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Far from letting its people-mover sit in the wings, Honda wants to show us that the new generation Odyssey will attract buyers looking for more than just extra seats.

With an upgraded engine and big improvements to safety and comfort, it is geared up to do just that, but will it be enough to poach potential SUV buyers?  We drove both the base model Odyssey and the Odyssey Luxury to see for ourselves.

Engine

Both versions are powered by a double overhead cam i-VTEC, in line four cylinder engine that puts out 132kW at 6500rpm and 218Nm at 4500rpm.  A five speed manual and five speed automatic transmission with grade logic control and shift hold gets power to the wheels.

Combined fuel consumption and C02 emissions figures are the same again for both vehicles at 6.3l/100kms(manual) and 6.6l/100km(auto), and 148g/km(manual) and  156g/km(auto) respectively.

Exterior

From the outside there’s no mistaking it, the Odyssey is a people-mover and a very obvious example. It’s basically a rectangular box with a gentle taper from the nose to past the B pillar.

The Luxury gets 17 inch alloys, fog lights and electric sunroof, aero side sill garnish and aero FR and RR bumpers.  Chrome door handles, dual exhausts, keyless entry and body coloured door mirrors and bumpers are standard for both cars.

Interior

The seven-seater has fully reclining front seats, a 60/40 split fold second row and a retractable third row that creates 259 litres of space when up and a cat-swinging 708 litres when down. Other storage includes six cup holders, four bottle holders, door pockets and a foldable centre table.

Aside from leather seats, six stacker stereo, the leather wrapped steering wheel and gear knob and the aluminium side step in the Luxury, all other interior features are available in both vehicles at no extra cost.  Features include air conditioning, cruise control, a multi-function display and steering wheel, and power windows.

Safety

On top of a driver, passenger and curtain airbag package, the safety feature list for the Odyssey range includes anti-lock brakes, central locking, brake-assist, electronic brakeforce distribution, motion adaptive EPS, progressive crumple zones, vehicle stability assist and traction control.

Pricing

Pricing for the Honda Odyssey starts at $43,990 for the standard edition, and $49,990 for the luxury.

Driving

It wasn’t with the enthusiasm we’d bring to, say, hmmm, most other car pick ups really, when we turned up at Honda to take the Odyssey. People movers aren’t well known for their arousability, but to be fair, they’re not supposed to be. It’s just hard to be attracted by the pedestrian shape.

The first look inside didn’t help matters much. Our first impressions were that it was a little too spaceshipy, with strangely placed curves and a multi-layered dash that used too much black plastic. Yellow wood inlays in the Luxury version only highlighted the unsightly design.

Negatives aside, the seats were comfortable and supportive and the shape of the car provided ample head, shoulder and leg room from whatever position. Surprisingly, the thick carpet actually did its job too, providing a prestige look and feel.

Lacking a little feedback through the wheel, the drive was generally pleasant. Weight distribution was good for a car that size and shape; there was little body roll and the car turned in and pushed out of corners effortlessly. Modest potholes and ruts were smoothed over with the decent independent double wishbone suspension.

The let-down was the unenthsuiastic engine. But it’s not trying to be a performer and again, it doesn’t have to be. It’s also too long, but it’s a seven seat people carrier, so what else can you do?

Verdict 7.2 – the minimal improvements in the Luxury aren’t worth the extra seven large.

Fiat is facing a new distraction. While Sergio Marchionne has worldwide plans with zombie Chrysler, Fiat is facing an insurrection at home. Well, close to home. The German dealer council of Fiat has unanimously decided to sue Fiat Germany.

Two actions by Fiat raised the dealers’ ire:

To cope with the post-Abwrackprämien-partem blues, Fiat plans to give rebates of up to 28 percent. Without consulting the dealer body, Fiat issued an edict that the dealers should contribute 12 percent, Fiat would bear the remaining 16 percent, says Das Autohaus. The dealer council thinks that many dealers won’t survive this operation.

The second bone of contention is that Fiat delivered cars to their dealers which were never ordered. Many Fiat dealers found themselves with unwanted new Fiat Evos on their lots.

The dealers are ready for war. At their meeting last week, there was no representative of Fiat. Instead, Christian Genzow, a firebrand lawyer who is feared by automakers throughout Europe, gave a speech and instructed the dealers to simply return the unwanted Evos.

Before the Fiat dealers decided to sue, there were plenty grumblings in Fiat’s distribution channel. For years, Fiat and their German dealers fought in court about parts rebates. The suit was finally settled.

The German dealer association is regarded as influential. Many German dealers own dealerships in the rest of Europe. If the conflagration is not brought under control, Fiat can get burned big-time in all of Europe.

Sure, it wasn’t necessarily a cure for cancer but judging from the elaborate celebration Kia hosted after rolling out production car no.1 in the US, it sure looked like one.

The 2011 Kia Sorento made history of sorts in the US after it became the first ever vehicle to be rolled out of the Kia Motors Manufacturing plant in Georgia. The occasion marks a milestone achievement for Kia as the Sorento likewise became the first-ever Kia vehicle to be built in America.
Kia’s vision to become a major player in the US took a huge step forward after the Korean automaker officially opened the 2,200 acre facility in Georgia. As it stands, the plant has over 2,500 employees and, more importantly, has the potential to produce 300,000 cars per year.

According to B.M. Ahn, president and CEO of Kia Motors America and KMMG, “The start of production at our first manufacturing facility in the United States further demonstrates our commitment to growth in North America and we are proud to be adding 2,500 jobs to the local economy.”

With the opening of the KMMG, Kia has spiked its global production capacity to over 2.56 million units year after the Georgia plant joins other production plants located in Europe, Asia, and Africa.

Relatively speaking, this occasion is monumental given the circumstances surrounding the auto industry over the past couple of months. Opening a state-of-the-art facility amidst strenuous times shows that Kia is moving on to become one of the major players in the industry now and in the future.

Congratulations Kia!

Press release after the jump.

Cars & Coffee: Lexus LFA shows up ahead of LA Auto Show

by Frank Filipponio (RSS feed) on Nov 21st 2009 at 8:03PM

2011 Lexus LFA at Cars & Coffee - Click above for high-res image gallery

The Lexus LFA supercar might not be in dealerships for another year or more, but the two prototypes are getting quite a workout. After driving the car in Miami, we heard the white one was shipped off to Europe while the black one took up residence in its new home: a trailer. The car has made a few appearances around the country, most recently at SEMA and a private showing in the Los Angeles area. Next stop on the LFA tour appears to be the LA Auto Show, but apparently it couldn’t stand to be cooped up too long.

Along with a handful of other Lexus show cars, it showed up at our favorite Saturday morning car meet. The handler fired it up several times so the crowd could marvel at that V10 shriek. Reactions were mixed, mainly where price was concerned. We heard more than one person say that if it had a Supra badge and sub-$100K pricetag, it would be a killer. At four times that price, the Lexus badge just doesn’t seem to win as many people over. One thing almost everyone loved was that changeable display with the sliding center gauge.

Gallery: 2011 Lexus LFA at Cars & Coffee

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