TORRANCE, California, Jan. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — In its ongoing commitment to support independent thinking and the creative community, Acura returns as Presenting Sponsor of the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, marking the brand’s eighth year as a Sundance Institute partner. The Festival’s U.S. Dramatic and Documentary audience awards will be presented by Acura.

The Acura MDX luxury SUV featuring the brand’s signature Super Handling-All Wheel Drive™ (SH-AWD^®) will serve as the official vehicle of the Sundance Film Festival. More than 100 Acura MDX vehicles equipped with Advance and Entertainment packages will fill the streets to transport filmmakers, talent, jurors and Sundance Institute staff around the Festival, bringing to life the performance credentials that have made the MDX the best-selling three-row luxury SUV of all time.

In addition to the fleet of Acura MDXs, the Acura presence at Sundance includes a full line vehicle display on Main Street and throughout Park City, highlighting the brand’s sponsorship and showcasing Acura’s Precision Crafted Performance brand DNA.

Festival Village Presented by Acura
Inspired by the brand’s challenging spirit, Acura will celebrate those who pursue their dreams on-screen or on the open road at a new immersive Festival Village footprint located on Swede Alley that will be open to the public Friday, January 19 through Saturday, January 27.

Celebrities promoting their films and Festival-goers will experience multiple indoor and outdoor venues, digital installations and enjoy hot beverages including coffee, espresso drinks and hot chocolate from 2-6PM courtesy of Acura from Campos Coffee.

Showcasing Acura’s passion for design and technology, the NSX Gallery at the Acura Lounge marries photographer Reuben Wu’s NSX-inspired landscapes with the latest in LED technology, displaying his vivid imagery one moment, and revealing a NSX supercar on display through a transparent LED panel the next.

The exterior wall of the NSX Gallery features a mural of one of the many beautiful landscapes captured by Wu for the exhibit. The mural features cutting-edge augmented reality technology that lets the audience digitally travel the course of a single day, from sunrise to sunset. This experience can be shared by the audience as still photos or GIFs.

Against a mountain backdrop, the full Acura model lineup including the Acura NSX supercar, will be displayed at the Acura Stage, where guests will be treated to live music entertainment, DJs, refreshments courtesy of official Festival sponsor Stella Artois from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. daily.

Acura will also host TheWrap at the Acura Studio, a photo and video studio attracting a steady stream of talent-spotting opportunities that are a perennial favorite activity for film fans in Park City who enjoy the brand’s unique public venue.

Festival Village Presented by Acura will be located on Swede Alley at 5^th St. (475 Swede Alley). Public hours: Friday, January 19 through Saturday, January 27 from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. (subject to change).

For More Information
Additional media information including pricing, features and high-resolution photography is available at acuranews.com/channels/acura-automobiles. Follow Acura’s Park City adventures on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Consumer information is available at http://www.acura.com.

About Acura
Acura is a leading automotive luxury nameplate that delivers Precision Crafted Performance, representing the original values of the Acura brand – a commitment to evocative styling, high performance and innovative engineering, all built on a foundation of quality and reliability.

The Acura lineup features six distinctive models – the RLX premium, luxury sedan, the TLX performance luxury sedan, the ILX sport sedan, the 5-passenger RDX luxury crossover SUV, the seven-passenger Acura MDX, America’s all-time best-selling three-row luxury SUV and the next-generation, electrified NSX supercar as a new and pinnacle expression of Acura Precision Crafted Performance.

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Logo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/592658/Acura_Logo.jpg

SOURCE Acura

TORRANCE, California, Jan. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Honda has earned multiple accolades in the 2018 Kelley Blue Book Resale Value Awards with the all-new 2018 Accord and Odyssey, plus 2018 Fit and HR-V all taking home top honors in their respective segments and the 2018 Ridgeline making the top 10 for Best Overall Resale Value.

The 2018 Kelley Blue Book Best Resale Value Awards honor automakers’ outstanding achievements in producing vehicles that best retain their value over the first five years (60 months) of new-vehicle ownership, a very good indicator of a model’s overall value-retention ability.

Honda’s 2018 Kelley Blue Book Best Resale Value Award winners include:

• Best Resale Value: Midsize Car – 2018 Honda Accord
• Best Resale Value: Minivan – 2018 Honda Odyssey
• Best Resale Value: Subcompact Car – 2018 Honda Fit
• Best Resale Value: Subcompact SUV/Crossover – 2018 Honda HR-V
• Best Resale Value: Top 10 – 2018 Honda Ridgeline

About Honda
Honda offers a full line of reliable, fuel-efficient and fun-to-drive vehicles with advanced safety technologies sold through over 1,000 independent U.S. Honda dealers. The Honda lineup includes the Fit, Civic, Accord and Clarity series passenger cars, along with the HR-V, CR-V and Pilot sport/utility vehicles, the Ridgeline pickup and the Odyssey minivan.

Honda has been producing automobiles in America for more than 35 years and currently operates 19 major manufacturing facilities in North America. In 2017, 93% of all Honda and Acura vehicles sold in the U.S. were made in North America, using domestic and globally sourced parts.

For More Information
Consumer information is available at automobiles.honda.com. To join the Honda community on Facebook, visit facebook.com/honda. Additional media information including detailed pricing features and high-resolution photography of all 2018 Honda models is available at hondanews.com.

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SOURCE American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

DETROIT, Jan. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — The all-new Honda Insight Prototype will make its world debut on Jan. 15 at the North American International Auto Show, giving consumers a first glimpse of the latest model in Honda’s growing lineup of electrified vehicles. Launching nationwide later this year, and positioned as a premium compact above Civic in the Honda passenger car lineup, Insight elevates itself above other compact hybrid models with its sleek sedan design, roomy five-passenger cabin, and refined driving performance, along with high fuel efficiency.

“The new 2019 Honda Insight signals we are entering a new era of electrification with a new generation of Honda products that offer customers the benefits of advanced powertrain technology without the traditional trade-offs in design, premium features or packaging,” said Henio Arcangeli, Jr., senior vice president of Automobile Sales and general manager of the Honda Division, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. “The Honda Insight is anticipated to receive fuel economy ratings competitive with the best hybrids in the segment, with styling that will have universal appeal inside and out and best-in-class passenger volume.”

The Insight Prototype boasts a sleek design with a low and wide stance, highlighted by Honda’s signature “flying wing” grille and bold fascia, low-profile LED headlights and taillights married to sharp and dynamic character lines and a sweeping, long coupe-like roofline.

With its long wheelbase platform, the 2019 Honda Insight will offer class-leading passenger space and a host of premium features including available perforated leather seating, an 8-inch Display Audio capacitive touchscreen and a 7-inch digital LCD driver’s meter. More intuitive, smartphone-like features and functionality including customizable app tiles and home-screen shortcuts, along with available Apple CarPlay™ and Android Auto™ integration and Wi-Fi-enabled over-the-air system updates, further enhance Insight over its compact hybrid competitors.

The Insight will deliver class-leading power while still receiving an anticipated EPA fuel economy combined rating in excess of 50 mpg, competitive with other compact hybrid offerings. Powering the model will be a version of the third generation of Honda’s two-motor hybrid system, featuring a highly efficient 1.5-liter Atkinson cycle engine, a powerful electric propulsion motor and lithium-ion battery pack. In most conditions, Insight operates on electric power only, drawing energy from the engine (operating as a generator) or battery pack. The hybrid batteries located under the rear seats provides for a full-size trunk with the flexibility of available 60/40 split and folding rear seats.

The 2019 Honda Insight will include Honda LaneWatch™ on EX and above and Honda Sensing™ suite of advanced safety and driver-assistive technologies as standard equipment, including Collision Mitigation Braking System™ (CMBS™), Lane Departure Warning, Road Departure Mitigation, Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Follow and new Traffic Sign Recognition.

The Insight will be manufactured at Honda’s Greensburg, Indiana plant, alongside Civic and CR-V using domestic and globally sourced parts. Arriving later in 2018 as the fifth electrified vehicle launched by Honda over the past year, Insight will join the Clarity series (Clarity Fuel Cell, Clarity Electric and Clarity Plug-in Hybrid) and the all-new 2018 Accord Hybrid, arriving at dealerships nationwide early this year.

At the 2017 North American International Auto Show, Honda announced its Honda Electrification Initiative and the intention to make two-thirds of its global vehicle sales to be electrified vehicles by 2030, including hybrid, plug-in hybrid, battery electric and fuel cell vehicles.

About Insight
Introduced in 1999, the original Honda Insight was America’s first hybrid vehicle, receiving a 70-mpg EPA fuel economy rating, utilizing a lightweight aerodynamic all-aluminum body and Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) hybrid powertrain. The second-generation Insight debuted in 2009 as the most affordable hybrid on the market, offering more mainstream utility with its five-door, five-passenger hatchback design and a more advanced IMA hybrid system. The all-new 2019 Insight takes an entirely new approach, utilizing the third-generation of Honda’s two-motor “strong” hybrid technology and offering the styling, packaging, premium features and performance desired by mainstream car buyers.

About Honda
Honda offers a full line of reliable, fuel-efficient and fun-to-drive vehicles with advanced safety technologies sold through over 1,000 independent U.S. Honda dealers. The Honda lineup includes the Fit, Civic, Accord and Clarity series passenger cars, along with the HR-V, CR-V and Pilot sport/utility vehicles, the Ridgeline pickup and the Odyssey minivan.

Honda has been producing automobiles in America for 35 years and currently operates 19 major manufacturing facilities in North America. In 2016, more than 95% of all Honda and Acura vehicles sold in the U.S. were made in North America, using domestic and globally sourced parts.

For More Information
Consumer information is available at automobiles.honda.com/future-cars/insight-hybrid. To join the Insight community on Facebook, visit https://www.facebook.com/hondainsight. Additional media information including high-resolution photography of the Honda Insight Prototype is available at hondanews.com/honda-automobiles/channels/insight.

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Logo – http://mma.prnewswire.com/media/460855/american_honda_motor_co_inc_logo.jpg

SOURCE American Honda Motor Co., Inc.

MONTGOMERY, Alabama, Jan. 10, 2018 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Alabama Governor Kay Ivey and Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle joined Mazda (TYO: MZDAF) and Toyota (NYSE: TM) leaders today to announce the automakers have selected Huntsville, Alabama as the site of their new joint-venture manufacturing plant.

The new plant will have the capacity to build 300,000 vehicles annually, with production split evenly between two lines for each company to produce Mazda’s crossover model that will be newly introduced to the North American market and the Toyota Corolla.

The joint venture represents a $1.6 billion investment that Mazda and Toyota plan to make with equal funding contributions. The site for the new plant is in Huntsville, located approximately 14 miles from Toyota’s Alabama plant (Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Alabama, Inc.). The facility is expected to create up to 4,000 jobs. Production is expected to begin by 2021.

“The partnership between Mazda and Toyota will expand innovative automotive manufacturing in Alabama,” Governor Ivey said. “Their decision to locate this new facility in Huntsville is a testament to the talented workforce in our state. We are proud that this partnership puts Alabama on the forefront of technology in this dynamic global industry.”

“With this announcement, our world changes overnight,” said Tommy Battle, mayor of Huntsville. “Mazda and Toyota, two of the world’s most innovative automakers, have created a legacy project that will provide jobs for decades to come for Huntsville and Alabama. It vaults Alabama to the top as an industry leader in producing the next generation of cars that will power our nation.”

Mazda Motor Corporation President and Chief Executive Officer Masamichi Kogai and Toyota Motor Corporation President Akio Toyoda joined Gov. Ivey and Mayor Battle for the announcement.

For Mazda, the plant comes on line in a significant year that will mark the start of the company’s second century of operation and second half-century of sales in the U.S. The automaker is enhancing its commitment to the U.S. market and will focus efforts on manufacturing and increasing sales in the country.

“Mazda makes cars with a clear vision of how we want to inspire people, contribute to society and help preserve the beauty of the earth. By making such cars here in Alabama, we hope that over time our plant will come to occupy a special place in the hearts of our employees and the local community. By making this plant a vibrant part of that community, we hope to work, learn and grow together with the people of Alabama and Huntsville,” Kogai said.

For Toyota, this joint-venture plant will be its 11^th U.S. manufacturing facility and represents its continued commitment in the U.S., in addition to the $10 billion dollar investment over the next 5 years that was announced in January 2017.

“Our investment to establish a new vehicle assembly plant with Mazda builds on the strong success we have enjoyed in Alabama where we produce engines for the North American market,” Toyoda said. “Starting from 2021, I’m confident that we will run a highly competitive plant, by bringing together the expertise of Toyota and Mazda as well as the excellent Alabama workforce. We are committed to being another ‘best-in town’ company in the city of Huntsville and the state of Alabama, a new hometown for Toyota and Mazda.”

The State of Alabama is the fifth largest producer of cars and light trucks nationally with a strong automotive manufacturing presence including Toyota’s engine plant in Huntsville, where Toyota employs 1,400 team members. With more than 150 Tier 1 and 2 automotive suppliers in the state as well as automakers, there are approximately 57,000 automotive manufacturing jobs in Alabama.

In the coming months, after obtaining approvals and authorization by antitrust agencies, the new joint venture will be established, and site preparations will begin with the start of production in 2021.

About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. and North America for 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands. During that time, Toyota has created a tremendous value chain as our teams have contributed to world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 33 million cars and trucks in North America, where we operate 14 manufacturing plants (10 in the U.S.) and directly employ more than 46,000 people (more than 36,000 in the U.S.).  Our 1,800 North American dealerships (nearly 1,500 in the U.S.) sold more than 2.6 million cars and trucks (2.4 million in the U.S.) in 2017 – and about 85 percent of all Toyota vehicles sold over the past 15 years are still on the road today.  

Toyota partners with community, civic, academic, and governmental organizations to address our society’s most pressing mobility challenges. We share company resources and extensive know-how to support non-profits to help expand their ability to assist more people move more places. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.

About Mazda
Mazda Motor Corporation, based in Hiroshima, Japan, was established in 1920, and became a vehicle manufacturer in 1931, when it began producing three-wheeled trucks. Mazda began selling vehicles in North America 50 years ago, this year, with the establishment of affiliate companies in Canada (Mazda Canada, Inc.) in 1968, in the United States (Mazda Motor of America, d/b/a Mazda North American Operations) in 1970, and in Mexico (Mazda Motor de Mexico) in 2006. Currently, Mazda does business in more than 130 countries around the world, and produces vehicles in Japan, Mexico, China and Thailand. Building passenger cars, commercial vehicles, and crossover SUVs, with an emphasis on the driving experience and a focus on design, engineering and efficient manufacturing, the company sells more than 1.55 million vehicles annually.

Mazda Motor Corporation is responsible for Mazda’s operations on a global basis, including all aspects of manufacturing, research and development, sales, marketing and all international operations. Mazda North American Operations is headquartered in Irvine, California, and oversees the sales, marketing, parts and customer service support of Mazda vehicles in the United States and Mexico through nearly 600 dealers. Operations in Mexico are managed by Mazda Motor de Mexico in Mexico City. For more information on Mazda, including photography and B-roll, please visit the online Mazda media center at InsideMazda.MazdaUSA.com/Newsroom.

Media contacts:
Toyota: Kelly Stefanich, 812-779-8268, [email protected] 
Karen Nielsen, 469-292-2659, [email protected] 
Mazda: Eric Booth, 562-252-6036, [email protected] 
Carley Hummel, 949-506-8722, [email protected] 
Governor’s Office: Daniel Sparkman, 334-242-7150, [email protected] 
City of Huntsville: Kelly Cooper Schrimsher, 256-503-5032, [email protected] 

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SOURCE Toyota Motor North America