Honda Accord 2015 News

The Australasian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced another round of national safety recalls, with models from Audi, Honda and Skoda impacted by the call backs.

Cars equipped with futuristic technology that can save lives by braking automatically are being recalled in Australia and overseas because their latest safety systems are on the blink.Japanese car makers Subaru and Honda have issued two separate recalls involving technology that is designed to prevent rear-end crashes and/or avoid hitting pedestrians.Subaru is recalling more than 5000 of its latest Outback wagon and Liberty sedan models equipped with its “Eyesight” system that uses two cameras behind the windscreen to scan the road ahead.A sign of just how complex modern cars have become, Subaru has discovered a seemingly unrelated brake light fault can disable the vehicle’s automatic emergency braking system.A statement from Subaru said: “The (Eyesight) system may not operate as intended in an emergency braking situation (where the driver has failed to apply the brake), or may fail to properly engage the brakes when the vehicle has been placed in (automatic cruise control) mode. This is due to a software programming issue.”Subaru says the fault “does not affect the performance of the brakes when engaged by the driver” and no incidents have been reported in Australia or overseas.See full details on the Subaru recall here.  Meanwhile Honda Australia is recalling more than 2000 examples of its latest Accord sedan and CR-V that are equipped with similar automatic emergency braking technology.Rather alarmingly, in the case of the Honda fault, the automatic braking system can be activated when it is not supposed to.“In certain driving conditions, the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS) may unexpectedly activate while operating the vehicle,” the Honda recall statement says.“In rare cases, the system may interpret certain roadside objects, such as metal fences or guardrails, as obstacles and apply emergency braking.”See full details on the Honda recall here and here.The faults come as the car industry is debating how much technology should be introduced in modern cars, and how much control should be taken away from the driver.Car giants Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, and technology companies Apple and Google, are all experimenting with driverless cars that rely on cameras, radars and other sensors to navigate their way through traffic with limited or no input from the driver.But the latest recalls show that the technology still has a long way to go before it becomes failsafe.

New-car sales hit the accelerator for the second month in a row after the best March result of all time - but former Australian favourites Holden and Ford hit a wall.

The New York motor show in April will see the announcement of which vehicle has won the 2014 World COTY, and there looks to be a tough -- and very varied -- field of finalists.Last year's winner was the Volkswagen Golf, which also took awards in pretty well every country on the globe. But this year it could be anything from the little electric BMW i3 to the offroading Jeep Cherokee and even the Citroen C4 peoplemover, judging by the shortlist.A panel of 69 motoring experts from around the world -- including Carsguide's Paul Gover and National Motoring Editor Joshua Dowling -- will choose the winner from: Audi A3, BMW 4 Series, BMW i3, Cadillac CTS, Citroen C4 Picasso, Ford Fusion/Mondeo, Infiniti Q50, Jeep Cherokee, Lexus IS, Mazda3, Peugeot 308 and Skoda Octavia.The 10 finalists for the 2014 World Luxury Car are the Bentley Flying Spur, BMW X5, Cadillac ELR, Cadillac Escalade, Maserati Ghibli, Maserati Quattroporte, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Porsche Macan, Range Rover Sport and Rolls-Royce Wraith.Due to a tie, there are 11 finalists for the 2014 World Performance Car: Alfa Romeo 4C, Audi RS 6 Avant, BMW M6 Gran Coupe, Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, Ferrari 458 Speciale, Ford Fiesta ST, Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4 Roadster, Mercedes-Benz A/CLA45 AMG, Porsche 911 GT3, Porsche 911 Turbo and Volkswagen Golf GTI.A separate panel of five 'green' experts will choose the 2014 World Green Car from Audi A3 Sportback e-tron (+ Audi e-gas), BMW i3, Honda Accord Hybrid, Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV and Volkswagen XL1.Similarly, a panel of five design experts will decide on the 2014 World Car Design of the Year, from among: BMW i3, Cadillac CTS, Citroen C4 Picasso, Mazda3, Lexus IS, Mercedes-Benz C-Class and Volkswagen XL1.This reporter is on Twitter: @KarlaPincott 

In the absence of exciting new product, leaner and meaner sub-$30,000 pricing on the Honda Accord and price cuts to the City light car are the latest salvos fired by the Japanese car maker to turn around its sales figures. Honda's "aggressive" new Accord pricing aims to further improve the model's value for money, according to director and general manager Stephen Collins. "This new pricing on the Accord range is further evidence of Honda Australia's commitment to provide our customers with outstanding product at value for money pricing. "We are sure our customers will agree the Accord now offers one of the best-value buys in the large segment," he says.  Given the Japanese brand finished 2011 just over 25 per cent down on its 2010 tally (after being thumped by earthquakes, tsunami and nuclear reactor issues in Japan and floods in Thailand), the beancounters will be looking to get volumes back to pre-disaster levels. April's performance showed growth over April 2011 but the numbers year-to-date remain behind 2011. The 133kW/226Nm 2.4-litre four-cylinder entry-level Accord VTi has dropped $4300 to a list price of $28,190 - or $29,990 drive-away. The VTi-L with satellite navigation has been dropped $2800 from $39,990 to $37,190 and the 202kW/342Nm V6 Luxury model has been reduced by $2700 to $47,290. The Accord V6 is equipped with Variable Cylinder Management (VCM) that allows the engine to operate on either six, four or three cylinders for maximum fuel and emission efficiency. The City light car has also had its price cut - by $500 - as part of a facelift and features upgrade. Mr Collins says the $19,990 drive-away pricetag makes the City "sensational value for money." "Australians will love the look of the new-look City," he says. The City, offered in VTi and VTi-L variants, has a new grille and redesigned brake lights and bumpers, aluminium-look interior trim bits and a new rear micro antenna. The VTi-L gets a new design for the new-look 16in alloy wheels. The dash has also been refreshed - the speedometer now has blue illumination - and the City also has thicker window glass and floor carpet to reduce cabin noise, claims Honda. On the floor significantly improve cabin quietness.  The City VTi manual is priced from $18,490  (or $19,990 drive-away), add $2000 for the auto or step up to the VTi-L automatic for $22,990.  

More than 50 Euro owners have reported the combustion problem, which Honda Australia describes as a 'post-combustion detonation sound'. Honda brought an engineering team from Japan to study and resolve the problem, which was also reported in a handful of cars in the USA. It only affects the Euro with 2.4-litre four-cylinder engine. "A counter measure has been developed. We will receive it at the end of this month and will be contacting customers to recify their vehicles," says Honda Australia's spokesman, Mark Higgins. "It's a handful of cars. We've sold 9000 or 10,000 Euros in the past year and it's around 60 vehicles maximum." He says Honda is taking the problem very seriously. "Honda R&D people came out from Japan. We had a team of engineers here for about two weeks," he says. Higgins is not aware of the specific changes to solve the problem but believes it is an electronic counter-measure. "We're not sure if it's a specification specific. We don't know what the issue is, as yet," he says. "But the good news is that we had an issue, and there is a counter- measure. It's an electronic or ECU issue, not a mechanical issue. "The other thing to remember ... is that this is doing no harm whatsoever to the engine. We guarantee the engine will have no ill effects. It has also had no effect on performance or the fuel economy."