800, 000 More Hondas Recalled

In the past few years, the Japanese automotive company, Honda, has been slammed with a series of ongoing vehicle recalls. And unfortunately, this trend for Honda has not yet come to a halt. While Honda is typically known for producing high quality, reliable vehicles, it is yet again intending to recall more automotives - over 800, 000 to be exact. It has recently been found that several of Hondas minivans and crossover-utility vehicles pose a threat in which the vehicle can roll out of the parking lot. For Honda, this recall is anything but good news. Not only do they need to recall the vehicles, but they have also been labeled as the automotive company with the most safety related recalls for two years in a row.

So what has caused this massive recall? It has to do with the ignition interlock. In case you are not familiar with this term, the ignition interlock is a device that is used to ensure that the only time a key can be removed from the vehicle is when it is in "park". And while the Honda company has incorporated this feature into each of their vehicles, it has been found that it is subject to wear over time. If this happens, the key can be removed from the ignition even when the transmission is in neutral (or any other gear). In return, the vehicle could easily roll away, causing some type of accident.

Previous recalls by Honda have been linked to several injuries. With that said, Honda claims that the latest issue dealing with the ignition interlock has only been linked to a small number of incidents, and only 2 that resulted in injuries (which were both reported as minor).

Having said that, these claims by Honda seem to conflict with a statement that was issued by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. This statement was based on investigations into the issue, which began back in October. According to the HTSA, the 2003 and 2004 Honda Odyssey models have experienced over 42 complaints against them. Over 26 of these complaints involved vehicles rolling away, and over 16 involved a collision of some form. One vehicle was reported to roll over 600 feet, hitting a retaining wall. Another was said to roll into blocks and hit a brick mailbox.

Included within the most recent recall are 259, 000 Honda Pilot crossovers and 318, 000 Honda Odyssey minivans that were sold between 2003 and 2004. Also included within the recall were 230, 000 Acura MDX crossovers that were sold between the years of 2003 and 2006. These were vehicles that were only marketed in the United States. On top of that, over 63, 000 additional vehicles were recalled from other countries.

But is that the only safety issue that has been reported with Honda? Unfortunately not. October also brought several other recalls for Honda. Included within these were 573, 000 vehicles recalled because they posed a potential fire hazard, 820, 000 vehicles that were recalled due to potential failure of the headlights, and 266, 000 vehicles that were recalled due to circuiting issues (that could also cause fire).

The total numbers are unbelievable. During 2011, 15.5 million vehicles were recalled in the United States due to potential safety hazards. Of these 15.5 million vehicles, 3.8 million of them were produced by the Honda manufacturer. Their recent recall could raise this number for them even more.

Of course, Honda is not the only vehicle manufacturer making headlines for safety recalls. Also topping the charts is the Toyota manufacturer, who is experiencing several safety related issues of their own. Last month, Toyota recalled over 2.8 million vehicles (worldwide). Among their recalled vehicles was their Prius hybrids which were said to experience several problems that could cause trouble with the steering.

A month before that, Toyota recalled another 7.43 million (2.5 million sold in the U.S) automobiles for the potential problem of short-circuiting window switches - an issue that could lead to a potential fire hazard.

With all of that said, neither Honda or Toyota have seem to have a damaged reputation over these matters. Both automotive companies are still seen by buyers as manufacturers that distribute high quality and reliable vehicles.

To learn more about the recent Honda recall, you can visit www.recalls.honda.com or www.recalls.acura.com.

Alternatively you can call (800) 999-1009 for Honda owners or (800) 382-2238 for Acura owners, and select the fourth option.

Read the Original Article at: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/honda-adds-800k-more-vehicles-rollaway-recall-1C7572324

The Newest and Hottest Trend - Compact Crossovers

If you are a fan of Honda, then you will definitely want to keep your eye on the the Detroit Auto Show (more formally known as the North American International Auto Show) that will be put on next month. At the show, Honda's newest concept vehicle will be unveiled - the Urban SUV. A type of crossover, the idea of this vehicle is based upon their subcompact Fit model.

The North American International Auto Show is expected to be overflowed with crossover utility vehicles that have been downsized. Included within some of the vehicles that will be seen at the show is the Lincoln MKC that shares much in common with the smaller Ford Escape, with more focus on luxury.

With fuel prices as they are now (and not expected to drop anytime in the near future), the popularity of small vehicles continues to increase. According to Mark Fields, Ford's Chief Operating Officer, B and C segment models have gained a significant amount of increasing attention in the last decade. Since 2005, the sales of such vehicles have jumped from 13% of the overall U.S market to 20% - that is a 7% increase in only 8 years! As for the trend, it's not going anywhere. In fact, the sales of smaller vehicles is expected to increase at an even faster rate over the next few years.

And where is this trend expected to see the biggest jump? In the compact and subcompact crossover vehicles. Vehicles such as the BMW X1, a small crossover, are being manufactured more than ever, both for mainstream and upscale markets.

As of right now, Honda isn't saying much about their new models and are offering little detail into the making of their crossovers. What they are saying, however, is that their Urban SUV is a model that has been designed with a global concept. It is said to combine the SUV profile with a more sporty appearance on the exterior. The interior is fully functional, modern, and spacious.

With all of that said, the Honda display model at the North American International Auto Show is only expected to be a lightly disguised version of their actual production model (as their vehicles have been in previous shows). As for the real model? This is expected to hit the buyers market after their new plant in Mexico has been opened.

As for Lincoln? It also has ambitious goals for their new "MKC" model. This compact crossover will be one of the 4 models that Ford's luxury brand intends to release between today and 2014. Other vehicles expected to be released between now and 2014 include the MKZ, a newer replacement model for the Navigator SUV, and a new model of the MKS.

Recently, SUV sales have been on the increase and Honda has the goal of boosting their sales by twenty percent by the year 2016. They believe that their new models will help them to reach this goal.

With the increase of sales for small model cars, many other compact crossovers are also expected to hit the market in the near future.

Read the Original Article at: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/compact-crossover-vehicles-hot-new-trend-1C7555747