Honda FCX Clarity: Lease the Future for $600/Mo.

Honda made good on its Tokyo Show promise today when it unveiled the fairly stunning FCX Clarity fuel cell vehicle at the Los Angeles Auto Show. The FCX Clarity’s powertrain consists of Honda’s V Flow stack, a compact lithium ion battery pack, a single hydrogen storage tank, and an AC synchronous electric motor driving the front wheels. Hydrogen and atmospheric oxygen combine in the fuel cell stack, where chemical energy from the reaction is converted into electric power (with water the only by-product). The energy is stored in the batteries and fed to the car’s electric motor, with extra juice produced through regenerative braking and deceleration further supplementing the fuel cell stack when the need arises. Range on a full tank is expected to be about 270 miles, and efficiency, says Honda, will be equivalent to 68 mpg.

American Honda plans to lease the FCX Clarity to a lucky few retail consumers in Southern California starting next summer. The cost of a three-year lease, which is to include maintenance and collision insurance, is a piddling $600 a month. All in all, the Clarity is a far cry from the breadbox-shaped original FCX. Beyond its obvious purported earth-saving virtues, it’s spacious, luxurious, and, if we may, even a little sexy. Now, if Honda can solve the problem if establishing a hydrogen refueling infrastructure, we may have a winner.

More photos after the break, courtesy of Honda.

Honda Fit

2009 Honda Fit Handles Like A Dream

Check out the 2009 Honda Fit, a car that’s gotten lots of second glances from critics and consumers alike, due to its unusual styling and hyper-intelligent interior design. This is an excellent first-car for younger drivers, but its unusual chassis might take some time to get used to. Good safety scores across the board will keep parents happy, though.

Taking a peek at its guts, the 2009 Honda Fit is powered by a 1.5 liter, iVTEC four cylinder engine that puts out 117 horsepower. It’ll do 35 mpg on the highway, and about 29 mpg in town. The responsiveness and maneuverability of the Fit is noteworthy, getting rave reviews from critics for its ease of parking, excellent steering, and smooth riding at higher highway speeds. Look for the 2009 Honda Fit at dealerships for between $14,550 and $18,760.

2009 Honda Pilot

2009 Honda Pilot Can Accommodate Everybody

Let’s take a look at the 2009 Honda Pilot, just to satisfy our thirst for a souped-up CUV that’s got enough room to haul George, Georgette, the kids, both aunts, and grandma, with plenty of room in the trunk for the camping gear.

The 2009 Pilot is a seriously big crossover that’s got a ton of grille up front, just to let everyone know how big and bad the whole family can be. Under the hood, the 2009 Honda Pilot is powered by a 3.5 liter V-6 engine that cranks out 250 horsepower. It’s coupled with a five-speed automatic transmission that finds its way through the gears nice and easy. Efficiency ratings have the 2009 Pilot at 17 mpg in town and 23 mpg on the big road, but that’s with the front-wheel-drive only.

All-wheel-drive sees 16 mpg in the city and 22 mpg on the highway. That puts this rig in just about the middle of the pack for fuel economy. You’ll be able to pick up a 2009 Honda Pilot on the lots for between $27,695 and $40,095.

2009 Honda Civic Sedan A sleek 4-drive Sedan!

2009 Honda Civic Sedan A sleek 4-drive Sedan!

Just as we were speeding on the motorway, we saw a 2009 Honda Civic Sedan whizzing past us. It left us wondering, “Why did we not have that piece of marvel with us?” Piece of marvel it is! With a capacity to seat 5 passengers, and a 5-speed manual transmission enough to allow you sit comfortably behind the wheel, this sedan has to be with everyone.

If you have couple ten thousand dollars in your bank and a quiet countryside road besides your home to drive a car, buy this one immediately. With a mileage of about 34 Miles per gallon, the tank does not eat your money at all. Cheaper drive, compact body that never seems to quit – Do you need anything else for your car?

Hopefully nothing more, but if you want add-ons to the package, you will find it with the interiors. Plush seats and enough leg space for everyone concerned in the car will make you feel as if you are sitting in a recliner theater! This sedan is able to do 0 – 60 miles in all of less than 5 seconds. Do you need any more testimonials?

Your local garage could be selling this car in a range of $15,000 and $25,000. Not a lot of money considering the beauty of this car.

CRF70F 2009

Exterior

2009 Kawasaki KLX450R

Kawi knows how to make a bike look good and in this case it made all efforts so that it will. As a result, aggressive lines are all over the place, from headlight to the rear fender and everything in between.

Also inspiring on the KX450 on the design chapter, the KLX is easily distinguishable as it is a bit lower on the suspensions. But still, it features 21-inch front and 18-inch rear wheels that together with the suspensions soak up bumps easily so that the bike won’t just look good, but do the job properly too.

Also, proof of its racing inspirations are the motocross-like side panels, side number plates and mudguards. The pass from functional to beautiful is smoothly achieved, making the compact engine almost look like part of the bodywork.

Green team stays true to its color of choice and all off-roaders are pained in Lime Green and covered in stylish Kawasaki decals.

Price

CRF70F

In 2009, Japanese 450cc off-road bikes are priced at $7,499. Not exactly a rule, but more of a “let the customer decide” kind of situation, you’ve seen it at the 2009 Yamaha WR450F and now in the case of the Kawasaki KLX450R. Honda hasn’t yet launched the 2009 off-road line-up so we’ll better keep it out of this.

Conclusion

Kawasaki has never before achieved such levels of performance in the case of an off-road bike than in the case of the KLX450R, and this can only stand as a new beginning for them on the trails.

Aggressive and packed with racing features that backs it up, this is without a question, one awesome bang for the buck, not matter the bike you compare it with.