The Accord has been a stable vehicle in the Honda lineup for quite some time now, but there is a point where “stable” is just too boring and that’s when people turn to more exciting choices. Honda must’ve picked up on that though with the 2013 Honda Accord because this new model, while still stable, is far from boring. In fact everyone that gets behind the wheel mentions how “fun” it is to drive. While there are still complaints about what Honda can still improve on, this Accord is probably the best to date.

A 3.5 liter V6 engine is what’s standard for the 2013 Honda Accord and that will give you a pleasantly assertive 278 horsepower and 252 pound feet of torque. This engine is mated to a six speed manual transmission that sends power to the front wheels. This system is equipped with Variable Cylinder Management which works to shut down one of the two banks so the car will operate on three cylinders at a time when cruising at an idle until it’s time to accelerate and then all banks will fire back up. This creates better fuel efficiency. Speaking of fuel efficiency, you can expect to get about 21 city miles per gallon and 32 highway miles per gallon or 25 combined.

You can expect to pay $32,350.00 and up depending on which options your choice for your own 2013 Honda Accord. Whether that is going to help it remain in competition with the rest of the new sedans is hard to tell because this segment has a major players that are going to be tough to keep up with. The biggest complaint about this Accord is the infotainment system. This system has two color LCD screens with two different control schemes. The main screen is inconvenient for the driver to reach easily. Hopefully Honda will do something about that in future versions.

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The 2013 Honda Fit has been out for some time now, although in the food chain of that particular pack of compact vehicles, the Chevy Sonic and Ford Fiesta have been the Big Daddies, but the Fit is close in the race of becoming one of the more popular of the small, efficient models. It will have a new generation coming up soon, but the 2013 model did deserve at least a nod in its direction. While it may not be as low cost as the Nissan Versa, as zippy as the Chevy Sonic or high tech like the Ford Fiesta, it does have its high points.

The design of the Honda Fit has always been likened to that of an angry bug, but it’s not just designed for looks, its built to offer as much interior space as possible in a tiny compartment and to at least off the “feeling” of more spaciousness if not actually accomplish it. City drivers that need to rely on tightly squeezed together parking spaces, that don’t need to haul soccer teams or much of anything else around though will probably appreciate it. And, it’s not entirely uncomfortable if you don’t mind smaller spaces.

The engine hosted in the 2013 Honda Fit is a 1.5 liter four cylinder engine. This will give you 117 horsepower and 106 pound feet of torque. What this means is don’t expect to win any races, probably even against an angry bug. You will enjoy the fuel efficiency though which is one of the main appeals of this Honda rendition of subcompact drivability.

Heading back inside the 2013 Honda Fit, while it is small and will be small no matter what you do, it does offer some impressive head room for the tall drivers and has the most headroom for rear seat passengers over any other car in its class. Legroom for the rear passengers is another story, but there is a little bit that would be comfortable for younger children.

Source YouTube

Out of anywhere else in the entire world, you would think China would be the biggest country to embrace green driving. It is so bad over there that according to the Global Burden of Disease Study (GBD) there were 1.2 million premature deaths in 2010 alone that were attributed to the outdoor air quality. Despite these dismal figures, Honda CEO Takanobu Ito can’t see that Chinese really care one way or another about the more environmentally friendly vehicles coming out. Instead, he believes that the drivers in China only want reliable cars that are easy to afford.

Mr. Ito told reporters in Shanghai on Saturday, “Overall, we have high hopes for hybrid technology. In terms of how important it is to the Chinese market we are slowly releasing products and looking at how they do. But we think there are still more Chinese consumers who want to simply buy a car that fits their needs rather than buy a hybrid. By needs I mean a good-quality car with an affordable price that doesn’t break down. At present, we think these take higher priority.”

With this in mind, Honda is working hard to not only build green cars including hybrids, but to also build them to be as reliable and affordable as what Chinese drivers demand. In this way, Honda hopes to encourage more drivers to become consciousness of the environment and have a car that they can be really excited about purchasing.

Currently the Honda Insight, Honda Fit Hybrid and Honda CR-Z is available for sale in China and there are ongoing plans to make components for an integrated motor assist hybrid system to help reduce the costs of hybrids. We should be able to expect that this new technology will also make its way into American hybrids and eco-friendly vehicles as well.

Source Wall Street Journal

Japanese automakers have one unfortunate commonality. They all have to issue recalls for faulty airbags. Apparently they all used an outside supplier, Takata Corp., for airbags that went into their vehicles built in the years 2000 through 2004. The airbags in question are the passenger front bags that do not inflate properly. As you can imagine, that could have significant implications in the event of a crash, especially for the front seat passenger. Toyota and Honda have both published information about their recalls from this fiasco at their respective websites. Nissan and Mazda have not commented yet but all will need to make sure to contact owners and get this issue taken care of.

Recall List:

Toyota – The following built between November 2000 and March 2004 – Lexus SC, the Toyota Corolla, Sequoia and Tundra and the Pontiac Vibe. The Camry sedan is also affected, but not in the U.S. market. This totals around 1.73 million Toyota models, 580,000 vehicles sold in North America and 490,000 vehicles sold in Europe.

Honda  - Civic, CR-V and Odyssey built within the same time period as Toyota and totals about 1.14 million vehicles. 561,400 vehicles were sold here in American and 107,800 in Canada.

Nissan – Specific models haven’t been announced, however there are around 480,000 Nissan models that will be recalled. 265,000 are here in the United States.

Mazda – Reports are stating that 45,500 vehicles worldwide will be recalled. The specific models haven’t been released as yet however Mazda 6 sedans and RX-8 sportscars here in America will be effected along with whichever other models are involved.

There is a risk of fires being started or of passengers being injured by metal fragments shooting up toward the windshield or down into the passenger foot well in the event of a crash. Because of these risks, drivers of the affected vehicles should contact their dealerships. While Honda has initiated sending recall letters to their drivers, Toyota, Nissan and Mazda have not announced when they will notify their drivers of this issue.

The midsize sedan segment is the most highly competitive out of all other vehicles. For the past few years, the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord were the main contenders, but that changed with the new Nissan Altima and Ford Fusion throwing their weight around. Nipping at their heels has been the Chevy Malibu and Hyundai Sonata, and its game on. The Altima and Fusion are in a death match for the crown and to stay on top as “King of the Mountain” in the midsize category.

Bob Carter, Toyota Motor Sales’ senior vice president of automotive operations, said, “We feel really good about our position following a late build-out of the ’12 model. We are absolutely confident we will be the No. 1 [car] in the market in 2013.”

Well, apparently that’s smack talk because all the other automakers have their own perspective.

Victor Benitez, general manager of Gus Machado Ford, comments about the new Ford Fusion, “We now have a vehicle that can compete head-to-head with Camry and Accord. It’s a good-looking car.”

Don Johnson, Chevrolet’s vice president of sales and service, said, “Clearly it’s a very competitive segment, but it’s really that month-over-month trend that we like right now.” This is in light of the fact that Chevy Malibu sales rose more than 25% from February and March was the sedan’s best month since last August.

How is your favorite playing out in the battle to win the crown as top selling midsize sedan? Here is the rundown for sales so far for the year:

Sales to Date for 2013 Midsize Sedans

1. Toyota Camry 100,830
2. Honda Accord  88,427
3. Nissan Altima 86,952
4. Ford Fusion 80,558
5. Chevy Malibu 49,179
6. Hyundai Sonata 47,285
7. Kia Optima 38,813
8. Chrysler 200 36,885
9. Dodge Avenger 32,047
10. Volkswagen Passat  25,909

Source Auto News

Congratulations go to the winners of the 2013 Kelley Blue Book Brand Image Award. This is the sixth year for this award from Kelley Blue Book. The “Judges” of these awards are about 12,000 shoppers that visit KBB.com over the year and have their say on 13 categories including non-luxury cars, luxury cars and truck segments.

Hwei-Lin Oetken, vice president of market intelligence for Kelley Blue Book, said, “The Kelley Blue Book Brand Image Awards are unique because they reflect the opinions of actual in-market new-car shoppers, providing automakers with a glimpse into what potential customers really think of their brand and showcasing their perception strengths. While other awards from KBB.com are based on data calculated by Kelley Blue Book experts, the information that comprises the Brand Image Awards comes directly from the opinions of thousands of new-car shoppers over the period of an entire year. The insights gleaned from the Brand Watch study can be an invaluable tool for automaker marketing teams and their agencies.”

The Winners of the Kelley Blue Book’s 2013 Brand Image Award Are:

Award-Winning Non-Luxury Brands

• 2013 Honda for the Best Overall Brand
• 2013 Honda for the Most Trusted Brand
• 2013 Honda for the Best Value Brand
• 2013 Chrysler for the Most Refined Brand
• 2013 MINI for the Best Performance Brand
• 2013 Ford for the Best Car Styling Brand

Award-Winning Truck Brand

• 2013 Toyota for the Best Overall Truck Brand

Award-Winning Luxury Brands

• 2013 BMW for the Best Overall Luxury Brand
• 2013 Lexus for the Most Trusted Luxury Brand
• 2013 Buick for the Best Value Luxury Brand
• 2013 Mercedes-Benz for the Most Refined Luxury Brand
• 2013 Porsche for the Best Performance Luxury Brand
• 2013 Porsche for the Best Car Styling Luxury Brand

Many critics are surprised by these results and the serious question remains, are these vote in by actual owners of these cars, or just website visitors who are imagining what the Best Brand Image is? Either way, these are the results and you have to admit, most of these picks are definitely some top selling models.

Source Kelley Blue Book