No. 5 Mark Martin Hendrickcars.com Helmet Sweepstakes – Enter Before August 4, 2010

Hendrickcars.com and Hendrick Motorsports have teamed up to provide one lucky winner one of the best looking helmets in the series. But you have to hurry; the Sweepstakes ends August 4, 2010.

Visit Hendrickcars.com to submit a sweepstakes entry. One lucky winner will receive the replica helmet signed by Mark Martin.

Martin’s 32 top-10 finishes and 38 lead-lap finishes at Pocono are the most for the NASCAR veteran at any racetrack. Meanwhile his 19 top-five finishes rank second -- just behind the 22 he has recorded at Dover. In June at Pocono, Martin started 14th and raced into the top-10 before being involved in a last-lap multi-car accident that left him with a 29th-place finish.

Don't Forget, visit Hendrickcars.com to register. While you're there, search from up to 5,000 top quality pre-owned vehicles. Just like Jimmie Johnson, Jeff Gordon, Dale Jr. and Mark Martin say, it makes a difference when you drive a Hendrick car. Search from thousands of manufacturer certified pre-owned vehicles and many CARFAX one owners (CARFAX reports are free on Hendrickcars.com).

Visit Hendrickcars.com and good luck in the sweepstakes.

Year-Long Review of the Honda Insight EX Navi

Year-Long Review of the Honda Insight EX Navi

Five of the 15 "Best Family Cars of 2010" identified by Parents magazine and Edmunds.com are Honda vehicles – one in every segment.

Family Friendly - Five of the 15 "Best Family Cars of 2010" identified by Parents magazine and Edmunds.com are Honda vehicles – one in every segment. (Other manufacturers had no more than two vehicles on the list.) Parents magazine's comments provide insights into what's important to parents. When working with families, point out the benefits of the features called out here. There is no better choice for families than Honda and here's why.

Honda Accord (Sedans) - "[Accord's] backseat is among the biggest [in its segment], a major plus for families with two kids in car seats or rapidly growing tweens…the sliding center armrest adjusts to the comfort of drivers of every size, and a remote key lets you vent the car before you get in, a nice benefit on hot days."
 
Honda Fit (Budget Cars) - "The [Fit's] cabin is an engineering marvel, squeezing in a storage tray, 10 cup holders, and a glove box big enough to tuck away bottles and snacks for your kids. The rear seat fits two adults comfortably, splits in two, and folds into the floor, creating as much cargo space as some SUVs have."

Honda CR-V (Crossovers) - "[CR-V's] cozy cabin has two glove boxes and handy under-seat compartments to keep all your kids' stuff organized. The rear seats fold down in various configurations, with minimal effort, to fit double strollers and science projects, and loading bulky gear is less laborious thanks to the superlight lift gate and low rear deck. We also like that even the base model comes with a folding center storage tray, front and rear power outlets, and a conversation mirror (which lets you see what's going on in the backseat without having to turn around)."

Honda Insight (Hybrids) - About Insight, editors noted that you can get two car seats
 in back, it's $3,000 cheaper than Prius, and it's among the most fuel-efficient vehicles on the road. Also Insight EX is "a cozy $21,000 family car with plenty of storage pockets and a convenient rear hatch."

Honda Odyssey (Big Cars) - "The lone minivan on our list, the Odyssey, warrants inclusion for its outstanding interior space, maneuverability, and flexibility. It has a retractable center tray, 13 cup holders, and a hidden storage bin in the floor that can stash a diaper bag. The rear cargo well can readily accommodate a portacrib and bags for a weekend getaway, and you can make more room by stowing seats with a single flick. Coolest of all is the optional PlusOne seat in the second row, which pops up between the two captain's chairs when you need room for eight, then disappears when you don't."

2011 Honda Odyssey Fuel Economy Could Crush Rivals

2011 Honda Odyssey Fuel Economy Could Crush Rivals

Honda says it recently got the good word from the feds that at least one version of its 2011 Odyssey minivan will be rated a remarkable 28 miles per gallon on the highway, just what Honda had predicted.
That makes the 2011 Odyssey, a major overhaul due in showrooms this fall, three mpg better than the current champ, Kia Sedona, and four mpg better than the four-cylinder version of the 2011 Toyota Sienna, a model Toyota launched to have a lower-price, higher-mpg model.
Odyssey's city rating of 19 mpg, though, is about the same as others'. Not posted yet on the government's fuel economy.gov because there's a lag between certification and publication.
Possible ringer: Nissan Quest. Nissan discontinued the Quest Nissan's redesigned Quest minivan is due early next year. This teaser shot from Nissan suggests the apperanance. No details have been disclosed, so it's unknown if Quest fuel economy will challenge Honda Odyssey's 19 mpg city, 28 mpg highway ratings.

Nissan Quest after the discontinued 2009 model, but jumps back into the small and fiercely competitive minivan market early next year with a new design. Nissan's not telegraphing the mpg ratings (or other details), but Nissan, recall, is trying for an enviro appeal, spearheaded by its Leaf battery car late this year. Have to be a big jump though. Previous Quest was rated 16/24 mpg.
Aggravatingly, Honda won't say (yet) whether all versions of the van will get that 28-mpg rating. It only says that it expects the Touring Elite (and doesn't that sound like the pricey version?) to get 19/28.
All Odysseys, though, will get the same 3.5-liter, variable displacement V-6 engine, Honda says. So if the good mpg is limited to one model, it's apparently due to more than just the engine.
Why no hybrid vans? Cost. Minivans, as family vehicles, are sold mainly to very cost-conscious consumers who would love the higher mpg of a hybrid but wouldn't/couldn't pay several thousand dollars extra for a gasoline-electric hybrid system. At least, that's automakers' thinking.

Toyota sells a hybrid van in Japan, called Estima, and has teased about offering a hybrid version of Sienna. There's a discussion of hybrid minivans at hybridcars.com that suggests the demand would be stronger than automakers think.

-- James R. Healey/Drive On
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/driveon/post/2010/07/2011-honda-odyssey-fuel-economy-could-crush-rival-minivans/1

Minivan Glory Revealed! The All New 2011 Odyssey Has Been Unveiled.

The all-new 2011 Honda Odyssey is the ultimate minivan reinvented, re-energized and evolved. With its modern styling, spacious interior, and high-tech features, the new Odyssey almost demands a new category. Although it carries up to 8 passengers, there's nothing "minivan" about the Odyssey’s efficient-yet-sporty performance, available 10-way power adjustable leather-trimmed front seating, authoritative acceleration and all the thoughtful engineering you'd expect from a Honda.

Of course, the new Odyssey pushes the tech envelope further with available features like a 16.2-inch dual-view-capable ultra-wide DVD Rear Entertainment System with HDMI input, and a premium audio system with 12 speakers. Everything is gracefully held together by a lattice of user-friendliness and simplicity—just load it with family and friends, gear up, and go.

Mr. Opportunity is knocking so get a great deal on a new Honda at http://www.hondacarsbradenton.com/Specials-New.aspx 

Dale Earnhardt WINS the Subway Jalapeno 250 Nationwide race at Daytona International Speedway

By Seth Livingstone, USA TODAY

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — Dale Earnhardt Jr. is emphatic when he says he won't be running the No.3 race car again.

If so, he gave it a fitting final ride Friday night, holding off Joey Logano in a green-white-checkered finish to win the Subway Jalapeno 250 Nationwide Series race at Daytona International Speedway.
RESULTS: Subway Jalapeno 250

In winning his first Nationwide Series race since 2006, Earnhardt piloted his Chevrolet Impala, clad in a vintage blue and yellow Wrangler paint scheme, past Kyle Busch on lap 70 of the 100-lap event and held the lead the rest of the way.

"I feel really lucky," Earnhardt said. "I was so worried I wasn't going to win because nothing but a win was good enough. I worked hard trying to win it."

Earnhardt's fans were ecstatic. His long-time crew chief Tony Eury Jr. was choked up when interviewed moments after his driver took the checkered flag.

"You know we lost everything here," said Eury, referring to the 2001 crash at Daytona that claimed Dale Earnhardt Sr. "To come back with that number and do this, it means everything."

Earnhardt reiterated that he will never run the No. 3 again. He insists it's not his number.

"I don't ever want to do it again and I won't ever change my mind," he said.

Read the full article here - http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/nascar/2010-07-02-earnhardt-daytona-nationwide_N.htm

MSN Autos picks the Honda Element as one of the Beach Bound Beauties

Bring on the sandy bathing suits and saltwater-soaked wetsuits — the Element is a vehicle you can hose down, inside and out. The floor mats are rubber and the seats are made of durable water- and dirt-resistant fabric; there isn't a speck of carpeting in this small utility vehicle. A detachable refrigerator (an option, of course) in the center console makes it easy to chill drinks while you're en route to the beach and keep them cold once you get there. The seats can be configured in 64 different ways, including removing the rear ones altogether to transport anything from a grill to a stack of beach chairs.
To find out more on the Honda Element please visit Honda Cars of Bradenton.