Honda is a car company, make no mistake about that.  They don’t do trucks.  Back when sport-utility vehicles were just trucks, Honda’s Passport SUV was really an Isuzu Rodeo with Honda badges.  It seemed a shrewd decision at the time; Honda knew nothing about building trucks, so it left the truck business up to truck people.

More recently, of course, the SUV market has changed.  Buyers want more carlike sport-utes these days; trucks like the Toyota Highlander aren’t even intended to take to the trails.  More like cars?  “Now you’re talking,” …

Ironically, the decidedly square Honda Element looks the way it does because a group of young engineers was encouraged to “think outside the box.”  The vehicle you see here is the result of their zeal to design a do-all for any active lifestyle, a melding of car and sport-utility that can haul gear, serve as a camping home-base, and still function as a commuter when necessary.  If that’s too complex, then think of the Element as a very small, very cool van.  That’s really what it is, at heart.

Slotting into …

Hondas are a ticklish case for automotive journalists.  Like many of the big enthusiast magazines, I’ve been accused by readers of having a Honda bias, or of being secretly on their payroll.  And the fact of the matter is, personally I don’t even like Hondas all that much, really.  It’s just that, objectively, they’re that good.

The redesigned 2003 Accord is no exception to this rule.  Revised from the ground up, it’s nearly impossible to find objective complaints in this new family sedan’s design and execution.  Both the four- and six-cylinder …

It’s very neat-looking, but the overall impression is that of a well-equipped office cubicle rather than a personal space.

Way back in the dark days of the 1980s, Honda built a handy little four-by-four station wagon on the Civic chassis.  The high-roofed wagon made an excellent all-around companion for small families with its cavernous cargo area and ability to tackle inclement weather and minor obstacles.  Trouble was, it wasn’t ever remotely cool.  It was barely interesting, except to 4×4 station wagon enthusiasts…all twenty-four of them.  The Civic Real Time 4wd wagon vanished quietly in the early 1990s.

That 4×4 lives on in spirit in the 2002 Honda CR-V, and this …

To be honest, we didn’t expect to like the Honda CR-V.  SUVs whose purpose is more on-road than off don’t usually appeal to us.   It’s a testament to the CR-V’s driving dynamics and usefulness to point out that it made us change our tune in a single day.  Whoever said that SUVs’ primary purpose is to intimidate and bully fellow motorists obviously never met Honda’s little sport-ute.

The CR-V has existed largely unchanged since its introduction in 1997.  It hasn’t needed to change; it’s been among the best-selling small SUVs since …

Hondas may be the only cars that grow up with their owners.  As evidence of this, we present the 2001 Honda Civic.  The latest incarnation of Honda’s subcompact is slightly larger and more refined than its predecessor, and arrives just in time to serve as a step-up trade-in on the previous generation Civic.  The new Civic is now as big as a mid-1980s Accord, and arguably more refined.  Loyal Civic owners can graduate to a nicer car without even changing nameplates.

Hard to believe, but the Civic has been with us …

If you grew up in the Eighties, you must remember this kid from elementary school:  “I heard they’re going to make those Star Wars land speeders, and they’re going to really work, and my mom’s getting me one for Christmas!”  Or maybe it was Buck Rogers’ fighter.  Or a “Battlestar Galactica” Cylon uniform.  Or whatever.

Well, his ghost is going to be clamoring for your attention soon, with wild tales of a car that’s got two motors, one gasoline and one electric, and it’s got super-aerodynamics so it’ll get 70 miles …

Santa Claus was understandably taken by surprise when I showed up at the front of the line, no child in sight, and jumped into his lap.  “Oooof!” he gasped.  Clearly he wasn’t used to accommodating adults during these mall visits.

“Hello, Santa,” I said.  “It’s me, and I have a request.  I believe, that if you consult your list, you’ll see that I have been very good this year.”
He narrowed his eyes, immediately suspicious and possibly nursing a bruised lap.  “Yesss…?”
“And you’ll also note that I haven’t made any particular requests …

When it comes to automobiles, minivans are something of a special case.  You can’t approach a minivan with the same criterion as a car; these were among the first vehicles to bring suburban family-room sensibilities onto the interstates, after all.  To a car guy, the minivan is an enigma, a vehicle whose acceleration, braking and roadholding measures are largely irrelevant.  As long as a minivan meets the relatively low-threshold requirements of its class, it’s fine.  Seriously, nobody cares about brake feel or steering feedback in a minvan, and as long …