Tag: Honda

Honda Plans to Race with Hybrid Powertrains in INDYCAR Racing

August 5, 2019 – TORRANCE, Calif TORRANCE, Calif – Aug. 5 – Honda today applauded the announcement by INDYCAR that it will introduce hybrid powertrains to race cars in the NTT Indycar Series for the 2022 season. The plan to begin using hybrid powertrains in a pinnacle racing series like INDYCAR parallels a recent announcement… Continue reading Honda Plans to Race with Hybrid Powertrains in INDYCAR Racing

Report: Honda Clarity PHEV Sales Now Limited To Only California

Is this why sales have declined sharply in the past few months? Honda has reportedly pulled the Clarity PHEV out of widespread availability by limiting distribution to just ZEV states before pulling back the Clarity Plug-In Hybrid even more by making it a California-only offering. Here’s one thread on the situation, but other reports sent… Continue reading Report: Honda Clarity PHEV Sales Now Limited To Only California

Honda Reduces Production of Sedans as U.S. Buyers Favor Bigger Vehicles – The Wall Street Journal

TOKYO—Honda Motor Co. said Friday it was suspending one of two shifts on a production line for Accords and three other models at its plant in Marysville, Ohio. Last year, that line produced 110,000 cars. Honda said it wasn’t planning any layoffs as a result of the slowdown. A second line at the factory that… Continue reading Honda Reduces Production of Sedans as U.S. Buyers Favor Bigger Vehicles – The Wall Street Journal

Honda first-quarter operating profit drops 16% on lower U.S. car sales

A man is reflected on a window at Honda Motor’s showroom in Tokyo, Japan, May 13, 2016. REUTERS/Toru Hanai/File Photo TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Honda Motor Co (7267.T) reported a 16% drop in first-quarter operating profit on Friday, as a stronger yen weighed on overseas earnings and U.S. vehicle sales dropped. Japan’s No.3 automaker posted… Continue reading Honda first-quarter operating profit drops 16% on lower U.S. car sales

Security lapse exposed weak points on Honda’s internal network

An exposed database at automotive giant Honda allowed anyone to see which systems on its network were vulnerable to unpatched security flaws, potentially giving hackers insider knowledge of the company’s weak points. The server contained 134 million rows of employee systems data from the company’s endpoint security service, containing technical details of each computer and… Continue reading Security lapse exposed weak points on Honda’s internal network

GM Cruise delays the launch of autonomous ride-share, adds to test fleet

General Motors Cruise test vehiclesSource: General MotorsCruise, the subsidiary of General Motors developing self-driving vehicles and services, said Wednesday it is postponing a plan to launch an autonomous ride-share service by the end of 2019.
It is the latest indication automakers and tech firms are finding it tougher than expected to put self-driving cars on the roads for public use.
Cruise CEO Dan Ammann announced the delay in launching an autonomous ride-share program through a post on Medium. “Our first deployment needs to be done right and we will only deploy when we can demonstrate that we will have a net positive impact on safety on our roads,” he said. The company has tabbed San Francisco as the location for the service when it eventually starts.
Before that happens, Cruise will be put more test vehicles on the road in San Francisco to better understand and solve the challenges of navigating busy city streets. Right now, Cruise has a fleet of 180 specially designed all-electric GM cars, modified with lidar sensors, cameras and radar logging thousands of miles every day, all with a safety driver ready to take control of the car if a complex or dangerous situation arises.
Since late 2017, Ammann and General Motors have said they plan to have an autonomous ride-share service on the road by the end of 2019. That optimism is one reason why the Softbank Vision Fund, Honda and others have invested more than $7.25 billion into Cruise, pushing its valuation to $19 billion last May, according to company figures.
The appeal of robotaxis is the potential to generate large profits by eliminating the driver, the biggest cost facing Uber, Lyft and other ride-hailing companies. In previous briefings with reporters, Cruise has estimated the cost to operate an autonomous ride-share program in San Francisco could be as low as $1.50 per mile, 40% below the cost of similar services operated by a human driver.
While investors may be optimistic about the potential profits of robotaxis driving passengers around a city, those who track the industry are not surprised Cruise is tapping the brakes on its plans. “The closer you get to ground zero and putting an autonomous vehicle or vehicles on the road, the difference between where the technology is now and where it needs to be cannot be ignored,” said Mike Ramsey, automotive analyst for Gartner Research. “The right thing to do is to not put a product out on the road too soon.”
Late last year, Waymo, Alphabet's autonomous vehicle division, launched its own commercial ride-share service in metropolitan Phoenix. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has promised to have “a million robotaxis” on the road by the end of 2020, capitalizing on Tesla's autopilot technology.
“I feel very confident predicting autonomous robotaxis for Tesla next year,” Musk told analysts in May. He later admitted his timing for plans is sometimes wrong.
For Cruise, the focus now is expanding the number of miles its test fleet is driving.
“Having our cars running many more miles on the road will further accelerate our rate of learning and safety validation,” said Ammann. “It will also give us crucial operational learnings from running a larger scale fleet and a larger scale ride service, which we currently operate for our employees.”

Honda Global | July 30, 2019 Honda Sets All-Time Accumulated Production Records for the First Half of Year Worldwide and in China.

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. today announced a summary of automobile production, Japan domestic sales, and export results for the month of June 2019 and the first half of the calendar year (January – June 2019). Worldwide Production   June 2019 Year-to-Date Total(Jan.-Jun. 2019) Units vs.’18 Units vs.’18 Japan 78,355 +17.5% 472,873 　 +13.1% Outside of… Continue reading Honda Global | July 30, 2019 Honda Sets All-Time Accumulated Production Records for the First Half of Year Worldwide and in China.

Friday Morning Auto News, Jul 26, 2019

No-deal Brexit threatens UK car production, industry warns PM Johnson – Reuters: A no-deal Brexit is an existential threat to the British car industry and would risk output, a British car industry body warned new Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday.
After Nissan, a profit plunge at Renault too – Reuters: French automaker Renault cuts revenue goal after a weaker first half, a day after alliance partner Nissan announced big job cuts and earnings woes. Francis …
SpaceX successfully flies Mars prototype rocket for the first time – CNBC: SpaceX took a noticeable step forward in its development of a massive, next-generation means of space transportation.
Real-world benefits of car safety technology – Reuters: .comAutomakers are accelerating the rollout of technology designed to avoid crashes and improve road safety. Here’s a look at selected crash avoidance features, …
Renault CEO Bollore on Nissan Alliance, Collapsed Fiat Talks, Sales – Bloomberg: Renault SA Chief Executive Officer Thierry Bollore discusses the French automaker’s sales, its alliance with Nissan Motor Co., the collapsed talks with Fiat …

ABB Stock Dropped Because Auto Makers Aren’t Buying Enough Robots – Barrons: The stock dropped anyway, by about 2% in overseas trading, because the global automotive industry is weak. That isn’t a surprise. Automotive is the …
New auto safety technology leaves insurers in the dark – Reuters: Automakers are accelerating the rollout of technology designed to avoid crashes, but insurance companies are …
Editorial: Even car companies aren’t going along with Trump’s rollback of mileage and emissions standards – Latimes: President Trump is hellbent on rolling back the nation’s fight against climate change. But he’s increasingly going it alone. Even some of the companies whose …
Tesla Loses a Founder, and a Piece of Its Soul – Bloomberg: J.B. Straubel, the outgoing technology chief, says he’s taking a break before getting back to “building things.”
Wildcat Discovery, InoBat to build electric car battery line in Slovakia – Reuters: Slovak group InoBat and U.S. energy tech firm Wildcat Discovery Technologies will build a 100 million euro ($111 million) automotive battery production line in …
Woes at Maruti Suzuki underscore troubles in India’s car industry – FT: India’s largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki, has recorded a 27.3 per cent drop in net profits in the April to June quarter, compared to the same period last …
Ford will ax Ka+ minicar in Europe – Automotive News: PSA Group’s Opel-Vauxhall unit has said it will drop its Karl and Adam minicars. PSA has also hinted that the Peugeot 108 and Citroen C1 might be …
Renault cuts revenue goal as car industry misery spreads – Reuters: Renault warned revenue may decline this year, scrapping a previous goal, after first-half profit was hit by weakening car demand and an earnings collapse at alliance partner Nissan in the wake of the Carlos Ghosn scandal.
Maruti Suzuki India June-quarter profit dives, but tops estimates – Reuters: IndiaMaruti Suzuki India Ltd on Friday posted a 27.3% plunge in its first-quarter net profit amid an industry-wide slowdown in demand, but beat market expectations.
Ford, BMW, VW, Honda reach compromise with California on emissions – Automotive News: The automakers reached an agreement on fuel efficiency rules with California, which accounts for 12 percent of U.S. vehicle sales.
China’s CATL to start battery storage business in Japan with Next Energy – Reuters: China’s electric vehicle battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd (CATL) said it will start offering products to homes and plants in …
Renault cuts revenue goal after weaker first half – Reuters: Renault warned that revenue may decline this year, scrapping a previous goal, after first-half profit was hit by weakening car demand and an earnings collapse at alliance partner Nissan in the wake of the Carlos Ghosn scandal.
French carmaker Renault cuts 2019 revenue outlook – Reuters: French carmaker Renault on Friday cut its 2019 revenue outlook, on the back of falling demand and tough conditions within the automotive industry.
China will not set blanket winter output cuts for heavy industry – Reuters: China’s central government will not set overall output restrictions on heavy industry for the coming winter, but will direct local governments to set limits based on manufacturers’ emissions, the environment ministry said on Friday.
Renault Lowers Sales Outlook as Europe Auto Downturn Takes Hold – Bloomberg: Renault SA lowered its outlook for full-year sales as the French carmaker grapples with a downturn in the European car market and dismal results from partner …
As electric vehicle production ramps up worldwide, a supply crunch for battery materials is looming – CNBC: As car manufacturers ramp up production of electric cars, metals used to make the vehicles’ batteries may face a supply crunch, according to a new report.
China’s Pony.ai gallops up behind Google in driverless cars – Nikkei: China’s Pony.ai gallops up behind Google in driverless cars … China also maintains tighter restrictions on self-driving cars than the U.S., and there … a one-hour drive from the city center, and plans to expand the fleet to 100 this year.
Japan, US eyeing ministerial trade talks in Washington, DC on August 1 – Reuters: Japanese Economy Minister Toshimitsu Motegi is … and instead wants to prod the United States into cutting tariffs on auto parts.
SoftBank Forms $108 Billion Vision Fund 2 With Apple, Microsoft – Bloomberg: … two or three years to take advantage of opportunities to invest in cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence and autonomous driving.

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