FurY

Sad but true... even though I think Don was actually being sarcastic

I think the best way for people like us to send a message and get it through Honda's thick skulls that we want them to change is to do exactly what Saki is saying and give your money to the other manufacturers. Hopefully if they see a decline in their customer base and identify the problem (lack of fun / sporty cars), they'll go back to the way they were before.

To me the worst part about it all is that your founder, Soichiro Honda, enjoyed motorsports very much and that seemed to reflect in their products... something you don't see or feel in the cars they produce today. Has anyone on the board over there thought: WWSD? lol

SpudRacer

Honda is far from dead. They have simply chosen to walk away from small niche markets that don't drive enough revenue to justify development resources during a period of extreme uncertainty the past four years. Not a dumb approach to take. Honda could make another NSX or S2000 anytime they want. They have chosen not to do it, that's all. That decision may piss off a few thousand enthusiasts but hasn't even registered with the hundreds of thousands of buyers of well priced high quality transportation. The one nod I'll give the author of the article is that Acura really does seem to have lost its way. They do indeed seem to be Honda's "Lincoln". I can't figure out what the brand is supposed to be other than entry level luxury using tarted up Honda's. Infiniti in contrast seems to have their branding figured out reasonably well.

FearlessFife

Correct.

And for the record, my '12 Si is a blast for a DD car.

Maybe Honda has changed in some people's eyes, but I have yet to own a Honda that I find disappointing in the long-term. Honda has me for life. Love their cars.

Kenny_Stang

I don't think anyone is saying that Honda is dead, or that they are even struggling financially, what I think the author was implying (and most others on here) is that Honda has lost it's soul. Those "small niche" markets that you speak of, define a brand and seperate it from the mundane. All car manufacturers understand this, they don't make sports cars because they are profitable, they make them because they inspire. Sports cars are the ones that get the majority of the press, the ones that get reviewed in TV shows and in car magazines, its what grace the walls of teenage boys, and the dreams of up and coming enthusiasts. Currently there is not a single vehicle in all of Honda's lineup that inspires anyone... sure they have some vehicles are very good buys, but nothing anyone lusts after. Toyota did the same thing for many years, they went away from the sports cars and became bland and boring. They've finally woken up and understand that no one aspires to drive bland and boring cars. They've invested time and resources into amazing vehicles like the LF-A and the FT-86/FR-S/BRZ. Neither of those cars is going to be a cash cow for Toyota ( I believe they actually lose money on every LF-A they build) but they are vehicles that excite people, that quicken the pulse and make you feel alive. Until Honda returns to their roots, we'll hold on closely to our roadsters and lament the fact that a once amazing company has grown stale and boring.

Saki GT

Honda still makes cars for small niche markets - its just that none of the markets are sporty.

Fit-EV
CR-Z
Clarity
Ridgeline
ZDX

You get the idea - Honda isn't anti-niche, it just doesn't make sports cars, or at least good ones, depending on how you classify a CR-Zzz or ZDX.

Honda wants to make green cars instead of sports cars and it hasn't figured out how to make fun green cars yet, which is why the NSX has been in development for almost a decade.

Anrosphynx

just waiting for Jonboi's "official" Honda response............

Christople

Honda = le sigh

JonBoy

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/201...oichiro-honda/

IrishInIsengard

How can you mention all these fun car company options and not mention Mazda? The Mazda 6 or upcoming 3 will probably be my next DD. Most companies are going the way of CVT or boring, though I have heard all kinds of good things about the Accord's CVT. Mazda is avoiding CVT's and offering the only Japenese diesel car in the US at the end of this year.

I test drove a Dart. Not impressed. It wasn't very comfortable or fun. The whole thing read "cheap" to me, which is too bad. The 300's and Chargers are super luxurious feeling, so we know they're capable of better.

SkiLLeDS2000

Honda, was/is a historically boring company. Take out the awesome engineering decade of the 90's and Honda is really lacking. They were always safe concerning their automotive product. The S600 was a 2 year model (64'-66') and was the first mass marketed car for Honda, even though most were right hand drives, not really made for the American market.

The S800 was a 4 year run that stopped in 1970. From 1970 to 2000, Honda, not talking about Acura, didn't offer a real roadster until the S2000 was introduced in 99' as a 2000 model. Cncerning The NSX, the production model ran for 15 years that was not affordable to most people, even in 2013. It then died a slow and painful death because they ran the same model for 15 years, which should tell you how Honda looks at sports cars.

You can say the Prelude/interga was around for a while and was sporty, but it was a more touring sporty car than a real sports car, like the NSX or S2000.

Through out history when Honda decided to make a real sports car, it rocked. It's rare, but hopefully it will happen again. Our only hope is a new S2500/3000 that's not a Hybird.

My wife is all about the new NSX, I'm concerned about weight and a Hybird system that will kill the feel of the car. We will see. If its a hit, it will be in our garage, if not, Honda lost us and we will look to Aston/Ferrari/Lamborghini for our halo garage queen.

Lastly, remember all the regulation(safety, gas mileage, etc) that all these companies have to think about when engineering a new car. It limits them. I think if Honda can't make a true sports car to perfection, they will wait until they can. It might take 20 years, but hopefully it will happen. The NSX will be the gauge of where Honda is headed.