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Update: Grid fills out for 2009 F1 car presentations

Filed under: Motorsports, Honda, Ferrari

Click above for a high-res gallry of last year's BMW Sauber F1.08 reveal

Each day in the new year is bringing us closer to the successive unveilings of the latest batch of Formula One race cars, with nearly all the teams confirming the launch dates for their latest machinery.

Contrary to earlier reports that placed its unveiling on January 15, Scuderia Ferrari will be the first team to show its new car with an online preview on January 12, ahead of the official Fiorano debut. Toyota will follow, as expected, on January 15 from Cologne, Germany, and McLaren the next day from Woking, England. Renault and Williams will unveil at the official FIA-sanctioned test session on January 19 at Algarve, Portugal, with BMW Sauber to follow the next day from Valencia, Spain.

Red Bull, which previously remained a question mark, has now announced its debut on February 9, citing the desire to take advantage of more development time. Sister team Toro Rosso has yet to confirm reports that its presentation will wait until March, when Force India is expected to unveil as well. But there's no telling what will be with Honda as the team's future hangs in the balance. Stay tuned.

[Source: F1-Live]

Update: Grid fills out for 2009 F1 car presentations originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 10 Jan 2009 14:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Honda Accord Cog Commercial

Ah, the Rube Goldberg-esque Cog commercial Honda made for the new Accord back in 2003. That was awesome. Here’s a re-cap:

Honda shot that commercial in real time with no CGI. It took 606 takes to get it right. The equipment was so precisely set up that the crew literally had to tip toe around the set for fear of disturbing the bits and pieces.

Some people I know are convinced that the part where the tires roll uphill is fake. It’s not. They just put a weight up inside each tire so that, when it’s knocked, the weight goes off balance and tries to fall to the ground, which “pulls” the tire uphill. It’s simple actually.

Anyway, without further ado, here is The Cog:

All-New 2009 Acura TL Starts at $34,955

Acura has announced the pricing for the all-new 2009 Acura TL.

Honda Sedan Attempts to Exact Video Game-Style “Justice”; Our Weekend Hijinks Pale In Comparison

This weekend in San Diego [Motto: "I Have A Kilo Of Cocaine In My Glove Box"], the driver of a silver Honda was arrested for driving like a bat out of hell. According to reports, witnesses became suspicious of the Honda’s activity when they witnessed the vehicle careen off California’s Interstate 805 exit ramp, skid into opposing lanes of traffic, and narrowly avoid sideswiping a police cruiser. After regaining [relative] control and with police now actively in pursuit, the Honda then proceeded to evade the authorities for several blocks before colliding head-on with an unoccupied police car parked on the side of the road.

Next, with the party just getting started, Catalan then sped a few blocks up and intentionally side-swiped a another police unit responding to the scene [the officer was unharmed]. Probably intending to wreak more havoc, the Honda’s Japanese jihad was cut abruptly short [and the driver taken into custody] when it flew balls-to-the-wall into a parked Dodge pick-up truck…the Detroit 3 “Comeback Trifecta” is now two-thirds complete.

[Source: San Diego Union-Tribune]

Being An Engineer At Honda Must Be Nice [Novelties]

Speaking as someone who has done it, being an engineer for any of the not-so-Big Three is something of a soul-crushing endeavor. Deadlines are always too aggressive, budgets are always too small, management never grasps the true complexities of a system, and you inevitably have to deal with totally incompetent suppliers who over promise and under perform. It's a delightful job. That kind of experience makes the open letter from a Honda employee that arrived at the offices of BoingBoing seem like working there is some kind of magical fantasy-land of happy rainbows and pony rides.

Be sure to head over and give it a read, but the email describes a place where the sun rises and sets on curiosity and innovation, where you're more or less free to do as you want and where everyone is treated with respect even in the face of conflict. Sounds like a total fallacy to us. Maybe even Honda propaganda. Take the opening paragraph for instance:

Honda is a freak, by American and even Japanese standards. There is an absolutely astounding amount of room here for anyone to work once they get in. The view is Global and the focus is Local. No one has ever told me what to do. One Rule - Dream. We find our way on an individual level, as reason, interest and inclination dictate, and this is an ultimate form of unequaled personal power to affect the future. In Honda, our own best interests are at the forefront of every day life at work and home. In engineering, there are no lines of demarcation segregating futurists from the present applications of science. There is nothing so esoteric that doesn't deserve a close inspection, and there is a common belief here in doing things the Hard Way. Even so, the core philosophy of the company could best be described as the pursuit of Joys.

It's practically impossible to believe such a place actually exists. If it did you'd have the happiest, most productive, best engineers in the world turning out superior products and doing it while leading the way in innovation. Oh, wait a minute. [BoingBoing]

LA 2008: Honda shows off Insight's Eco Assist dashboard

Filed under: LA Auto Show, Hybrids/Alternative, Green, Tech, Honda

Click above for high-res image gallery of the Honda Insight Eco Assist dashboard

There's more to driving green than just the car you choose. The way you pilot the vehicle makes a huge impact on your fuel mileage, and automakers are now beginning to endow their new wares with technology that teaches you how to drive green. Honda's upcoming Insight is a perfect example, with its new Eco Assist dashboard that keeps tabs on the driver's right foot and relays information back via a color-changing speedometer and and "economy scoring function." Honda aims to make "the hybrid experience more fun and rewarding" with these technologies -- kinda like a video game -- that are activated by a green ECON button on the dash. When pressed, the CVT transmission changes modes and computers adjust the operation of the A/C, stop the engine from idling sooner and increases regenerative braking capabilities.

With this announcement, Honda joins Ford in the eco-dash wars. The Blue Oval recently revealed its LCD gauge cluster called SmartGauge with EcoGuide, which will debut in the 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid and Mercury Milan Hybrid. The tech wars are heating up fast and new innovations such as these green gauge clusters may make driving a rewarding experience for a completely new reason. Progress?

Gallery: LA 2008: Honda Insight Eco Assist