Odyssey Wins!

Cars.com has announced that the 2011 Honda Odyssey is the winner of its first-ever Ultimate Minivan Shootout, taking six new minivans under $45 000 and putting them under several rigorous tests. The Odyssey won for its styling, comfort and overall ride. "Minivans haven't always been so cool, in fact some car shoppers have shied away from them," said Patrick Olsen, editor-in-chief. "The reality is that today's minivans are sleek, practice and drive well, which fulfills the needs of many families. Looking at the Odyssey, its overall package of innovative features, design and a great ride propelled it ahead of its competitors. The $42 000 price tag may be steep but the features the consumer receives for that money is unbeatable."

Along with USA Today and Motorweek, they tested the vehicles over 3 days. They evaluated the real-world mileage as well as ride, comfort, handling, style and functionality. Design and feature content was also evaluated.

The 2011 Chrysler Town & Country, Dodge Grand Caravan, Nissan Quest, Toyota Sienna and the Volkswagen Routan was also part of the comparison shootout.

BREAKING NEWS: Honda's Relentless Recalls Continue ...

Honda is recalling 2 800 of its 2011 Odysseys to repair faulty windows. There is a potential failure with the two front door power windows where the window may come off the track and become inoperative/drop into the door. The window may also shatter into the passenger cabin causing damage. No crashes or injuries have been reported and the recall is expected to begin mid-April. 

RECALL ALERT UPDATE: 2011 Honda Odyssey

2 908 2011 Honda Odysseys in Canada are also affected in this recall involving the windshield wipers. Honda will be more adamant in replacing the wipers in these models because of Canada's snowy climate.

RECALL ALERT: 2011 Honda Odyssey

Next thing you know, the Honda Odyssey is being recalled. And it's the new one. 33 241 all-new Odysseys need to have the windshield wiper linkage rod replaced. The linkage could bend if the wipers freeze under snow or ice and stick to the glass and it would gluck up the wipers. No injuries have resulted from this problem. Honda will be issuing recall notices to all affected owners later this month. 

2011 Honda Odyssey Roof Strength

Honda's 2011 Odyssey has earned the Top Safety Pick from IIHS after picking up a Good rating from its roof strength test. The Odyssey also rated Good for frontal offset as well as side-impact crash tests. To receive a Good rating in the Roof Strength Test, a car must withstand a force of more than 4x its own weight before the roof sustains 5-inches of crushing. The EX model weighed 4398 pounds and withstood more than 22666 pounds of force, approximately 5.12x its own weight. 

Consumer Reports Releases Ratings

Honda's 2011 Fit won Best Value and Best Used Small Car

Honda topped Consumer Reports' annual rankings of automakers for 2011. No Honda product scores less than average in reliability and CR recommends 76% of Hondas it has tested. Recent Honda models including the CR-Z and Insight have been disappointing and have not been recommended due to their low score. The redesigned Odyssey is also down a couple of points compared to the 2010 model.

In other categories, the Honda Fit won Best Value for a Small Car along with Best Used Small Car, the Acura TSX 4-cyl won Best Value for Upscale Sedan, the Acura RL won Best Used Luxury Car, the Honda CR-V winning Best Used Compact SUV and the Ridgeline winning Best Used Pickup Truck.

Godzilla Sues Honda

You might remember seeing one of those new Honda Odyssey ads on national television lately. Perhaps one with Godzilla in it? Well now, the Japanese movie studio responsible for Godzilla movies, Toho Co. is suing Honda for unlicensed usage of Godzilla. It's claiming that the monster's fire-spitting headshot was not authorized for Honda's use.

In the commercial, a dark reptile head is seen next to rocker Judas Priest when the cam cuts to the Wide-Rear Entertainment System. Honda says it would not comment on the issue and will not remove the ads for now. Toho's spokeperson says Honda's use of Godzilla without authorization of their company is an infringement of copyright.

Here's the video.

Odyssey's Good Day

Odyssey Nails a 5-Star Rating

The all-new Honda Odyssey nailed an overall rating of 5 stars from the NHTSA today. It received a 5-star frontal rating, a 4-star rollover rating and a 5-star rating for side pole/barrier tests. The 4-star rollover rating is actually the highest rating possible for a car subjected to these tests, despite the fact that there are only 4 stars. The IIHS also recently announced that the Odyssey received a top score of Good in all crash tests. Of the 50 models the NHTSA has tested, only 11 have earned a full five-star ratings all across the board including Acura's MDX and Honda's own Accord. 

Consumer Reports' Top Rated Minivan

After being displaced by the Toyota Sienna numerous times in the past few years, the newest iteration of the Odyssey has regained the top spot. CR loved its performance, handling, storage capacities, refinement but noted that the sportiness has been diluted and the interior plastics were slightly cheap. 

Introduction into Qatar

The 2011 Honda Odyssey was recently launched at the Qatar Auto Show, making Honda's minivan available in over 6 countries. There are LX, EX, EX-L and Touring trims available. The model remains relatively the same compared to the North American Odyssey. 

Agility and Composure, 2011 Honda Odyssey

"In the supermarket of automobiles, minivans occupy the fruit and vegetable section. Their vehicular nutrition comes from gobs of practicality, with healthy doses of economics and safety mixed in.

But just because they're good for you doesn't make them cool. Trust me, I was the kid with baby carrots at snack time.

Honda's 2011 Odyssey aims to change that. All the usual nutrients that ease parents' minds are there. But Honda has dialed up the cool factor, hoping to draw those parents who know just as much about PlayStations as they do play dates."

Full review from The LA Times @ http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-honda-odyssey-review-20110120,0,2267440.story

Honda of Alabama 2010 Wrap

The Honda plant in Lincoln has successfully churned out 272 057 vehicles in 2010. Honda of Alabama produced 119 573 Odyssey minivans, 121 331 Pilot SUVs, 20 174 Ridgeline pickup trucks and 10 979 Accord V6 sedans at the Lincoln facility. Final and official production numbers for these vehicles will be verified in January 2011.

Throughout 2010, Honda has maintained stability in its 4 000 workers and has increased output with Saturday overtime productions in the 3rd and 4th quarters of 2010.

Changes will be coming in 2011 with Honda's revised manufacturing system kicking in, allowing plants to adjust product mix due to market demand. Honda of Alabama will be increasing production of the Odyssey. Along with that, the Accord V6 will no longer be produced in Alabama as the entire V6 production of the sedan will move to Ohio in December. Line One will be building the Odyssey, Line Two will be building the Pilot and Ridgeline come the next few weeks.

Honda Odyssey Review

A great review @ http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101208/ap_on_re_us/us_behind_the_wheel_honda_odyssey_1

US Honda Lease Offers

For more information, visit http://automobiles.honda.com/current-offers.aspx

December 2010 Canada Honda Deal-breakers

The 2010 Honda Accord is a bargain if you can find any left in Canada. 

Acura's holding a $12000 cash incentive on the 2010 Acura ZDX in Canada right now, reducing the price to around $45900 for a premium crossover. Irresisting isn't it? 

A big deal is also available for remaining models of the 2010 Honda Odyssey, with a $6000 factory to dealer cash incentive and 1.9% lease rates and low purchase financing rates are certainly sweetening the deal. These deals are to push the 3rd generation Odyssey off the lot as the 4th generation 2011 models arrive.

Along with that comes the 2010 Honda Accord which is being offered similar discounts to the Odyssey on the V6 models and the 4 cylinder models receive more modest but still substantial discounts. These deals are to push the previous models off the lot to make way for the 2011 freshened models. Visit your dealer to find out how much you can knock off! 

Spied! 2011 Honda Odyssey

Spied out in the streets ... still shares quite a few styling cues from the 2010 Honda Odyssey Concept shown at the Detroit Auto Show a few months earlier, can't wait for this minivan!

News - 2010 US Honda Odyssey

There are only 2 changes for the 2010 Honda Odyssey ahead of a 2011 makeover, the EX now gets the Rear Entertainment System option and the Touring drops its problematic PAX tires. Pricing for the 2010 US Honda Odyssey begins at $26805.

Review - Carpages on the 2009 Honda Odyssey

( Quoted from Carpages )
" The 2009 Odyssey is the 4th year of its 3rd generation. It has always been considered one of the better minivans, and the 2009 model is no different. The Odyssey is available in DX, LX, EX, EX-L and Touring models. Our test vehicle was a mid-level EX in an attractive Bali Blue. "

For more information, visit http://www.carpages.ca/article/2009/08/16/2009-honda-odyssey-road-trip-review .

Review - Bangkok Post on the 2009 Honda Odyssey

( Quoted from The Bangkok Post )
" There was always something special about the Honda Odyssey ever since it was launched in first-generation form in the 1990s. Despite being labelled an MPV, it had many car-like attributes to clearly stand out from its intended competition. Appearance is one example. While most MPVs tend to stand tall at some 1.7m, the Odyssey is relatively short at just 1.5m. This made Honda's seven-seater quite an athletic-looking people-carrier. "

For more information, visit http://www.bangkokpost.com/auto/autoreview/22030/mpv-of-consideration .

Review - CarPages on the 2009 Honda Odyssey EX

Carpages has a road test review on the 2009 Canadian Honda Odyssey EX @ http://www.carpages.ca/article/2009/08/06/2009-honda-odyssey-ex-road-test-review .

Sales - Honda America July 2009

American Honda Motor Co., reported sales in July fell 17.3% on low volumes of its Accord sedan, trucks and SUV models. Sales fell to 114690 vehicles from 138744 from last year. Honda sales are down 30.7% at 645468 so far year to date. the U.S. unit of the No. 2 Japanese carmaker, said Monday its auto sales in July fell 17.3 percent on lower volumes of its Accord sedan and its trucks and SUVs. Acura fell 32.5%, selling 8662 units in July.

THE GOOD: The Civic increased 3.1% to 30037 units and the CR-V increased sales by 9.9% to 19151 units. The TL is the bright spot for Acura, albeit down 16% sitting at 3309 sales in July.

THE BAD: The 2010 Insight has sold only 2295 models in July. Its cousin, the Honda Civic Hybrid has seen sales dip 71% from 3440 units in 2008 to only 969 units in 2009. Odyssey and Ridgeline sales are at half of what they were last July 2008, sitting at 6785 and 1184 units respectively. At Acura, the RL is down an amazing 75% from 532 units last year to 131 units in July 2009. The RDX is also down as well, sitting at a paltry 519 units, down 62.5% from last year.

Spied - 2011 Honda Odyssey

Edmunds Insideline has the latest spy photos on the upcoming 2011 Honda Odyssey. As far as the photos suggest, it looks like the Honda Odyssey won't change much in terms of size, look for the 6-speed automatic to appear on the 2011 Odyssey. Also, look for a more conventional design on the way. For more, visit Edmunds Insideline @ http://blogs.edmunds.com/straightline/2009/08/spy-photos-2011-honda-odyssey-caught-night-testing-in-death-valley.html