The Show takes place against the backdrop of a particularly vibrant period for Honda, with its European operations currently enjoying record sales – at just under 310,000 units, 2006 saw an 8 per cent increase, setting a record for the company for a third consecutive year. Honda expects sales of approximately 350,000 units during 2007, up 13 per cent, with a full contribution from the brand new CR-V as well as the completed Civic line-up including the exciting Type R to be launched during the spring.

Honda Small Hybrid Sports Concept blends sports performance and low emissions
Honda Small Hybrid Sports Concept, making its world debut in Europe, represents Honda's proposal for a future hybrid model. The Concept demonstrates a unique fusion of advanced hybrid technology and fun-to-drive sports car characteristics featuring the IMA petrol/electric hybrid system driving through the front wheels. It explores the idea that a car can have a low environmental impact yet still deliver all the driving enjoyment expected of a compact sports car.

The striking two door sports coupe features short front and rear overhangs, an accentuated, arrow-like nose and a one-piece glass roof which terminates in a concave full width glass element forming an additional vertical window.

The Hybrid Sports Concept is equipped with 165/60 section tyres mounted on 20-inch distinctive rims. Their dimension supports low rolling resistance without compromising sporty driving.

Compact external dimensions lend themselves to nimble, agile performance on the road and help to ensure a good power to weight ratio, while a 2350 mm wheelbase in conjunction with a sports suspension, delivers stable and predictable handling characteristics.

The Small Hybrid Sports Concept has been developed as a design study model by the design studio at Honda R&D Europe based in Offenbach, Germany.

FCX Concept brings everyday fuel cell cars closer to reality
The fully driveable Honda FCX Concept demonstrates Honda's advanced fuel cell technology. Perhaps nowhere is Honda's technical prowess and innovation better demonstrated than in its fuel cell technology, and making its European debut at the 2007 Geneva Motorshow is the fully functioning variant of the FCX Concept fuel cell car previously shown in static form at the Paris Salon last year. The FCX Concept offers practical driving performance with a range of 570 km (Honda calculations when driven in LA4 mode) and a top speed limited to 160 km/h.

The latest FCX loses none of the striking good looks of its static predecessor and offers a spacious, futuristic interior with everyday practicality. The FCX Concept features a newly developed compact, high-efficiency Honda FC Stack as well as a low-floor, low-riding, short-nose body. It offers a comfortably large cabin and futuristic styling along with significant improvements in power output and environmental performance.

Limited marketing of a totally new fuel cell vehicle based on the FCX Concept model is to begin in Japan and the US in 2008.

Next-Generation Clean Diesel Engine
Further technical innovation is represented by Honda's next-generation diesel engine that uses world-first technology to reduce emissions to the same level of a petrol engine. A revolutionary catalytic converter reduces NOx (oxides of nitrogen) emissions to a level that enables the engine to meet the stringent US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tier II/Bin 5 requirements.

The catalytic converter features an innovative system that uses the reductive reaction of ammonia to 'detoxify' oxides of nitrogen (NOx) by converting them into harmless nitrogen (N2). However, unlike Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) systems which use urea injection, Honda's innovative technology uses ammonia generated within the catalytic converter.

Honda plans to introduce its next-generation diesel engine within three years.

Honda's Motorsports Challengers for 2007
In pride of place in the Sports-themed zone of the stand will be the Honda Racing F1 team's brand new car, the RA107, which is making its show debut.

Honda's commitment to motorsport is also represented by the Civic Type R race car based on the just-launched road car. Developed in close cooperation with Italy's JAS Motorsport, Honda's official partner in customer racing support since 1998, the Civic Type R is aiming for even greater success than its forebear which has proved popular in European motor sport circles since its introduction in 2002.

The car is being developed to Group N, Group A and the new Group R specifications. Group R will be introduced in 2008 and imposes price restrictions on individual components for the first time. These components will also be homologated simultaneously in GrA, allowing drivers to race and gain experience in the GrA category in 2007 before the switch to GrR on 1 January 2008, without any additional cost.

Themed zoning
Honda's stand is themed around its twin Advanced and Sporty pillars. Displayed in the Advanced Zone alongside the Small Hybrid Sports Concept, the FCX Concept and the new-generation clean diesel engine is the Civic Hybrid cut-away car and its hybrid system to demonstrate how the system works. The Sports Zone features the F1 car, the Civic Type R race car and a selection of road cars including the Civic Type R, Legend and the Honda S2000.

The Product Zone includes a selection of examples of the brand new CR-V, together with Jazz and FR-V. Furthermore, the first floor of the stand is devoted to showcasing Honda's comprehensive range of accessories, including the Aero Performance Pack fitted to the new CR-V; this includes front and rear sports bumpers, aerodynamic running boards, a tailgate spoiler, sports suspension and 19 inch bright machine finished alloy wheels.

HONDA SMALL HYBRID SPORTS CONCEPT – A FUN–TO–DRIVE, HIGHLY EFFICIENT CONCEPT MODEL
Honda's interpretation of how a future hybrid model might appear is making its world premiere at Geneva. Honda Small Hybrid Sports Concept, a design study model, demonstrates a unique fusion of advanced environmental technology, exciting styling and fun-to-drive characteristics.

The Small Hybrid Sports Concept is conceived around a front-wheel drive, small car platform and is powered by a Honda IMA 4-cylinder petrol/electric hybrid system driving through a CVT transmission. It explores the idea that a car can have a low environmental impact yet still deliver all the driving enjoyment expected of a compact sports car.

The aerodynamically efficient and curvaceous two-door sports coupe is characterised by short front and rear overhangs, wheelarches that wrap tightly around large wheels, and curvaceous, subtly contoured surfaces contrasting with sharp 'folded' edges along the waistline and at each corner. An accentuated, arrow-like nose features a full width air intake with Civic family overtones. This sweeps forward into a distinct protruding centre section complete with 'H' logo.

The Concept model's fluid lines are created by a steeply raked windscreen which extends back above the occupants' heads where it meets a one piece glass roof. This in turn flows rearwards to give the car its fastback styling, terminating in a distinctive and futuristic 3D floating glass design – a concave element which forms an additional vertical window. At its base, further distinction is provided by a 'floating' LED tail light unit that stretches across the full width of the car. At its centre, the glass panel extends downwards and contains an illuminated 'Small Hybrid Sports' name plate.

The Hybrid Sports Concept is equipped with 165/60 section tyres mounted on 20-inch distinctive rims. Their dimension supports low rolling resistance without compromising sporty driving.

Compact external dimensions lend themselves to nimble, agile performance on the road and help to ensure a good power to weight ratio. 4000 mm in length, 1270 mm tall and 1760 mm wide, and the 2350 mm wheelbase, in conjunction with a sports suspension, delivers stable and predictable handling characteristics.

The body is particularly aerodynamically efficient and compact. Rear-facing digital cameras take the place of conventional door mirrors.

The Small Hybrid Sports Concept has been developed as a design study model by the design studio at Honda R&D Europe based in Offenbach, Germany.

HONDA'S FCX CONCEPT NOW READY FOR THE ROAD
Fully functional next–generation fuel cell vehicle
Honda's fully driveable FCX Concept fuel cell car is making its European debut at this year's Geneva Show. Already displayed in its previous static guise at last year's Paris Show, this new version is fully functioning and fully equipped and is powered by Honda's next-generation FC Stack. The FCX Concept offers practical driving performance with a range of 570 km (Honda calculations when driven in LA4 mode) and a top speed limited to 160 km/h. Limited marketing of a totally new fuel cell vehicle based on the FCX Concept model is to begin in Japan and the US in 2008.

Despite the demanding packaging requirements of fuel cells, the FCX Concept features a striking design characterised by a short nose, a windscreen raked forward and a low roof line culminating in a sloping rear deck. Inside, the styling is equally futuristic, with a low-floored and comfortably large cabin.

The elegant, low-riding saloon form as well as its spacious interior dimensions are possible thanks to the V Flow fuel cell platform at the heart of the FCX Concept. Its compact, high-efficiency Honda FC Stack neatly arranged in an innovative centre tunnel layout brings significant gains in both environmental and driving performance.

Unlike previous fuel cell stacks in which the hydrogen and the water formed in electricity generation flowed horizontally, the new FCX Concept features a vertical-flow design allowing gravity to assist in water drainage, key to high efficiency performance. The result is stable power generation under a broad range of conditions, and higher output from a 20 per cent smaller and 30 per cent lighter package than Honda's current FCX FC Stack, yet its power output is 14 kW greater.

The motor and gearbox have been positioned coaxially for a more compact design and motor output is increased by 15 kW to now 95 kW. Overall the power plant is 180 kg lighter and 40 per cent smaller.

Energy storage and auxiliary power are provided by a high-efficiency lithium ion battery which captures energy in regenerative braking. The improvements to major power plant components give the vehicle a travel range approximately 30 per cent greater than the current 2005 FCX.

The system's energy efficiency of around 60 per cent is about three times that of a gasoline-engined vehicle, twice that of a hybrid, and 10 per cent better than the previous FCX. Cold weather starting is now far better, too – from as low as -30°C.

Other improvements include a shift-by-wire transmission and a newly designed instrument panel with an easy-to-read display of hydrogen fuel consumption. In keeping with the FCX Concept's strong environmental credentials, the seat upholstery and door linings are made from Honda Bio-Fabric, a plant-based material that offers outstanding durability and resistance to sunlight damage.

Specifications

HONDA'S NEXT–GENERATION CLEAN DIESEL ENGINE On display on the Honda stand is an example of the company's recently announced, next-generation diesel engine that uses world-first technology to reduce emissions to a level equal to that of a petrol engine.

Its revolutionary catalytic converter achieves a reduction in emissions of oxides of nitrogen (NOx) sufficient to meet the stringent US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tier II/Bin 5 emissions requirements.

The catalytic converter uses an innovative system that uses the reductive reaction of ammonia to 'detoxify' NOx by turning them into harmless nitrogen. However, unlike Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) systems that use urea injection supplied from a storage tank, Honda's innovative technology uses ammonia generated directly within the catalytic converter.

It features a two-layer structure: one layer adsorbs NOx from the exhaust gas which, during periodic rich burn controlled by the engine management system, reacts with hydrogen obtained from the exhaust gas to produce ammonia; the latter is then adsorbed by the second layer. During lean burn operation, the ammonia is used to convert the remaining NOx in the exhaust, since ammonia is a highly effective reagent for reducing NOx into nitrogen in oxygen-rich, lean-burn atmospheres. The system also provides enhanced NOx reduction efficiency in the most critical temperature range of 200-300°C for diesel engine exhaust gas systems.

Petrol engines presently employ three-way catalytic converters that offer NOx reduction rates as high as 99 per cent, but this performance is possible only at the stoichiometric air fuel ratio. In the oxygen-rich environment of a lean-burn diesel engine, three-way catalytic converters only reduce NOx levels by approximately 10 per cent. Honda's new technology efficiently reduces NOx in a lean-burn atmosphere, enabling diesel engines to rival gasoline engines in cleanliness. The compact system is also easy to install in passenger vehicles. Installation is downstream of the standard diesel oxidation catalytic converter and diesel particulate filter (DPF).

Alongside its development of exhaust gas cleaning technology, Honda also plans to address other technical challenges in developing clean diesel engines, such as handling diesel fuels with different cetane numbers (a problem in some markets) and meeting US On-Board Diagnostic System requirements.

Honda plans to introduce its next-generation diesel engine within the next three years.

Reaction Mechanism of the New NOx Catalytic Convertor for Diesel Engines

THE EXTENSIVE HONDA ACCESSORIES RANGE TAKES CENTRE STAGE
The first floor of the Honda stand is showcasing the comprehensive range of Honda accessories available across the product line-up, with a CR-V as the main focus of the display. Equipped with an "Aero Performance Pack", its bold styling is supported by front and rear Aero bumpers, aerodynamic running boards, a tailgate spoiler, sports suspension and 19 inch bright machine-finished alloy wheels; the Pack has the added benefit of improving the CR-V's aerodynamic performance.