Filed under: Aftermarket, CES, Technology, Honda, Subaru, Infotainment

Pandora may be becoming a standard on every major OEM infotainment system, but all-you-can-eat subscription music services haven’t gained the same momentum or widespread adoption. MOG is aiming to change that with automotive partnerships with BMW and Mini, but its just-announced tie-up with Aha Radio extends MOG’s reach even further, and it has wider implications – not just for the on-demand music service, but for Aha Radio as a whole.

The partnership with Aha Radio (now owned by Harman) is just the first of several MOG will be announcing in 2012. Aftermarket companies like JVC are also implementing the music service into their head units, but what’s more important is the usage of Aha Radio as the method of delivery.

Rather than going to an automaker, getting approval to use its application programming interface and then developing an app that only works with one infotainment system, MOG is integrating its service into Aha Radio, which delivers a range of content – from restaurant information to Facebook feeds – into a single app that’s ported and controlled through your in-dash touchscreen.

So Aha Radio is the platform – a one-stop conduit for content – and MOG, NPR, CNN, Twitter, Facebook and others deliver the substance.

Both Honda and Subaru have announced partnerships with Aha Radio and plan to integrate the service into their factory head units beginning this spring. But you don’t need to buy a 2013 Subaru BRZ (pictured above) to get in on the action. Kenwood will join Pioneer to begin offering Aha Radio on its head units later this year. and even better, Aha Radio runs and integrates with both iOS and Android devices, so there should be no need to worry about connectivity issues. Hit the jump for the all the details.

Continue reading MOG comes to Aha Radio. Aha Radio comes to Honda, Subaru. Here’s why it matters.

MOG comes to Aha Radio. Aha Radio comes to Honda, Subaru. Here’s why it matters. originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 09 Jan 2012 22:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tsikot.com Philippines

The flooding in Thailand has forced Japanese automaker Honda Motor Co. to temporarily cease operations of some of its units in the region, including Honda Cars Philippines Inc. (HCPI).

In a statement issued Thursday, HCPI said it had temporarily suspended production at its Sta. Rosa, Laguna plant “due to limited parts supply caused by the flooding in Thailand.”

“Honda deeply regrets any inconvenience this may cause our customers, and request their understanding during these times. Honda and its suppliers are devoting all efforts to minimize the impact on our customers,” the statement read.

According to the company, it is not sure when production will resume since it will all depend on developments in Thailand.

Periodic reviews will be conducted to determine the feasibility of restarting operations, it added.

HCPI declined to comment when asked how the Laguna plant personnel would be affected by the halt in production.

“We are not disclosing information on our associates’ working conditions nor on their salaries and benefits. We are continuing to have open communications and a good relationship with our associates during these challenging times,” the company said.

HCPI produces the City and Civic nameplates at its Sta. Rosa plant. The other models that it sells in the country, include the Jazz and CR-V, come from Thailand.

Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co. Ltd. has not been operating since October 4 due to parts supply disruption. As of end-October, it was unclear when the plant could resume manufacturing activities.

The operations of motorcycle and power products producer Thai Honda Manufacturing Co. Ltd. has also been suspended since October 6 due to the same problem.

It is scheduled to start operating again Friday.

Other Honda manufacturing facilities in Asia have adjusted their production volumes due to parts supply limitations, while those in other regions continue to monitor the situation before making any decision.

Honda is the third biggest seller of cars in the Philippines.

In the first eight months of the year, it sold 9,062 units, accounting for 9.7 percent of the market, according to the local auto industry association.

After three months of unusually heavy rains and a failure to release enough water from dams early in the monsoon season, Thailand is now experiencing its worst flooding in half a century.

Honda on Monday announced that it would slash production at its North America plants by 50 percent this week because of the supply problems in Thailand.

Meanwhile, Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) Corp. will also be implementing a production adjustment this month, also due to the flooding in Thailand.

“We’re maintaining normal working days, but we’re implementing a production adjustment,” TMP vice president Rommel Gutierrez said in a phone interview.

He declined to say by how much the company would scale back its production.

Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. maintained normal operations since none of its plants were affected by the flooding, said Arlan Reyes, MMPC assistant manager for advertising and promotions.

Philippine Daily Inquirer

Tsikot.com Philippines

Honda Cars Philippines Inc. (HCPI) has reduced the number of Jazz and CRV units that they are recalling by 4,620 units after it realized that these units have different design of power window master switch.

Last Monday, Honda announced the voluntary recall of 19,143 units of combined year. 2005-2007 Honda Jazz, year 2006-2008 City and year 2005-2008 CR-V models to replace the power window master switch assembly with countermeasure parts.

However, in a press statement, HCPI said that after a careful study, the number of affected vehicles is reduced to 14,883 units. The other 4,260 units which are not included in the recall have a different design of power window master switch which was supplied by other parts supplier. For easier reference, City units with central door lock function are not included in the recall.

The silicon component commonly found in air fresheners or automotive cleaning agents, etc. enters into the power window master switch. This accelerates wear in the contact area and over time, wear particles accumulate between the power source and ground of the unit switch. The resin material of the unit switch is then heated and carbonized. This may cause smoke and in worst case, partial burning of the window switch cover. To date, no accidents or injuries have been reported related to this defect in the Philippines

To conduct the voluntary recall in an orderly manner, customers are requested to call their respective dealers. Replacement of affected parts will be carried out in all 28 authorized dealers and 3 service centers nationwide, free of charge and will take no more than 30 minutes.

Philippine Star

Tsikot.com Philippines

The local automotive industry reported a decline in sales for the first eight months of the year due to the effects of the disasters in Japan that limited the production and supply of some models.

The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) in a joint report showed a 4.1 percent decline in January to August sales from a year ago level. During the first eight months of 2011, total industry sales stood at 93,108 units, lower than the 97,122 units recorded a year ago.

Month-on-month, however, the August sales performance was slightly higher at 11,558 from 11,550 in July due to introduction of new model, continuous promotion and availability of units.

Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. sold 34,190 units or 36.72 percent of total market share.

This was followed by Mitsubishi Motors Philippines Corp. with sales of 21,182 units or 24.43 percent market share. Third was Honda Cars Philippines Inc. with 9.73 percent market share or 9,062 units followed by Ford Motor Company Phils. Inc. with 8.81 percent or 8,200 units and followed by Isuzu Philippines Corp. with 6.72 percent or 6,259 units.

Sales of passenger cars registered a 6.8 percent growth compared to last July’s figure but lower when compared from a year ago level.

Commercial vehicle sales decreased by 3.2 percent to 7, 532 in August from 7,782 units in July.

Philippine Star

Tsikot.com Philippines

As a precautionary measure, Honda Cars Philippines Inc. (HCPI) has initiated a recall of 19,143 units of its Jazz, City and CR-V models to replace the power window master switch assembly.

In a briefing Monday, HCPI sales and corporate communication head Voltaire Gonzales said the recall had nothing to do with safety issues, but was only being done to prevent inconveniences to motorists in the long run.

He explained that the company decided to conduct a recall as early as now to prevent possible accidents that could occur with the power window master switch assembly over the long run.

Cars with silicon-based air fresheners and those whose owners use automotive cleaning agents with silicon components are especially prone to damage, as the silicon components enter the switch assembly and accelerate wear over time.

Silicon particles can accumulate between the power source and the ground of the switch, causing the resin material of the unit switch to be heated and carbonized. This can result in smoke or, at worst, partial burning of the window switch cover.

So far, none of the vehicles that had already been brought for repair had encountered these problems, Gonzales related. The power window master switch assembly just malfunctioned.

“The problem manifests over time, so car owners won’t immediately encounter this. It won’t cause an explosion, but it could be an inconvenience to the user if it happens,” Gonzales said.

Covered by the recall are 2,924 units of the 2005-2007 Jazz; 13,352 units of the 2006-2008 City; and 2,867 units of the 2005-2006 CR-V.

Replacement of the parts, including labor and materials, will be of no charge to the vehicle owner. Owners of affected vehicles will just have to set an appointment with any of the 28 authorized HCPI dealers and three service centers nationwide. Repairs, excluding waiting time, will take only 30 minutes.

Gonzales assured owners of affected vehicles that all the necessary parts were on hand.

HCPI in February also conducted a global recall of Jazz and City models manufactured from September 2008 to April 2010, affecting 5,468 units sold locally. The recall was initiated after it was discovered that a spring caused friction and noise in the engine, which, in the long run, could cause stalling or even engine failure.

Of this total, Gonzales said 81 percent had already been brought for repair.

“There’s still an ongoing effort to track down the remaining vehicles that we haven’t repaired yet,” he said.

The Jazz and the CR-V are both imported from Thailand, while the City is manufactured at HCPI’s facility in Laguna.

Philippine Daily Inquirer

Tsikot.com Philippines

Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, Honda, Earnings/Financials

The second quarter was not a good one for Honda. Supply shortages as a result of the debilitating earthquake in Japan and the subsequent tsunami resulted in a U.S. market share reduction from 10.6 percent to 9.3 percent. North American plants were impacted as well, as production dropped 26 percent from Q2, 2010.

While Honda’s troubles have been severe, they’re short term, and Honda has always been a forward-thinking company. That’s why it should come as no surprise that the Japanese automaker is sinking $355 million into its Ohio facilities. The Detroit News reports that Honda will spring for $166 million in improvements to its East Liberty plant and another $64 million on a stamping press at the Marysville plant.

The automaker is also investing in its Raymond research and development center, with upgrades that include a new wind tunnel. Honda won’t say exactly how much it is spending on the wind tunnel, but Frank Ohlemacher, a project manager at Ohio State’s Center for Automotive Research, says tunnels range in cost from $25 million for a “half scale” model to over $100 million for a full-size tunnel.

The $355 million in upgrades doesn’t include the $94 million Honda says it will spend modifying its Lincoln, Alabama plant and $800 million to build a small-car plant in Mexico.

Honda pouring $355M into Ohio plant upgrades originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Aug 2011 07:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tsikot.com Philippines

Filed beneath: Aftermarket, Hybrid, Overall performance, Videos, Honda, MISC

Mugen and Honda go collectively like vanilla ice cream and apple pie. Sure, the pie can stand on its very own, but a nice scoop of ice cream will take it to an additional stage. Mugen rolled out a pair of tuned CR-Z hybrids at the 2011 Goodwood Festival of Speed, and the blokes from Car Express asked to devote a day with one of them. Their group also wrangled away the keys to an additional “limitless strength” car: a Mugen-tuned Ariel Atom.

How do the two examine to every other? Let’s be real right here… they will not. A single is a naked track assassin even though the other is a juiced-up hybrid putting on a entire body kit. Each vehicles have had Mugen wrenches applied to their engines, but that is rather considerably wherever the comparison should stop. Nonetheless, we can not say it can be not entertaining.

Click on past the leap to see how they “stack up” versus each and every other.

Keep on reading Honda CR-Z Mugen in contrast with…. Ariel Atom Mugen?!

Honda CR-Z Mugen in comparison with…. Ariel Atom Mugen?! at first appeared on Autoblog on Tue, twelve Jul 2011 19:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Honda Cars Philippines Inc. said Friday its dealers are on a “yellow flag” status until the vehicle supply situation normalizes.

“Currently, we are on an indefinite ‘yellow flag’ status—meaning we are on an alert mode—because of the fluidity of the situation. We will conduct a monthly review [to assess the situation],” Voltaire Gonzales, head of Honda Cars Philippines sales department, said in a text message to the Manila Standard.

He said Honda might not achieve its target to sell 17,600 units this year because of the present tight supply and reduced volume of production.

“Because of these recent events, we see sales lower than the previous forecast,” he said.

He said the company’s 2011 target was higher by 6 percent over 16,600 units in 2010. “But still we hope that the situation normalizes sooner,” Gonzales said.

The Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. said Thursday it was still sticking to its 4- to 5-percent sales growth target, adding that lost sales can be recovered soon.

“The effect of the tsunami disaster in Japan has been felt locally where plants scaled down operations temporarily given supply problems. This was expected given the magnitude of the disaster. The effect may be felt in these two months,” Elizabeth Lee, Campi president, said in a statement Thursday.

“However, the effect is temporary. Despite the difficulties we face due to the lack of supply of some vehicles and parts, we are optimistic that we will be able to recover the lost sales given the full-year outlook.”

“Contrary to some reports, Campi’s forecast for the year remains unchanged to date. The reports… suggesting the lowering of the forecast is incorrect. No such official statement from Campi was ever given to that effect,” Lee said.

Honda has 28 full-time dealerships nationwide, including the latest in the province of Rizal.

Earlier, Honda Cars said it was not considering price increases this year amid tight vehicle production in the country in the aftermath of the Japan disasters in March.

Tatsuya Natsume, the newly-appointed Honda Cars president, said in a press briefing recently that the company would maintain the current pricing. “Everything is very unstable [in the car industry] at the moment so we decided not to increase prices,” he said.

Manila Standard Today

Tsikot.com Philippines

Despite sagging sales and raw material supply problems, Honda Cars Philippines Inc. (HCPI) launched Tuesday night its flagship model – the Honda Accord – in a simple ceremony that was devoid of the pomp and pageantry that characterized product launches of the past.

The 2011 Honda Accord which became available in the local market starting yesterday, was described by HCPI president and general manager Tatsuya Natsume as “the ultimate premium vehicle of choice for those who truly understand power and technology.”

The new model retails at an introducty price of P1.7 million for the 2.4-liter variant and P2.05 million for the 3.5-liter variant with five colors to choose from: Brilliant White Pearl, Crystal Black, Polished Metal, Bold Beige and Urban Titanium.

The launching came amid a bleak scenario where the company expects to miss its sales target and may even post lower sales than last year’s as a result of supply problems spawned by the earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan early this year.

In an interview on the sidelines of Tuesday night’s Honda Accord launch, corporate communications and vehicle sales head Voltaire Gonzales said their 17,600 units sales target is currently under review. In fact, he said there is a chance their sales will be even lower than the 16,600 units Honda sold last year.

“Our sales this year will be lower than our sales plan. It might even be lower than our sales last year,” he said.

Since April, Honda has been producing at 50-percent capacity and this is expected to continue until June. By that time Gonzales said they will have a clearer picture of the supply situation.

“We just want to warn everyone because the auto industry has an effect on other industries like banks and insurance. We just want to be honest and say we are still affected by the crisis,” he said.

“Everything is unstable at the moment,” Honda president Tatsuya Natsume said.

Before the crisis, they used to produce 45 to 50 units of City and Civic per day.

Even with the production cuts, Natsume said they have not laid off any worker or forced anybody to go on leave. He said that while others are in production, the remaining staff are undergoing training. The Sta. Rosa plant has 400 workers while Honda as a whole has 650 employees.

“What is important is that we keep on operating,” Natsume stressed.

He said another option is to cut their working days in half. They are now working six days a week. He said an option is to make it a three day work week but at the moment they are comfortable with their decision to simply cut the production.

For their completely built up units (CBUs), Natsume said that they have not encountered any problems so far. They source the parts from Thailand and Japan. However, he said they expect their CBU allocation to also be reduced by 50 percent.

Natsume said they were forced to cut production for April and May because the flow of raw materials from Japan has been erratic. He said the production situation in Japan is yet to normalize and they think this will happen no sooner than the end of the year.

Natsume said they have not received new shipment of microcomputers from Renesus, the company producing this microchip. He said all their vehicles are fitted with this microcomputer that is why their entire production is affected. Natsume said Renesus has completely stopped its production and will only resume operations in June.

He said they are now using up their inventory and they have decided to assemble a mere half of their normal production to make the supply last longer.

Philippine Star Online

Tsikot.com Philippines

Production at the local units of Japanese vehicle manufacturers Honda Motor Co. Ltd. and Toyota Motor Corp. will remain at 50 percent up to the end of the month—or even longer—as they try to stretch their existing parts inventories while waiting for supplier operations to normalize.

In a briefing Tuesday, Honda Cars Philippines Inc. president and general manager Tatsuya Natsume said the car maker’s Sta. Rosa plant would continue to assemble the City and Civic models, but at only half the capacity.

“The production situation has yet to normalize. There’s a fluidity in the parts supply situation, so we can’t really predict when production will go back to normal,” he told reporters.

He related that the most critical vehicle component that various car makers, not only Honda, were having problems with in terms of supply was the automotive microchip, being supplied mainly by Japan’s Renesas Electronics Corp.

The March 11 earthquake that hit the northern part of Japan damaged Renesas’ Naka plant. Renesas supplies as much as 40 percent of the global demand for automotive microchips.

Industry leader Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. (TMP) had likewise cut production by half and implemented a three-day workweek, just to stretch its parts inventory.

In a text message, TMP vice president Rommel Gutierrez said the adjusted operation schedule would last from April 25 to June 4.

Inquirer.net

Tsikot.com Philippines