Why Honda Has Lost My Business

2012 Honda Odyssey. Image courtesy of Honda.

My first car was a Honda, way back when I was in high school and a new driver. It wasn't a glamorous thing, but despite having been totaled twice and being three different colors, it ran like a champion. Sure, the dash lights no longer came on, I had to insert the turn signal stalk into the steering column just so for the signals to even work and it shook like a leaf when going over 50 mph. Despite all those problems, the car was actually fairly fun to drive and never left me stranded.

The New Honda Civic Type R is Completely Insane!

All images courtesy of Honda

I'll admit that at one point I thought Civics were great cars. Since then I've moved on as my automotive tastes have shifted, but part of me still wishes consumers in the United States could have that one Honda unicorn, the Civic Type R. While you might see guys who slap a Type R badge on the back of their Civic, in reality you can't get them here, and that guy didn't tune his to be just like the Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) Type R.

Blogging From A to Z Day 1: A is for Acura

For the month of April I will be participating in the Blogging From A to Z Challenge. Learn more about the challenge by clicking here. Each day (except Sundays) I will be posting a theme based on each letter of the alphabet. This blog is covering automotive topics for the month. To read my other blog posts for the challenge, click here.

The first car I ever drove on a regular basis was a Honda. Since then I've owned three, almost owned a couple more, including an Acura. There are some great things about Acura, even with all of its current baggage.

Why So Many Vehicle Recalls These Days?

Some people dread finding this in their mail. Photo credit: Steven Symes.

Yesterday I received in the mail the dreaded recall letter for my Honda. I had read in the news not too long ago that the NHTSA was looking into complaints about a safety problem, something I myself had encountered with the vehicle before. So it wasn't really a surprise when I opened the mailbox and found this notice sitting inside. Instead I was glad Honda was owning up to the problem (whether by choice or force) and I will get a remedy free of charge.

My First Car

My first car was a read beater: a 1981 Honda Prelude that had been totaled out twice before. It was three different colors and shook like crazy once it got above 50 miles per hour. The dash lights didn't work, which meant driving at night I would have to estimate my speed. The cassette player ate any tapes you would put it in. The car had been owned by a smoker before, which meant if the lavish sheepskin-covered seats got wet, they would reek like an ashtray. Even better, the turn signal stalk hung by wires from the steering column, meaning I would have to pick it up, insert it into the steering column at just the right angle, and then hold it in place until I had finished signaling a turn.

I don't have a picture of my first car, but at the time I hated it so much I wanted to forget all about it. Looking back on it, I never had to worry about girls liking me because they wanted to be seen riding in a flashy car. I never had to worry about locking the thing, either. Sure, so traveling on the freeway wasn't fun in the car, but I didn't go on the freeway very often anyway. I wouldn't want to own the car again, but it was good for the stage of life I was in at the time.