Honda News

Nissan is in dire straits and another Japanese carmaker is coming to the rescue. Forging an official bond through a memorandum of understanding in March, Honda and Nissan are now taking steps towards a ‘business integration’ — that means a new holding company led by Honda executives will likely sit above the two brands.Mitsubishi, Nissan’s ongoing alliance partner, also expressed an interest in joining Japan’s nascent automotive giant. Nissan's other alliance partner Renault elected to keep distance from the Japanese arrangement. Not everyone is so sure the new deal is a good one, including outspoken former Nissan Boss Carlos Ghosn. Investors have also cooled on their initial excitement, with Nissan stock dropping 7.8 per cent late last week.Distinct from The Alliance, the new arrangement will see Nissan and Honda merge under a new, as-yet unnamed holding group. The deal is tipped to be finalised by August 2026 and the new company will be listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE). Mitsubishi’s involvement in the new company will be decided by January 2025. This is a response to Nissan’s current position, with the company battling sales declines, shrinking profits and huge debts. Specifically, China is the main target, with Nissan’s sales in the country down 50 per cent last fiscal year. New, electrified and ‘software-defined’ products are desperately needed. Banding together won’t see Nissan and Honda outsell Toyota, which delivered over 11 million vehicles last year. Still, with Honda’s 3.8 million unit and Nissan’s 3.4 million unit projections, the pair will be close. Add Mitsubishi’s circa-900,000 sales and that’s over 8.0 million. Honda will have a controlling share in the new group, being Japan’s second-biggest carmaker and the larger company of the three. It also has more stable financials than Nissan. In short, working together should see Honda and Nissan share vehicle platforms and technology investment, giving the two brands greater operational efficiency. The goal is to have a combined sales revenue exceeding 30 trillion yen (A$300 billion) and a healthy 10 per cent operating margin. The change in arrangement will see Honda and Nissan working closely but will not preclude the brands from continuing relationships with the likes of General Motors and Renault, respectively.In Ghosn's eyes, the deal stands to stem Nissan's losses, yet does not offer clear advantages in terms of technology, supply chain or platform. Neither company has a strong foot hold in China, for example, yet they compete fiercely in other markets such as the US and Europe.“It doesn’t make sense ... the first thing you look at when you want to envision an alliance is complementarity between the two partners. When I look at Honda and Nissan, I see none,” Ghosn commented from Beirut, Lebanon.Honda's engineering excellence lays mainly in combustion engines and it will forever be the bridesmaid in the hybrid game. The cutting edge Insight beat Toyota to market with a hybrid yet it failed to have the cultural impact the Prius did. Honda then didn't persevere with hybrids in passengers cars in the same way Toyota did.The brand's electric cars have struggled, too. The Honda e ended up being a quirky curio, while the North American-market Prologue and (critically panned) European market e:Ny1 haven't blown the competition away.Nissan was, on the other hand, early to the electric car game with the Leaf yet did not progress the technology as fast as new Chinese carmakers have since. The Ariya is its lone electric car though an all-new Leaf is coming in 2025 or 2026.Game-changing solid state batteries are also in Nissan and Honda's future arsenals, which could turn the game around in the eventual merged company's favour.

It’s a year that will likely go down as an historical turning point for the Aussie new car market. With local manufacturing now a tiny spec in the rear view mirror, the long-predicted new wave of Chinese challenger brands built into an automotive tsunami in 2024.

Honda has confirmed the new Honda Prelude will go on sale from late 2025 to early 2026, with hybrid power and a design very faithful to the prototype.

The small-car segment is stagnant at the moment and consumers are starting to wonder where the replacements for the ageing Toyota Corolla, Mazda3 and Hyundai i30 are, amongst others. Well, some are coming, others may not, and Kia may just have the answer you seek.

Honda has unveiled a demonstration production line for solid-state batteries as a prelude to a full-scale assault on the new technology.

Honda has announced the Civic will transition to a hybrid-only lineup for 2025, as the brand makes minor design tweaks and adds upgraded software technology to the range.The base-model 1.5-litre petrol variant is out, with both variants now being powered by a 2.0-litre direct-injection four-cylinder engine that produces 135kW/315Nm through an electronic continuously variable transmission as standard.It comes paired to twin electric motors – one to power the front wheels and the other to acts as a generator to charge the 1.05kWh lithium-ion battery pack when braking.That improves fuel consumption across the range to 4.2L/100km, putting it closely behind the Toyota Corolla's 4.0L/100km figure.The Civic will be dearer for 2025, with the now entry-level e:HEV L variant priced at $49,900 drive-away nationally, up $2700 on the previous starting price of the petrol version.The updated top-spec e:HEV LX is $900 more at $55,900 drive-away.The top-spec Toyota Corolla – which is a hybrid – is about $6000 to $7000 cheaper than the Civic once you factor in on-road costs. The Volkswagen Golf is also a fair chunk of change cheaper than the Civic.It is still significantly cheaper than more premium alternatives such as the BMW 118 ($56,500), the Audi A3 ($53,100) and the Mercedes-Benz A200 ($56,200), all at before on-road costs.The updated Civic gets a refreshed front bumper that deletes the previous model's fog lights. There are new 18-inch alloy wheel designs.Inside, the bottom-spec e:HEV L loses some standard features that were previously allocated to its petrol predecessor, such as wireless charging, an auto-dimming rear view mirror and eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat.The top-spec e:HEV LX has those as standard and adds leather-appointed seats and a panoramic sunroof over the e:HEV L.Both models add software upgrades, including Google built-in, which integrates Google Assistant, Google Maps and Google Play into the car’s 9.0-inch multimedia touchscreen.Both cars are now also hooked up to the new-generation of the Honda Connect app, which allows owners to monitor their car’s location and fuel levels as well as lock/unlock their car remotely.Upgraded Honda Sensing safety technology also improves the car’s driver safety assist technology through what Honda said is “improve front camera software”, though that is the extent of the details.The Civic currently boasts a five-star ANCAP safety rating in line with 2022 protocols. It carries 11 airbags and standard safety features like Lane Keep Assist, Traffic Jam Assist, Autonomous Emergency Braking, Traffic Sign Recognition and Adaptive Cruise Control.As before, the Civic is covered by a five-year/unlimited km warranty, which includes five years of free roadside assistance and capped price servicing at $199 for the first five visits.Prices are calculated at national drive-away

Honda has unveiled its most “off-road capable” SUV ever in the US, the fourth-generation Passport, but sadly there are no plans to launch it Down Under.

A wide-reaching recall has been issued by Honda Australia concerning 16,001 vehicles sold between 2021 and 2024. 

The 2025 Honda Civic will go hybrid only when it arrives in Australia imminently, except of course for the flagship Type R. 

There’s good news and bad news if you were interested in the idea of the Honda Prelude sports car revival.