Honda's new life without sports

[adammet04]

y r they bring the Acura into japan>? dosent acura n honda makes teh same cars? :S

toyota lexus,,

[A.G.System]

Think it sounds more like honda are trying to make a dedicated performance line.

Think that the problem there is that people take time to warm up to the new and strange.

One of 2 things are going to happen.

first being that hondas new acura range that they release will be a huge flop as there are in reality not enough performance buyers in australia to justify the running of the company. (read: eunos 30x by mazda)

second being that honda are going to break off and become a bland same old same old car company and we are going to have to change the name of this forum to OzAccura.

Either way things will get a shake up.

[aaronng]

first being that hondas new acura range that they release will be a huge flop as there are in reality not enough performance buyers in australia to justify the running of the company. (read: eunos 30x by mazda)

Eunos did not even have a performance car. And their entire range was only 3-4 models in their entire life. World wide, Eunos only had only 8 models in its entire 7 year history, and that included the MX-5. There was no doubt that it would fail.

second being that honda are going to break off and become a bland same old same old car company and we are going to have to change the name of this forum to OzAccura.

Either way things will get a shake up.

Nah, it should be ok. From what I gather, Honda will stay as our current Honda, with the Type R or VTiR/Si go-faster lines. Acura on the other hand will be used for the luxury upmarket models like the Legend and their upcoming NSX replacement.

[Chris_F]

i hope honda stays true to its heritage.. IMO toyota is one of the most uninspiring car companies (sports car wise) atm, but in the past they had a reputation for making some insane cars.. mr2 gt, supra, celica gt4 etc.

but at the same time they're one of the most profitable.. so who am i to talk

[aaronng]

i hope honda stays true to its heritage.. IMO toyota is one of the most uninspiring car companies (sports car wise) atm, but in the past they had a reputation for making some insane cars.. mr2 gt, supra, celica gt4 etc.

but at the same time they're one of the most profitable.. so who am i to talk

Toyota Japan still makes insane cars, it's just that Toyota Australia wants a boring, safe image to gain ground with fleet sales and never imports those hot cars (except the corolla sportivo)

[EuroDude]

Toyota make some of the most blandest cars on the road, especially Camry. For some reason, most people like these bland cars and they sell well and have reputation. Honda is trying to copy this technique to be viewed as a reliable "common car" company, and attempt to drop the "4cyl nippon boy racer" stance to gain sales.

Thats fair enough, but that doesnt explain why the sporty Euro outsells the normal Accord by ~5:1, the reason the Euro sells well is because its similar to a BMW in design and quality, at a very good price.

This is where Honda need to improve - design decent cars that can rival top selling european counterparts (i.e. VW Golf, BMW 3 series, Audi A3/A4) but keep the cars conservative enough to attract the common driver, with the option of a Sports pack to attract the enthusiasts who want a sporty+classy car in one package.

[aaronng]

The Honda brand won't be used to rival the European marques. The Acura brand will do that. With Acura in Japan now, the REAL luxury Acuras like the TL will be made in RHD and will eventually be available to Australia.

BTW, Camry boring? What do you think of the Aurion? That is the Camry in other countries. Everyone on this forum (and other forums and motoring magazines) have it stuck in their head that the "camry" must be boring. Heck, if Toyota made an MR 3.5L 2 door sports coupe and called it the Camry, everyone would still say it was boring! LOL

[EuroDude]

True, although VW have recently release very affordable cars such as the new Polo and Golf that rival Japanese pricing. Its different for BMW since they are a Premium brand.

Previous Camry's were boring, but the current Camry is a major improvement so times have changed (although the current Camry is still fugly imo, Aurion is ok though). Who knows, maybe Toyota will lose sales due to the new models being generally sportier lol

[EG30]

Mazda is the new Honda.

Good range of vehicles from small to suvs with a few niche performance models, all made in Japan without a single dud model and good value for money in general. Sounds like the Honda Aust heydays in the 1990s really.

[RyDC5S]

Mazda is the new Honda.

Good range of vehicles from small to suvs with a few niche performance models, all made in Japan without a single dud model and good value for money in general. Sounds like the Honda Aust heydays in the 1990s really.

Thats the current perception.

Current line of cars is quite impressive.

[Xplodin]

yeah what ever happend to the cars that were purely made in japan... Whats this new plant in Thailand, common its the japanese quality that we are after and want... With Acura on its way to Aus, American made crap! is all i have to say about that brand... Even though its a sister company to honda. I'm sorry its just another way the americans can try n rule the world. No racisism intended. I've always stuck to my japanese brands, and Japan made things... its pure Quality i tell ya...

But thats just my 2 cents

[blk05gli]

yeah what ever happend to the cars that were purely made in japan... Whats this new plant in Thailand, common its the japanese quality that we are after and want... With Acura on its way to Aus, American made crap! is all i have to say about that brand... Even though its a sister company to honda. I'm sorry its just another way the americans can try n rule the world. No racisism intended. I've always stuck to my japanese brands, and Japan made things... its pure Quality i tell ya...

But thats just my 2 cents

Ever been shopping for electronics? all major Japanese brands are design in japan, but manufactured/built worldwide.