Last Friday, the city of Torrance, California took ownership of the first electric hatchback from Honda to be delivered: the Honda Fit EV, which represents the first step in Honda’s “electric vehicle demonstration program,” before the vehicle launches as a lease-option for drivers in California and Oregon later this summer.
The Fit EV was initially revealed last year at the 2011 Los Angeles Auto Show, along with the information that US customers will be able to lease the 2013-model-year car, which has a range of about 76 miles on electric power, beginning in the summer of 2012.
Sadly, Honda has no plans to ever offer the car for sale to the general public.
Sometime later this year, the city of Torrance will also be receiving a Honda plug-in hybrid for demonstration purposes, though that will likely be a mid-size sedan, since that’s the platform the automaker’s existing plug-in hybrid drivetrain has been engineered to fit.
The Detroit Auto Show is this weekend, and one of the concept cars being shown is the new Honda Accord Coupe. Typical of Honda this “concept car” gives every appearance of being ready for production. It also gives every appearance of being really similar to the current model Accord coupe, but if you look closely, you’ll see some subtle updates.
The first crash test results for 2012 model-year cars were released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) earlier this month, and the news isn’t great. Under the stricter guidelines in place for 2011 and forward, only three cars have earned five-star composite ratings so far. Those three cars are the 2012 Cadillac CTS, Chevrolet Camaro, and Toyota Camry, and of those three cars, only the Camaro scored 5 stars in every category.
The composite scores are based on ratings (on a scale of five) for frontal, rollover, and combined side-pole and barrier crash tests. The side-pole test is new, and simulates a side-impact crash into a pole or tree that is ten inches in diameter, with a vehicle traveling at 20 mph, and impact occurring at a 75-degree angle just aft of the driver’s side A-pillar.
The chart above shows the results of the first 22 2012 models to have gone through the crash testing. NHTSA has plans to test a total of 74 models for this model year.
Despite the fact that Sergio Marchionne is still anti-hybrid, the CEO of Fiat-Chrysler has caved in to the mounting pressure of impending 2025 CAFE standards, which he says can’t be met without them.
In story reported by Automotive News, Marchionne said that Chrysler will be forced to produce hybrid vehicles for the North American market, even though he believes they’re expensive to build, and despite personal skepticism about their sales success.
To date, Chrysler has remained out of the hybrid market, but now the company will have a Chrysler 300 with hybrid technology ready for the 2013 model year.
The Obama administration is in the process of increasing the CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) requirements for light trucks and cars sold in North America. If current numbers are approved, the standards would increase from a slightly-higher-than-the-present 35.5 mpg in 2016, to an ambitious 54.4 mpg in 2025.
The latter number was calculated by the Environmental Protection Agency working with other branches of the federal government, and would actually translate to roughly 40 mpg when advertised on window stickers. It represents the largest jump in CAFE numbers since government monitoring of such things began in 1970.
In addition to the development of a hybrid 300, Chrysler’s 2013 lineup will include a clean-diesel version of the popular Jeep Grand Cherokee, with other diesel Chryslers destined to follow. Most Chryslers, Dodges and Jeeps that are sold in European markets are already offered in diesel versions.
And beyond hybrids, possible BEVs, and diesels, Marchionne said meeting the CAFE target could require more technologies including compressed natural gas CNG).
Volkswagen announced last night that it would be unveiling two new vehicles – production vehicles, not concept cars – at next month’s Los Angeles Auto Show. It will be the global debut for both vehicles, which means that neither has appeared anywhere else.
Volkswagen is not sharing the specifics of which two vehicles they’ll be introducing but most auto industry analysts are guessing that at least one of them will be the new convertible version of the popular Beetle, which recently went on sale in its hardtop version, sporting an updated design.
For the other vehicle, rumors abound, but most car bloggers agree that it’s likely to be a new variation of an existing vehicle, though it’s possible that the much-whispered about crossover with three rows of seats might be put on the pedestal.
If you’ll be in or near Los Angeles during the month of November, you can check out the Auto Show yourself. The media preview will take place on November 16th and 17th, while the actual show runs from the 18th-27th, including Thanksgiving weekend.
