Honda Civic Ti Limited Edition

I always thought that these UK versions would make their way over here with an Acura badge, guess not....
The Japanese car maker is introducing the Honda Civic Ti, a limited edition model which combined 'race-car looks' with high-spec interior equipment, and which is based on the 1.4 and 1.8 i-VTEC SE.

According to the company, the Honda Civic Ti has been inspired by their Racing British Touring Car challenger, so it features 17 inch 'Pro Race' matt black wheels, redesigned front and rear spoilers, new side sills, and a rear body skirt, plus the exclusive Premium White Pearl body paint.

At the interior the Honda Civic Ti features the Pioneer Navigation Multimedia System which includes a 3D touch screen, a map database covering 44 countries, a traffic message channel receiver, and also offers the possibility of playing CDs, DVDs, and music stored on iPod, iPhone and USB devices.

The Honda Civic Ti price starts at 15,995 GBP for the 1.4 i-VTECH while for those who prefer the 1.8 variant will have to pay an additional 1,000 GBP. Sales will begin in the UK in March, and production will be limited to 500 exemplars.

Honda press release :
New Touring Car-inspired Honda hatch has £3,700 worth of extrasRace-car looks are combined with high-spec interior equipment on Honda’s new limited edition model, the Civic Ti. Based on the 1.4 and 1.8 i-VTEC SE variants, the Civic Ti comes with £3,700 worth of extra equipment over and above the standard model.

The 5-door Civic is inspired by this season’s Honda Racing British Touring Car challenger, and is fitted with unique, 17-inch ‘Pro Race’ wheels from Team Dynamics, Honda’s racing partner in the BTCC.

The sporty image of these matt black wheels is enhanced by Honda’s ‘GP’ body kit finished in Crystal Black, which provides a stark contrast to the exclusive Premium White Pearl body paint and body coloured trim. The race-like GP kit includes front spoiler, rear spoiler (finished in white), side skirt inserts and rear body skirts.

Inside, the Civic Ti is equipped with a state-of-the-art Pioneer Navigation Multimedia System, which offers full-scale sat nav, entertainment and communication with a 3D graphic touch screen.

This high-end multimedia unit includes a map database covering 44 countries, multiple sensors to ensure more accurate positioning, a traffic message channel receiver to avoid traffic jams and a hands free telephone system. It also plays CD, DVD, iPod, iPhone and USB devices, with on-screen controls.

The Pioneer system provides another link to the BTCC team, as the global audio/video and electronics firm is the main sponsor of Honda Racing Team’s attack for the 2011 title.

Honda dealerships in the UK will sell just 500 of the limited edition Civics, which go on sale in March. Prices start at £15,995 OTR for the 1.4 i-VTEC and £16,995 for the 1.8 variant.

Source;
http://www.carsession.com/car-news/honda-civic-ti-limited-edition.html

Pioneer: Honda Motor Completed Payment For New Share Buy

TOKYO (Dow Jones)--Pioneer Corp. (6773.TO) said Tuesday that Honda Motor Co. (7267.TO) has completed payment of around Y2.50 billion for new shares in the electronics company.

Pioneer issued 14.7 million new shares to Honda for Y170 per share. The company said it plans to use the capital to develop new in-vehicle electronics products.

With a 4.5% stake, Honda is now one of the leading shareholders in Pioneer. Sharp Corp. (6753.TO), which holds 9.19%, is the company's largest shareholder.

Pioneer originally announced the share issue plan in April 2009, but postponed it a number of times as it said it wanted to give other potential investors the same offer terms as Honda.

Source;
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100323-700837.html?mod=WSJ_latestheadlines

Pioneer Dumps Honda And Launches New Auto Gear

Maybe I'm mistaken, but I was under the impression that Honda was coming to the aid of Pioneer....
Pioneer Electronics who last week launched new automotive entertainment and navigation gear has said that it has terminated the issuing of shares to the Honda Motor Company as their shares rise on the Tokyo stock exchange.

In Australia the struggling electronics Company is banking on premium Hi Fi, Digital Radio sales in partnership with Pure and automotive gear to drive sales.

Last week Pioneer unveiled four new in-dash navigation models that include iPhone capability and built-in Bluetooth on all models.

With the new Pioneer navigation devices users can now input a navigation destination by voice and conduct point-of-interest (POI) searches, such as "Find the nearest McDonalds." In iPod mode, users can browse through songs via voice command while continuing to listen to a song that is playing. Most of these improvements are software rather than hardware based, said Pioneer. Users also have "conversational" voice control over songs on an iPhone or iPod and over switching sources from an SD card, USB or iPod Users can also ask the unit to play, pause, shuffle and go to the next track and previous track.

For the rest of the article;
http://www.smarthouse.com.au/Automotive/Navigation/Q4N6F5X6

Honda planning to invest big amount of cash into Pioneer

In our modern times, in-car technology is becoming to buyers as what’s under the skin. That’s why the Japanese carmaker Honda is planning to invest a sizeable amount of cash into Pioneer, one of the most popular giants in the world of electronics.

This was made public by Honda explaining that Pioneer is moving away from its television production operation to focus rather on car electronics. This is advantageous for Honda, as it expects to benefit from the know-how of Pioneer in this area. It has been reported that Honda plans to inject Pioneer with tens of millions of dollars, which should be sufficient to provide it with leverage in the automotive technology of the electronics giant, which consists of in-car navigation systems, stereos, entertainment units, with the more advanced next-generation Blu-ray players as a big possibility. Japanese industry analysts say that the planned investment of the carmaker makes sense because the amount to be invested is not significant in relation to the bottom line of the company but is sufficient to provide it with a partner in the production aspect of automotive electronics. Honda has not released the exact amount it will invest, but speculations see a several billion Yen cash out (between $30-$50 million in US currency). Struggling with the global crisis itself, this investment is very much welcomed by Pioneer!

Source;
http://www.4wheelsnews.com/honda-planning-to-invest-big-amount-of-cash-into-pioneer/

Honda considering investing in Pioneer

By Nobuhiro Kubo
TOKYO (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co (7267.T: Quote, Profile, Research) is finalizing plans to invest tens of millions of dollars in Pioneer Corp (6773.T: Quote, Profile, Research) to help rebuild the struggling electronics maker, a company source said on Thursday.

Pioneer shares jumped 7.5 percent on Thursday, taking its gains to more than a quarter since sources said on Tuesday it may seek government help. Honda shares rose 1.7 percent.

A Honda spokeswoman said her firm had been approached by Pioneer, a loss-making electronics maker withdrawing from its TV operations and focusing resources on the auto electronics business, but declined to elaborate further.

The move will help cash-strapped Pioneer shore up its capital and strengthen ties with Japan's second-largest automaker.

"This is very positive. They've had a lot of trade with each other in the past and to have Honda openly backing them up like this should be good," Chibagin Asset Management fund manager Hiroaki Osakabe said.

For Honda, an investment is expected by analysts to give it access to Pioneer's car navigation and other auto electronics-related technologies at a time when an increasing number of microchips and other electronics components go into cars.

"Several billion yen is not exactly a big amount of money for Honda although it is facing a tough business environment," said an auto analyst, who declined to be named.

"Also, auto makers cannot do everything in-house when it comes to auto electronics. So, this might be a good opportunity for Honda."

The Nikkei business daily said if Honda bought common stock, the automaker could become a major shareholder with a stake of around 5 percent.

A Pioneer spokesman said his firm has been in talks with various companies and financial institutions on ways to restore its financial health but declined to give further details.

Home and car electronics were two main earnings pillars at Pioneer, but in recent years, its home electronics unit has been in the red, hit by fierce competition with larger and more cost-efficient rivals such as Samsung Electronics (005930.KS: Quote, Profile, Research).

The Tokyo-based company, owned 14 percent by Sharp Corp (6753.T: Quote, Profile, Research), is set for a fifth straight annual loss for the just-ended year to March 31.

Two sources close to the matter said on Tuesday that Pioneer is considering applying for state funds available to companies hit by the global financial crisis. The Nikkei has reported the government would inject 30 billion yen. ($1=98.30 Yen)

(Additional reporting by Taiga Uranaka, Elaine Lies, Kiyoshi Takenaka; Editing by Edwina Gibbs and Rodney Joyce)

Source;
http://uk.reuters.com/article/governmentFilingsNews/idUKN2226826620090423