Posts Tagged Motor
Statement by American Honda Motor Co., Inc., Regarding VSA Modulator Recall
Posted by in Uncategorized on March 17, 2010
Honda has announced a recall for some 410,000 vehicle due to a defect with the Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) module. According to the automaker, 344,00 Odysseys and 68,000 Elements (MY 2007-2008) are affected by the problem and owners will be notified via mail this April to take their vehicles into dealers.
The issue with the VSA results in a softening sensation through brake pedal and a longer pedal travel that requires owners to apply more pressure to bring their vehicles to a halt. The condition worsens over time as the stability control system lets a small amount of air into the braking system.
Press Release
Honda will recall approximately 344,000 Odyssey and 68,000 Element vehicles from the 2007-2008 model years in the U.S. to modify the Vehicle Stability Assist™ (VSA®) modulator. Honda has received customer complaints of brake pedals that feel “soft” or that gradually exhibit a pedal height that gets lower (closer to the floor) before the vehicle stops. In affected vehicles, this condition tends to very slowly increase over time.
Some VSA modulators were assembled in a manner that could allow air intrusion, making it possible for air to enter the modulator during the VSA self-check mode. While only a miniscule amount of air can enter the system during each check, over a period of months or years, the air will accumulate and can result in the “soft brake pedal” or “low brake pedal” condition symptoms associated with this issue. Although not all vehicles being recalled are affected by this issue, we are recalling all possible units to assure all customers that their vehicles will perform correctly.
Honda is announcing this recall to encourage all owners of these vehicles to take their vehicle to an authorized dealer as soon as they receive notification from Honda that their vehicle is affected. Notification to customers will start at the end of April.
Once owners of these vehicles receive written notification of this recall from Honda, they should contact their authorized Honda dealer to schedule an appointment for repair. When Honda identifies concerns of this nature, nothing is more important to the company than fulfilling our obligation and responsibility to alert our customers. To this end in addition to contacting customers by mail, after April 19, 2010, owners of these vehicles will be able to determine if their vehicle requires repair by going on-line or calling. Honda owners can go to www.recalls.honda.com or call (800) 999-1009, and select option 4.
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Motor Trend Classic resurrected, goes quarterly
Posted by in Uncategorized on March 11, 2010
We were just talking with a friend about his Volkswagen Touareg V10 TDI. “How on earth did you afford that?” is the highly sanitized version of the question we posed to him. Answer: He bought used, and then explained to us that he would never buy a new car again, no matter what. A decision that’s fine by us, but which buff book is our pal going to read if he’s unwilling to ever walk into a new car dealership again?
Meet – or re-meet as the case may be – Motor Trend Classic. The fine folks at Motor Trend tried their hand at this classic car thing a few years back in 2005 but were forced to shutter the magazine in 2006. But that was then (and they were trying to sell 12 issues a year. Correction: Motor Trend Classic launched with two issues in 2005 and then went to six issues for 2006). Motor Trend Classic every three months is now.
The cost to entry is a good bit higher than your standard car mag (roughly three times). However, the new magazine is (thankfully) largely free of advertising and it features a unique format and higher quality paper. Hence the high price: $14.95 per issue.
Also of note, Motor Trend will be using this weekend’s Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance to relaunch the Classic magazine. In fact, Amelia Island will feature a special “Motor Trend Class” devoted to cars found on the cover of Motor Trend, including the gorgeous streamlined Norman Timbs Special seen above that graced the cover of the October 1948 issue. Pretty nifty.
Press Release
Norman Timbs Special Headlines First-Ever Class For The Concours
JACKSONVILLE, FL; MARCH 1, 2010 — The Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance Foundation, Inc. announced today that it will feature a class devoted to Motor Trend cover cars of the past during the 15th annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, March 12-14, 2010. It is believed to be the first time a concours has featured cover cars as a judged class.
The Motor Trend class will include:
• 1948 Norman Timbs Special – October
• 1948 Davis Devin – August
• 1949 Kurtis Sports Car – Issue 1, Volume 1
• 1951 LeSabre – March
• 1953 Hudson Italia Prototype – December
• 1955 Ghia Streamline X “Gilda” – September
• 1955 Flajole Forerunner – September
• 1956 Firebird II Concept Car – April
Motor Trend will use the Amelia weekend to re-launch Motor Trend Classic, a publication devoted to the great cars and automotive designs of the past, according to Matt Stone, the publication’s new editor.
Headlining the class will be the Norman Timbs Special. Constructed in the late 40s over a period of about three years, it was the cover car for the October 1949 issue of Motor Trend. General Motors will be displaying the LaSabre, created by their famed auto stylist Harley Earl, along with their futuristic Firebird II Concept vehicle, which took a number of styling queues from the jet designs of the ’50s.
“The idea for this class came about when I was talking with Ken Gross about displaying a large shot of the MT cover that featured the Timbs Special, and he suggested doing an entire class of cover cars; I thought that was a great idea,” says Amelia Founder and Co-Chairman Bill Warner. “Besides the Timbs car, people will love the Hudson Italia and the Ghia Streamline X Gilda. In future shows, I can see us doing a class for many of the automotive magazines out there from hot rods to muscle cars.”
Tickets for the 15th annual Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance are $45 for adults purchased in advance and $50 the day of the show. Students ages 12-18 are $20, and children under 12 are admitted at no charge when accompanied by a paying adult. Event tickets can be ordered in advance at www.ameliaconcours.org or can be purchased at the door.
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Geneva Motor Show: New Focus Station Wagon
Posted by in Uncategorized on February 28, 2010
At next week’s Geneva Motor Show, Ford will stage the world premiere of the fifth member of its Focus family after the five-door hatchback, four-door sedan and the C-MAX and Grand C-MAX minivans, the station wagon model.
According to our sources, the more practical and roomy Focus SW (also known as the Estate in some countries) will initially be launched in Europe. However, if there’s enough interest by buyers in other international markets, Ford will add the station wagon variant to its global range of Focus models in the very near future.
more detail. …
