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Restless
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Read in autopress that european Toyota Motorsport GmbH(http://www.toyota-motorsport.com) will become what AMG is for Mercedes - tuned for high-performance versions.
Mugen...
So many missed opportunities :(
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Nick GravesX
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Restless wrote:
Read in autopress that european Toyota Motorsport GmbH(http://www.toyota-motorsport.com) will become what AMG is for Mercedes - tuned for high-performance versions.
Mugen...
So many missed opportunities :(
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It was meant to happen exactly like that.
All I see is that Bagpuss is now One-bag-off-Puss; £1,000 discount this early on.
I feel that the balance point has been reached & it's now tipped. It's officially too late for Honda. Definitely in EU, at any rate.
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Mechanic
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Restless wrote:
Read in autopress that European Toyota Motorsport GmbH(http://www.toyota-motorsport.com) will become what AMG is for Mercedes - tuned for high-performance versions.
Mugen... So many missed opportunities :(
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First, there's the fact that Toyota Motorsport is a part of Toyota Motor Corp, just as AMG is now owned by Mercedes. Profit goes right to the bottom line. But I take your point. And, if Honda didn't think of its "enthusiasts" (sic) as part of a lunatic fringe, they could build HFP (Honda Factory Performance) into something.
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CarPhreakD
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Honda just recently spun HPD off into its own, bigass company. No, doesn't have anything to do with road cars, but for sure they are a HUGE racing corporation now. Will they do the same with something like HFP? I don't think so. Neither do I really see the relevance.
How many years has it been since Mugen made anything relevant for Honda (other than the recent Isle of Man TT Mugen Shiden racebike)? The company isn't even "arms length" anymore with Honda, the automotive parts company is owned by MTEC after Soichiro Honda's son was sent to jail for a tax evasion scandal (IIRC).
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Bullwinkle
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HPD is not all that separate. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of American Honda. It does have it's own P&L.
The racing programs are not limited to North America. It manufactures full race versions of street cars (Fits, TSX, Civic) that can be run anywhere. As well as engines for Indycars and Full Cars and Engines for the various LeMans series. HPD is said to be starting a full factory "Honda" program for LeMans in 2013 or 2014.
Will we see performance street version of cars with "HPD" on them? I think it's possible because everything EXCEPT the indycar program is conducted using HPD branding and logos (I did not see "HPD" logos on any of the Honda personnel at Indycar races). Sometimes "HPD" appears with Honda branding. Sometimes not.
So from a branding perspective, they seem to be keeping their options open.
Also, the guy who had been running HPD, Erik Berkman, is now running Honda R&D Americas in Ohio. If anyone could develop go fast parts for streetcars, he could.
Does anyone know if HPD is part of American Honda R&D? It would be interesting to see who Roger Griffiths (the Brit who runs HPD now) answers to. In Japan, I think all the racing divisions answer to Honda Japan R&D.
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shingles
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Missed opportunity for what? to copy another company?
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DCR
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Honda could have been there first, or right along. I have said many times that Honda should have kept on with the Si badge in the trims. Accord Si, Civic Si, Prelude Si, so on. The Si badge becomes the performance trim and all that goes with it.
Hell, pursue a CR-V Si...GM did it with the Vue Redline and SS series of trucks/cars/SUVS. This trim is where buzz and life gets injected, and keeps the 10% happy, along with the 90%.
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