CR-Z, Crosstour, Insight sales hurting – Odyssey lone bright spot among new Honda models

Honda has hit rough water with sales of its new CR-Z, Accord Crosstour and Insight models According toAutomotive News, the three models are underperforming in a big way.

Take the Insight hybrid, which is falling 40,000 units short of even the most conservative estimates inside the company. Outsold 8-to-1 by its Toyota Prius rival, Honda has only managed to shift 19,325 units through November – the company originally targeted sales of 60,000 to 80,000.

Likewise, thus far this year, Honda has sold nearly 20,000 fewer Crosstour models than its biggest competitor – the Toyota Venza, selling just 25,927 units compared to the Toyota’s 43,325. Need we remind you, Honda’s original sales goal for the Crosstour was 40,000 units per year, a number we were deeply skeptical of after first driving the vehicle at its launch last November.

Although it hasn’t been on the market that long, early sales for Honda’s new CR-Z hybrid coupe aren’t any more encouraging. Automotive News reports that Honda had conservatively intended to sell around 15,000 of the two-seat hybrids per year, but so far, only 4,373 have made their way off of dealer lots and another 3,000 are currently sitting in inventory. Thankfully, there is one bright spot in the Honda stable – the 2011 Odyssey. The minivan bowed in September, and it’s performing well against a minivan segment that has heated up with a range of new competitors.

2012 Ford Focus production begins

The 2012 Ford Focus isn’t just an all-new model for the Blue Oval team – it represents the first example of the automaker’s “One Ford” global product strategy. Ford is now engineering cars that will be exactly the same in all markets, and for the first time in many years, we Americans will finally be able to buy the same Focus as the rest of the world.

Ford will start selling the 2012 Focus early next year, and thus, production of the new global C-car has officially started at the automaker’s Saarlouis Assembly Plant in Germany. This facility is capable of manufacturing up to 1,850 vehicles a day over the course of three shifts, and all three Focus bodystyles (sedan, hatchback and wagon) will be produced here. The high-performance Focus ST will be added to this line in early 2012, as well.

In addition to the Saarlouis plant, Ford has begun early production of the North American-spec Focus at the automaker’s Michigan Assembly Plant just outside of Detroit. This plant has been completely overhauled over the past year, as it was formerly used to produce the Expedition and Lincoln Navigator.

Alfa Romeo Giulietta G430 iMove Marangoni debuts in Bologna

Think of Alfa Romeo and the color you’ll likely be picturing is red. But a custom version of the Giuliettaunveiled at the Bologna Motor Show has gone a decidedly greener route.

Outfitted by Italian rubber company Marangoni and fashion house Conte of Florence, the Giulietta G430 iMove is based on the Giuletta 1750 Quadrifoglio Verde and distinguished by special green tires riding on 19-inch Barracuda Karizzma alloys. But that’s only the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it comes to the modifications carried out on the special Giulietta.

A Ragazzon stainless steel exhaust system boosts output up to 232 horsepower, while a Tarox braking system, KW suspension and custom aero kit also factor in to the program, along with a golf-themed leather, Alcantara and carbon fiber interior by Conte of Florence. There’s even a Segway scooter mounted in the back, and you can get all the details about the show car in the press release after the jump and view it in detail in the high-resolution image mega-gallery below.

Flogging the Porsche 911 GT2 RS

It doesn’t take much to set up a video like this. After all, why wouldn’t you want to see even more footage of the 2011 Porsche 911 GT2 RS being flogged around a track? It’s footage we can’t seem to get enough of.

There’s nothing like watching a 620-horsepower 911 doing what it does best out on a closed course, and we highly recommend that you take a five-and-a-half-minute break from whatever you’re doing to watch the videoafter the jump.

Tanner Foust shreds at Ken Block Invitational Gymkhana Grid

When the smoke cleared this weekend at the inaugural Ken Block Invitational Gymkhana Grid event at Toyota’s Irwindale Speedway, Tanner Foust had claimed the top spot. The head-to-head event, which had drivers like Foust, Vaughn Gittin Jr., Andrew Comrie-Picard and host Ken Block cording brand-new tires in a matter of minutes, pitted powertrains (AWD or RWD) in the same brackets to keep things interesting. After several rounds of eliminations, it came down to just Foust and Block for the final – both drivers in similar 550 horsepower AWD Ford Fiestas. In the best-of-three sprints, Block ran nearly flawlessly, but Foust demonstrated inhuman levels of car control (720-degree spins just inches from a barrel) to take the first two races and the resulting overall win.

On a related side note: Earlier in the evening, Michael Essa, driving GSR Autosport’s 350R (a BMW V10-powered 3 Series), topped Vaughn Gittin to take the win at the Discount Tire burn-out contest. While other drivers spent their three minutes doing spins around the course, Essa simply cranked his steering wheel to the left and bounced off the rev-limiter (in third gear) until he disappeared into a thick gray cloud – liquidating his Nitto tires in 90 seconds of carnage.

Hit the jump to watch the complete battle between Block and Foust.

2013 Hyundai Elantra Touring going five-door, leaving the wagon train behind

Fear not, hatchback fans. According to Hyundai CEO John Krafcik, the next-generation Hyundai Elantra Touring will debut in late 2012 as a 2013 model. Krafcik tells Autoblog that while the Elantra sedan is styled specifically for the American market, the Elantra Touring is being penned with European customers in mind. The company sells a long-roof version of the Elantra in the old country under the i30 banner, but from what we understand, American buyers will get a taste of the next-generation vehicle in about two years.

“We launched the Elantra touring a couple of years after we launched the Elantra and we’re going to have the same model cycle for Elantra Touring here,” Krafcik said. “We’re going to get the next-generation i30 here in the U.S. market in a couple of years.”

But don’t expect the vehicle to share too much DNA with the old long-roof Elantra. Krafcik tells AB that the new Touring will be significantly different from the model on sale right now: “It’s a great design. The Elantra Touring design actually came out of our California studio. We’re going to go with the shorter five-door hatchback bodystyle instead of the larger wagon style we have now.”

Hennessey Venom GT visits Jay Leno’s Garage

In his quest to get his mitts on every piece of covetable sheetmetal on the planet, Jay Leno has just had aHennessey Venom GT in his modest little garage. With 1,200 horsepower packed into a lightweight chassis supplied by the gurus at Lotus, the machine is what our supercar dreams would be made of – if only we took LSD before bed. John Hennessey, the man behind this beast, says that the original goal for the Venom GT was to create a vehicle that made no apologies for its performance and power-to-weight ratio. As a result, don’t expect too many creature comforts to crop up in the cabin.

At around 2,700 pounds, the Venom GT provides one of the best power-to-weight ratios of any vehicle made today – production or otherwise. The biggest surprise is that even with all that power, the engine is sucking down about 18 psi of boost and runs off of pump gas. Sounds tasty to us. Hit the jump to see the late night funny man’s take onthe Venom GT.

McLaren brings back the SLR for a limited-edition swan song

It’s been a year since the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren was discontinued. 2,000 examples of five different variants of the extravagant supercar were made over the course of five years of production. And in its wake,Mercedes-Benz and McLaren have gone their separate ways, both on the track and off. Both have been keeping plenty busy since the divorce, but they’ve apparently gotten back together for one last hurrah.

Apparently created by McLaren as an aftermarket kit for existing models and unveiled at the Essen Motor Show (think of it as Germany’s SEMA), this McLaren Edition SLR packs revised aerodyanamics, steering, suspension and interior. The result is an exclusive swan-song for the exotic McMerc (only 25 examples will be offered), and it looks like it’s mated with a MG SV. Take a closer look with the images below and the video after the jump, where you may notice that the Mercedes part of the equation has been decidedly de-emphasized.

How to build your own hidden racing sim setup and keep your wife happy

Two things have prevented us from installing a full-blown racing-wheel, pedals and seat in our living room for the likes of Gran Turismo 5 – the aggravation of having the hardware soak up space in the living room and the threat of endangering hard-earned household peace accords for such a folly. One enterprising soul over at OverClockers has come up with the perfect solution by genetically splicing attractive furniture and functional gaming hardware into one vastly superior being. Using a little MDF and some excellent upholstery work, user Lyshco has managed to create a racing cockpit that’s a little larger than your run-of-the-mill F1 throne, and he’s done so without shelling out nearly $7,000 for a convertible coffee table.

The trick is that the whole kit-and-caboodle folds up into a very attractive ottoman when not in use, saving everyone’s eyes from having to suffer through staring at the evidence of our dweeby past time. It turns out that old gem about necessity’s momma turns out to be true.

Report: Mahindra introduction to U.S. ‘indefinitely delayed’

We apparently won’t be seeing any Mahindra trucks on U.S. roads any time soon. The company has announced that it has no date in mind for its American introduction, and that as of right now, its progress into this market is indefinitely delayed. The hangup resides in an ever-growing legal battle between the Indian company and its almost-was importer here in the States, Global Vehicles USA. As you’ll likely recall, GV USA claims that Mahindra improperly terminated its contract with them earlier this year, noting that the automaker now wants to sell vehicles directly to U.S. customers instead of going through a middle man.

Mahindra, meanwhile, says that it doesn’t want to get into a “war of words” with its former importer. Also, the company has made it clear that it still wants to break into the American market. How exactly it plans to do so is still somewhat murky, however.

In the meantime, Global Vehicles USA has filed an injunction in federal court claiming breach of contract and urging the court to bar Mahindra vehicles from entering the states in the future.

Mahindra Bolero ‘Attitude’ delivers on its name

It’s been 10 years since Mahindra & Mahindra reworked its Armada SUV into a more civil machine. The company renamed its off-road machine the Bolero at that time, and since then, the beast has found favor with the police, military and regular citizens who need a little off-road prowess in their daily commute. To celebrate the nameplate’s 10-year anniversary, Mahindra has rolled out a new 2011 version of the truck, complete with one very interesting exterior design. From the looks of things, the truck has all of the necessary goodies for tackling the trails of India, including a wicked light bar, a Mahindra logo-shaped snorkel, tow loops and yes, even a pick-axe.

According to Mahindra, the Bolero is the best-selling SUV in India. The truck sold 70,554 units last year, becoming the first SUV to break the 70,000 barrier in India in the process. It’s easy to see why. We love this thing almost in spite of ourselves. It looks like a mad scientist somewhere cooked up the DNA of a Hummer H2, Jeep Wrangler and a Land Rover Defender only to come out with this Tonka truck. Hit the jump for one very entertaining press release.

Mahindra brushes back Global Vehicles, “rejects any attempt to order” pickups

The automotive soap opera that is Mahindra keeps on turning. Today, the Indian automaker issued a statement regarding the claims put forth by Global Vehicles. Mahindra accuses GV of “engaging in PR theatrics while pursuing an unnecessary lawsuit.” It states that the contract with Global Vehicles expired and Mahindra is free to pursue other means of bringing its Pik-Up to its network of waiting U.S. dealers. It has effectively rejected Global Vehicles’ $35 million order. Mahindra further claims that Global Vehicles is working hard to damage its reputation while disrupting its attempts to bring the vehicle stateside.

Honestly, we would love to see this little truck land in dealer lots here, but we don’t know how this drama will play out. Both sides are pointing fingers and we expect name calling to soon follow. Either way, this doesn’t appear to a very productive way of expediting vehicles to showrooms, now does it?

Global Vehicles announces $35M initial order of Mahindra pickups for U.S.

Mahindras road to the United States has been interesting so far, to say the least. It’s changed the trucks model name, seen delays in a target launch date, caused delays and broken contracts.

Many here in the states are eagerly awaiting the arrival of an official on-sale date for the Pik-up. The biggest group waiting for that announcement might just be Global Vehicles, the U.S. distributor for the little truck with potential big appeal. Global Vehicles has already invested nearly $100 million to bring the vehicle to the US and now they’ve placed an initial order for the Mahindra pickups to the tune of $35 million.

John Perez, CEO of Global Vehicles, says:

“We are proud of the sales and service network we created to support the launch of Mahindra vehicles, and we look forward to bringing American buyers something truly unique in the marketplace – rugged, high-quality, clean diesel pickup trucks that can achieve nearly 30 miles per gallon. Our dealers are all seasoned auto industry professionals who will treat customers with honesty, integrity and respect. We built our business on these bedrock principles, which should be the foundation of every business relationship.”

Report: Mahindra says it has terminated U.S. dealer agreement

Mahindra’s four-year saga with Global Vehicles is taking so many turns, it should get a telenovela on Univision. When we recently posted that the Pik-Up finally received EPA certification, GV and its dealer network were excited and ready to go. However, commenters on that post noted a message on Mahindra’s site indicating that the company’s relationship with GV was kaput.

Mahindra hasn’t said a word since, but Global Vehicles and the dealers have let folks know that they aren’t impressed and that they have no idea what Mahindra thinks it’s doing. Global Vehicles’ official response was, “such attempted termination is invalid under applicable laws of the United States and the State of Georgia, something which Mahindra continues to disregard.” And a dealer who’s got a showroom ready to sell Pik-Ups in December said, “If they’re still coming in December of this year like they’ve said they are, they’re coming through my dealership, and that’s all there is to it.”

Mahindra diesel pickups finally get EPA certification

At long last, Mahindra can get in the business of actually selling its Pik-Ups instead of waiting for the EPA and fighting with its dealers. PickupTrucks.com reports that the little Indian truck has finally received EPA certification, meaning that retail sales of the TR20 and TR40 diesel pickups can begin next year.

Global Vehicles (Mahindra’s U.S. distributor) put on a happy face, saying, “Our dealers are excited as well. This is great news,” but it’s unclear how this development will affect the ongoing litigation between the two entities. Global Vehicles recently sued Mahindra for missing three deadlines to have its trucks ready for sale, claiming that GV and its dealer body spent $95 million getting everything prepared. Our guess is that they’ll find some timely way to kiss and make up so that you can get your $22,000 Pik-Up as soon as possible.