 2009 Honda Insight at the Detroit Auto Show, but the crew at Carscoop just couldn't wait to release images of the European-spec hybrid ahead of its debut.

The Euro model shown here won't differ too much from the U.S. version (we like our steering wheels on the right-hand side), but the stylistic differences between the production version and its conceptual predecessor are obvious at first glance. As we've seen before, the front fascia carries over largely unchanged, although the technorific LED headlamps, deeply recessed fog lamps/air intakes and gaudy brightwork are all left on the designer's desk. The side mirrors have grown in proportion to the door handles, and the C-pillar is noticeably thicker than the concept that bowed in Paris. The rear has also been smoothed over, with the Prius-esque (or is that CRX-inspired?) hatch losing a bit of glass, along with the contoured cut-out for the license plate, which is now mounted lower on the bumper, with a prominent "H" badge floating on a body-colored panel.

Although the interior hasn't been revealed in full, we get a brief glimpse of the central-mounted tach, "eco" gauges and second tier speedo, which benefits from a backlight that transitions from green to blue when the driver mashes the accelerator and unleashes the full fury of the small-displacement engine through the CVT gearbox.

Sales will begin in the U.S. and abroad this spring, with a starting price rumored to hover around $20,000.

leaked 2009 Honda Insight brochure

As is so often the case these days, some early details regarding Honda's upcoming Prius-fighter have leaked out before the hybrid's official unveiling at the Detroit Auto Show. Included among the surprises is a Modulo-trimmed Insight featuring a full set of body mods from Honda's accessory catalog in Japan. We can't be sure if any of those bits will come Stateside (we're not betting on it), but it wouldn't be surprising if we got three trim levels similar to what's slated to be available in Honda's home market of Japan. We could get a base DX trim along with an up-level LX edition and a sportier EX model with such tasty bits as a paddle-shifted CVT automatic transmission and navigation system with 7-inch screen.

With just 88 horses underhood along with an additional 14 from the hybrid's electric motor, don't expect the Insight to be a tire scorching performer, as its true calling with be in delivering the best fuel economy possible. In Japanese testing, the Insight has scored over 70 miles-per-gallon, which may be lower than what the Prius was able to register, but the Insight is also expected to cost several thousand dollars less than its rival.

Honda Zest Spark

Honda apparently decided that its home-market Zest Sports wasn't zesty enough. Away it went to the plastic surgeon for a freshened look with more flavor. The result is the Zest Spark. Instead of basically carrying over the base Zest's vanilla look up front, the Spark gets a new fascia with a V-shaped grille/lights combo hovering above the car's big, flat bumper. 660cc NA and turbo kei-spec engines reside underhood. Inside, it's basic kei car stuff, with seating for five four that can be arranged in an optimal date night configuration. Yeah it's small, but it's practical, see?

According to La Stampa, Honda F1 has a buyer: Mexican telecom billionaire Carlos Slim Helu. Reports claim he paid the single dollar Honda was asking. He trumped Force India F1 owner Vijay Mallya, who was suspected to want the Honda team only for its tech know-how, and Prodrive's Dave Richards.

When Honda announced its immediate departure from F1 on December 4, it gave the outfit 27 days to find a bona fide buyer who would make a credible 3-year commitment to run the team. If the team did find such a purchaser, Honda said it would assist with finances and technical support. Carlos Slim has the finances and the experience: he is reportedly the second richest man in the world, and his companies are already involved in motorsport.

If the transaction proves to be true, and assuming the team gets funded properly, it will mean a few good things for the 2009 F1 season: it will add another privateer team to the grid, it will let Ross Brawn continue creating the team he's been dying to lead since he was at Ferrari, and it will return the name "Senna" to the grid. Bruno, Ayrton Senna's nephew, is sponsored by Embratel, a subsidiary of Slim's Telmex company, and will certainly replace Rubens Barrichello as the one flying the Brazilian flag.

[Source: La Stampa via My Automovil]

Honda keeps dropping one shocking news after another. After announcing that it is pulling out of Formula One racing, Honda now says that the Nissan GT-R will no longer have a competitor. That's right the company has pulled the plug on the 600-hp 5.5L V10 NSX supercar due to an economic slowdown and declining sales.

Besides having a running prototype and posting some competitive Nurburgring laps, Honda's CEO Takeo Fukui said that all development on the NSX will cease.

Honda was expected to show a concept version of the NSX at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show next month. Now all Detroit funding will go towards showing the production Insight Hybrid, FC Sport, FCX Clarity and the CR-Z concept.

2010 Acura NSX Prototype at Nurburgring :

Amidst a troubled global economy, Honda is actively scaling back its operations, and its performance programs are sadly bearing the brunt. After canceling its participation in Formula One and the AMA motorbike road racing series, the Japanese automaker has reportedly announced that it is nixing development of the next-generation NSX supercar.

The unfortunate news will undoubtedly come as a stunning disappointment for the loyal legions of Honda/Acura sportscar fans. The new NSX, which looked to be nearing the end of its development on the road to production, was slated to be the most powerful car ever made by Honda, driven by an anticipated 560-horsepower V10.

According to Autocar, the goal-line audible came from none other than Takeo Fukui, Honda's CEO, who dropped the bombshell as part of an end-of-year speech to the troops. The news also means that Honda is suspending plans to finally bring the Acura nameplate to Japan, and it also calls into doubt the fate of the V10 engine itself, as well as any long-rumored V8 powertrains.

Honda hasn't ruled out the possibility of picking up where it left off once business is back in order, but in the meantime the original NSX, which ceased production in 2005 after fifteen years on the market, will have to remain without an heir.

[Source: Autocar]