another car thread

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Civics have always had great designs, but lately i wont say it is a looker. Nothing special about that car. I remember sitting in one at the auto show and the interior was really boring. Bearing in mind i've always been a civic guy.

I also remember Honda put out a really ugly accord a few years back. I was thinking wtf, lol.

I think honda is relying alot on their "reliability factor"

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RockerGuy said:
Civics have always had great designs, but lately i wont say it is a looker. Nothing special about that car. I remember sitting in one at the auto show and the interior was really boring. Bearing in mind i've always been a civic guy.

I also remember Honda put out a really ugly accord a few years back. I was thinking wtf, lol.

I think honda is relying alot on their "reliability factor"

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I have always thought Honda had the most boring designs, in cars and bikes. They are pretty bland in my opinion, but the quality was always top notch in both car and bike.

Had an Acura 1.6 EL and a 2001 Honda Accord, never let me down. Same can be said by the 2 Honda bikes I had, '83 Goldwing and '02 CB919.

I look more for function now then styling in a car, and in a bike, though thankfully I love the look of the GSA so there was no trade off there. My new Outback, while I like it, its a nice car, features are great, its not a real "looker". Best interior of a car I test drove was the Sonata, that was a sharp looking car, same with the Elantra GT.
 
I think Honda was forced to try to compete with the cheaper Kia/Hyundai cars once they started coming on in (for their class) quality and since the Civic was their bottom model, it made sense to them to cut costs wherever they could. Once the Civic got pulled of the "recommend" list they found out it was going to hurt them too much for it to be worth it.

Never go full shitbox.
 
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Exactly, it's easier to harm a reputation than to build one.

While it's true that by and large, people see a car as a grocery getter, they still don't want their grocery getter to broadcast to the world that they are dull and uninspiring. Once manufacturers start to lose the approbation of car nuts like us, then they will erode that cool image that is such a big part of a consumer's decision making process.

Toyota went down this road and they are trying to fix it now with programs like the FR-S, and it's why Hyundai went upscale in the past few years.
 
crankcall said:
I just have trouble getting my head around the Tokyo skyline at night dashboards Honda favours these days. Our 2012 civic makes me dizzy. I like my VW dash so much better.
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Same here. And there's another thing about those cars that I regard as a major flaw ... the instrument lighting is on all the time regardless of headlight status, and it doesn't have automatic headlights. Result: people forget to turn the headlights on, because the main visual cue (no instrument lighting) is not there. Honda, Acura, Subaru, Toyota, Lexus, Subaru, and Hyundai are all offenders in this regard.

Jayv said:
2012, was Honda Canada's third best October on record ....

Only 5000 Civic's sold last month.
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To keep the sales volume up, the 2012 Civic has required more incentives than any other Civic has needed in the first year of its model cycle.

And yes, some people do their car buying on autopilot.
 
Brian P said:
Same here. And there's another thing about those cars that I regard as a major flaw ... the instrument lighting is on all the time regardless of headlight status, and it doesn't have automatic headlights. Result: people forget to turn the headlights on, because the main visual cue (no instrument lighting) is not there. Honda, Acura, Subaru, Toyota, Lexus, Subaru, and Hyundai are all offenders in this regard.
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It seems to be an Asian car thing?? Yes. Honda and Nissan are the ones I see running stealth mode the most often.

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SunnY S said:
Extinct eh?.....significant sales gains and new sales records are a sure sign of extinction......

:laughing3:


American Honda today reported October 2012 U.S. sales of 106,973 units, an increase of 8.8 percent compared with October 2011. The Honda Division posted October 2012 sales of 94,810 units, an increase of 8.7 percent compared with October 2011. Acura U.S. October sales of 12,163 units increased 9.4 percent compared with October 2011.

Honda
- Accord leads all Honda vehicles in October with sales of 28,349 units, posting a 25-percent gain compared to the year prior, as production of all-new 2013 Accord has ramped up
- Civic gains 27 percent compared with October 2011 with sales of 20,687 units
- CR-V, Crosstour, Ridgeline and Fit all post October sales gains


Acura
- RDX sets its sixth-consecutive monthly sales record with 2,659 units, up 62 percent compared with October 2011 and is on track for an all-time annual sales mark
- MDX and RDX combine to set new October light-truck sales record of 6,476 units, up 18 percent from October 2011
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I think the global sales and the sales in the worlds biggest market are more telling:

http://mobile.businessweek.com/news...-54-percent-in-october-on-territorial-dispute

"Honda’s October sales in the country fell 53.5 percent from a year earlier to 24,115 units, the Tokyo-based company said in an e-mail today. That’s worse than the 41 percent drop in September, when rioters smashed cars and torched dealerships in China during demonstrations against Japan. Nissan said deliveries fell 41 percent last month after reporting a 35 percent decline for September.
Honda, which cut its annual profit forecast by 20 percent this week, said China demand may not return to normal until the Lunar New Year in February. Japanese automakers will probably miss out on sales of about 200,000 units in the fourth quarter as the political stalemate persists, according to an estimate by IHS Automotive, an industry researcher."


Hyundai is cleaning up, and just wait until the Indians and Chinese start selling cars around the world.
 
caboose483 said:
It seems to be an Asian car thing?? Yes. Honda and Nissan are the ones I see running stealth mode the most often.

Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk 2
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I'd put Toyota as the worst, I just think it's a symptom of drivers getting dumber and dumber. The thing that really irks me is when I see a car that I know has automatic headlights, but the lights are off. Even though they're auto, you still have to flip the switch to the automatic setting...
 
murf said:
I think the global sales and the sales in the worlds biggest market are more telling:

http://mobile.businessweek.com/news...-54-percent-in-october-on-territorial-dispute

"Honda’s October sales in the country fell 53.5 percent from a year earlier to 24,115 units, the Tokyo-based company said in an e-mail today. That’s worse than the 41 percent drop in September, when rioters smashed cars and torched dealerships in China during demonstrations against Japan. Nissan said deliveries fell 41 percent last month after reporting a 35 percent decline for September.
Honda, which cut its annual profit forecast by 20 percent this week, said China demand may not return to normal until the Lunar New Year in February. Japanese automakers will probably miss out on sales of about 200,000 units in the fourth quarter as the political stalemate persists, according to an estimate by IHS Automotive, an industry researcher."


Hyundai is cleaning up, and just wait until the Indians and Chinese start selling cars around the world.
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Yup.... Honda is done.

Because of the crap going on in China, they adjusted their global sales target from 4.3 million to 4.12 million.

http://www.inautonews.com/honda-reduces-global-sales-target-due-to-loss-in-china#.UJQxFW_A9QA

:laughing3:
 
GM was/is done. You dont recall 2009?

But Honda is not in a good position in China, which will be the most lucrative market.
 
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regder said:
I'd put Toyota as the worst, I just think it's a symptom of drivers getting dumber and dumber. The thing that really irks me is when I see a car that I know has automatic headlights, but the lights are off. Even though they're auto, you still have to flip the switch to the automatic setting...
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What's dumb about it? For about a hundred years when your light switch was off, you had no dash lights. Now some of the manufacturers have changed the play book and the only clue to the driver might be a dim high beam idiot light on the dash, next to all the other brightly lit elements. Since from the driver's perspective headlights make almost no difference in the city, what clue do they have that their lights are off?

In any case, regardless of past history or not, it's a question of basic hazard mitigation.

The optimum hazard control is to eliminate the hazard (lights stay on all the time). That's not realistic, so the next best option is to design hazard control into the system. This is what we had with the dash lights coming on only when the exterior lights were switched on. The least effective hazard control are administrative controls. That is what is being used now by forcing the driver to learn to turn on the lights with a little reminder light on the dash.

Yes, people are dumb, and that includes you and me sometimes. But that is a well identified issue, we KNOW we're dumb. That's why the best practices are the ones that eliminate human operation as much as possible. Manufacturers have chosen to ignore best practices and the result is what we see on the streets; plenty more cars with their lights off than 10-20 years ago. But hey pretty dash lights sell cars, so I guess it's OK right?

When manufacturers complain that they are too tightly regulated, they really only have themselves to blame with idiotic decisions like these.
 
caboose483 said:
It seems to be an Asian car thing?? Yes. Honda and Nissan are the ones I see running stealth mode the most often.

Sent from my HTC Desire using Tapatalk 2
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thought headlights have been auto for ages - my Celica from 2001 had it.
 
fastar1 said:
What's dumb about it? For about a hundred years when your light switch was off, you had no dash lights. Now some of the manufacturers have changed the play book and the only clue to the driver might be a dim high beam idiot light on the dash, next to all the other brightly lit elements.

Yes, people are dumb, and that includes you and me sometimes. But that is a well identified issue, we KNOW we're dumb. That's why the best practices are the ones that eliminate human operation as much as possible. Manufacturers have chosen to ignore best practices and the result is what we see on the streets; plenty more cars with their lights off than 10-20 years ago. But hey pretty dash lights sell cars, so I guess it's OK right?

When manufacturers complain that they are too tightly regulated, they really only have themselves to blame with idiotic decisions like these.
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OpenGambit said:
thought headlights have been auto for ages - my Celica from 2001 had it.
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The only dumb thing is the people that dont know how to operate a modern automobile.

As OG points out, modern cars have an AUTO feature for the lighting system.

Its brilliant system..... when it gets dark outside, the car senses it, and automatically turns on the headlights.

Imagine that?
 
murf said:
But Honda is not in a good position in China, which will be the most lucrative market.
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On a global scale, Honda is doing just fine, despite not being a market leader in the "worlds biggest market".


Reminds me of Apple Inc. They are pretty much among the top 3 in every major market in the world..... except for China. Where they are in 7th place.

China, presently, is the largest smartphone market in the world, and Apple is licking its lips to get a bigger piece of the action.

Chinas, worlds largest smartphone market,

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ericsavitz/2012/08/30/china-now-the-worlds-largest-smartphone-market/


The one country Apple can't crack......China,

http://www.zdnet.com/the-one-country-apple-cant-crack-china-7000003075/



Cruel irony..... Apple makes all their bloody products in China and no doubt has helped Chinas economy, yet can't do better than 7th place!

:laughing3:
 
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SunnY S said:
Reminds me of Apple Inc. They are pretty much among the top 3 in every major market in the world..... except for China. Where they are in 7th place.

Cruel irony..... Apple makes all their bloody products in China and no doubt has helped Chinas economy, yet can't do better than 7th place!
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I formerly worked at a smartphone manufacture and was involved with launching products in the China market. It is not easy. A company must go through a distributor (unlike Rest of World where you can deal with the carrier directly), very high market up before the carrier recieves the product, and by the time the ultimate consumer receives the phone it's not worth price. The business dynamics in launching a product in China are totally different than dealing with North America (for example, you have to create a special phone because the network works on a different frequency/band, etc...)
 
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Sky_high said:
I formerly worked at a smartphone manufacture and was involved with launching products in the China market. It is not easy. A company must go through a distributor (unlike Rest of World where you can deal with the carrier directly), very high market up before the carrier recieves the product, and by the time the ultimate consumer receives the phone it's not worth price. The business dynamics in launching a product in China are totally different than dealing with North America (for example, you have to create a special phone because the network works on a different frequency/band, etc...)
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Samsung figured it out.... and they are number 1 in China. Surely Apple could too.

True Samsung cut the price of their Galaxy S3 in China, but at least they are making sales.

Something is better than nothing.
 
SunnY S said:
On a global scale, Honda is doing just fine, despite not being a market leader in the "worlds biggest market".


Reminds me of Apple Inc. They are pretty much among the top 3 in every major market in the world..... except for China. Where they are in 7th place.

China, presently, is the largest smartphone market in the world, and Apple is licking its lips to get a bigger piece of the action.

Chinas, worlds largest smartphone market,

http://www.forbes.com/sites/ericsavitz/2012/08/30/china-now-the-worlds-largest-smartphone-market/


The one country Apple can't crack......China,

http://www.zdnet.com/the-one-country-apple-cant-crack-china-7000003075/



Cruel irony..... Apple makes all their bloody products in China and no doubt has helped Chinas economy, yet can't do better than 7th place!

:laughing3:
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You are confused again. The Samsung fanboy/sheeple thread is elsewhere. Lol
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