A peek through the European patent office files revealed images of Honda’s freshly launched in North America, 2012 Civic in both four-door sedan and two-door coupe guise. Given that the European market will get its own, bespoke version of the Civic, chances are that Honda simply wanted to cover its back like most of the competition just in case another automaker (we are looking towards you China) got any crazy ideas.

However, it is possible that Honda will offer the four-door saloon model in certain European countries to compete against the Volkswagen Jetta. With the exception of one version of the Civic sedan seen in this set of images and which features slightly modified taillights with additional strips that extend towards the license plate holder, there are no other differences compared to the North American Civic.

The European version of Honda’s compact model will make its world premiere at the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show in September. It will be available in five-door and three-door body styles, while the Japanese automaker has also confirmed the development of a smaller displacement turbo diesel engine that will fit right under the current 2.2-liter i-DTEC unit.

Honda's sporty-looking CR-Z hybrid will finally get the performance to back its looks, as the Japanese carmaker teamed up with its tuning partner Mugen Euro to develop a high-performance version of the hybrid model. As we wrote earlier this year, the car will be unveiled at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July, but until then, you can take a look at the first official photos of the car to see if they match the sketches released by Honda two months ago.

The Japanese company says development of the CR-Z Mugen is on track, with “performance figures already looking promising”. Honda revealed that early tests with a prototype car based on a standard CR-Z and a mid-tune engine have given 0-60 mph (96 km/h) sprint times around that of the European market Civic Type R (6.6 seconds). Later on, Mugen increased output by another 15 percent and reduced the chassis' weight by 50 kilograms, so that overall performance is expected to be even better than the Type R's.

The car will feature modifications to both the 1.5-liter i-VTEC petrol engine and the Honda IMA system in order to boost power and torque. Mugen Euro didn't reveal any output figures, but referred to the fuel consumption, deeming it encouraging.

"We've retained the three driving modes from the standard car and economy ranges from 50+mpg (41.6 mpg US) in 'eco' mode to mid-30 mpg (29 mpg US) when tapping into the supercharged power in a special 'Mugen' mode," said Colin Whittamore from Mugen Euro.

Engine and hybrid system aside, the CR-Z Mugen will also benefit from upgrades to the brakes and suspension, as well as from using lightweight components such as a carbon fiber bonnet and forged alloys to lower the overall mass. As the pictures show, the CR-Z Mugen sports a new body kit with upgraded front and rear bumpers, plus a rear wing and diffuser to improve aerodynamics.

For the time being, the CR-Z Mugen is treated as a pure concept study, but as Honda has shown in the recent past with the 240HP Civic Type R Mugen in 2009, there’s a good chance we may see a limited production run in the very near future.

By Dan Mihalascu

Toyota and Honda celebrated today the opening of the first hydrogen station in the U.S. fueled directly from an industrial hydrogen pipeline. Located near the headquarters of Toyota USA, in Torrance, California, the station is built on the company's land and is the result of a collaboration between Shell, Toyota, Air Products, South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) and the Department of Energy.

The station will provide hydrogen for the Toyota fuel cell hybrid demonstration program vehicles, as well as other manufacturers' fuel cell cars in the Los Angeles area.

“Building an extensive hydrogen re-fueling infrastructure is a critical step in the successful market launch of fuel cell vehicles,” said Chris Hostetter, vice president for product and strategic planning at Toyota USA. “We plan to bring a fuel cell vehicle to market in 2015, or sooner and the infrastructure must be in place to support our customers’ needs,”

Until then, other manufacturers that have fuel cell vehicles are free to use the station. Honda, for instance, celebrated the opening of the station by inviting users of its FCX Clarity model to fill up their tanks, with client Jon Spallino becoming the first retail fuel-cell vehicle customer to fill at the station. The FCX Clarity is available on a limited retail basis in Southern California with more than two dozen cars currently on the road.

"This is a positive step for our FCX Clarity customers and the industry as we continue to put vehicles on the road and demonstrate the real-world capabilities of Honda fuel-cell electric vehicle technology," said Elmer Hardy, senior manager at Honda USA.

By Dan Mihalascu

Recently, Honda USA’s facebook page hit the one-millionth fan mark. To show its appreciation, the Japanese brand responded with some personal gestures that, unlike the look of some of its more recent models like the Civic, took some of its fans by surprise. For example, in response to a fan that mowed the Honda logo on his lawn, the Japanese company carved his name into the corporate headquarters next to the main entrance. Another fan that showed his love for Honda with a tattoo of the brand’s logo was surprise to find out that Honda's vice president of marketing got an airbrushed tattoo of his name and face. Finally, a fan that received a Honda haircut was emulated by a Honda associate who carved the fan's name in his hair.
"We're honored to have one million Honda brand Facebook fans and we wanted to show our appreciation in a meaningful way," said Alicia Jones, social media strategist at Honda USA. "How many people do you know who would carve someone else's name into their hair? We're so fortunate to have amazing and dedicated Honda brand fans. And, that's the kind of commitment our associates have to our fans. We really do love them back," Jones added.
This recent Honda action is in line with another Facebook campaign called “Honda Loves You Back”, which took place in 2010 on the popular social network website. This campaign included many freebies for Honda owners, such as parking at a Honda Center sporting event, car wash, lunch and even a back rub in Atlanta.
Scroll down to see how Honda owners reacted to the “Honda Loves You Back” campaign.