I think most of us can agree these are difficult times. Part of that difficulty is just how divided the world feels right now, and at this time of year especially. I’m sure you’ve seen the social media posts from the Toyotathonians and the Happy Honda Days adherents, and seen how petty and cruel and adversarial things have gotten. Well, I’m here to ask all of you, whatever you celebrate – Happy Honda Days, Toyotathon, Lexus December to Remember, Mercedes Winter Event, Chevy Red Tag Sales Event, Mitsuokamas – to take a moment and reflect on the deeper meaning of these holidays, and why we celebrate at all.
With that in mind, I’d especially like to implore you to help us all to return to the real meaning of Happy Honda Days.
It seems like today Happy Honda Days has become just some cynical reason to sell brand-new Hondas at amazing prices. And, sure, for many people this is a valid way to saleabrate, but I can’t help but think it misses the true meaning of Happy Honda Days, praising The Great Engineer Soichiro Honda and his bold works, using them as a guide to live a better, fuel-efficient life.
Now is not the time for crass negotiations on a new CR-V; now is the time to gather ’round family and talk about the incredible air-cooling system of the Honda 1300, how it was The Great Soichiro’s Dream and yet how, despite the novel air-cooling system (Duo Dyna Air Cooling, (DDAC) being an engineering marvel, was also not the path that the future of engine cooling would take.
This, of course, is known as the Parable of The Dead End, and is one of the hardest and most misunderstood lessons of Happy Honda Days, which is why it is so important to remember.
To a casual observer, an unbeliever, Happy Honda Days probably seems just like some way to get as many people as possible into Honda dealerships to buy cars, but of course, nothing could be further from the truth. Yes, of course we want people to visit Honda dealers, to bask in Soichiro’s legacy, to feel the glow and warmth of the spirits of VTEC (just kicked in, yo), and to hopefully hear the inspiring tale of Compound Vortex Controlled Combustion (CVCC) and how The Great Soichiro made fools of the General of Motors during the 1973 No-Catalyst Smackdown.
There’s also the inspiring tales of the Honda Super Cub, the most produced motor vehicle ever, the machine designed to make anyone and everyone mobile.
I beg of you all, don’t be taken in by the crass commercialism of the season; try to remember why we saleabrate Happy Honda Days in the first place, and please do your part to spread the Good News of Soichiro and his healing engineering. And, I would also ask that you do your best to heal the rifts between the Happy Honda saleabrants and the Toyotathonians; after all, we all have the same goals in the end, a world of reliable and efficient motorized transportation.
In the name of the Cub, Civic, and Compound Vortex, I bid you all a wonderful holiday, free from crass commercialism and relentless salesmanship, just the pure joy of good engineering and Meeting the Nicest People.
All hail Soichiro.
I’ll spend time today with our beloved Gen One CR-V which has been part of our family for over 23 years. Like a faithful Golden retriever waiting to go to the park she’s always ready to take us where we need to be.
I wish we could have another Soichiro again. I am definitely not feeling the spirit this year being buried alive in the shitty GMs Honda slapped their name onto.
I just got back from picking up my Honda Day Ham on my trusty CT110 Postie Cub. May your vortecies be compounded.
There’s no Mazda holiday salebration? Miata Isn’t A Theist Answer.
Mazda is short for Ahura Mazda, the Zoroastrian god of light so they have an entire religion
Sorry, I’m a Seventh Day Suzukist.
Once a Trailhopper, always a Trailhopper.
Merry Toyotathon, ya filthy animals.
That is a great idea and I support it. In fact I suggest in support of this all Autopians visit our local Honda dealer and ask them if they no the real reason for the season, and if they don’t start preaching to the staff about Soichiro. Then convince them to join you in going to the nearest Toyota dealership and have a good time fellowship meeting.
With the issues we’ve had with our Honda Prologue this year, less than 5K miles, already had 1 tsb, seems like it’s ready for 2 more, I feel like we should’ve partaken in the Subaru Share the Love instead, but we were salty from owning a Subaru, at least it’s just a lease.
I have 3 of these piles of shit in my bay at the moment with another 3 outside waiting to be looked at. They don’t have a solid solution for the refrigerant HV fault yet and are still very much in the “throw parts at it and hope for the best phase.”. Official guidance is always going to lag behind whatever solutions GM comes up with first. I think the axles have finally been fixed though… maybe.
We had the refrigerant valve and now the axle is ticking, and screen is buggin which I’d think could be an OTA fix. When we get some time we’ll bring it by the dealer, heard the axles weren’t super critical.
There are some global vehicle software updates, depending on the model year, we can do for various bugs but they are fairly vague on what they’ll fix (or break). There is an audio system update as well that has to be done separate but we have been finding that those end up basically bricking the car so we kinda put those on hold, that was fun to find out. After that happens the audio unit has to be replaced (backordered currently) and even after all that it’s still not the latest software (we can’t update it). We had an internal TechLine article come out a few days ago advising us to hold off on replacing axles for the noise as “its under investigation.” Kinda strange considering they have the 3rd revision of the axles out as of late October and I’ve replaced several sets to great results but ok. So if you try and get those replaced YMMV whether or not they’ll authorize it. Our dealer policy is hold off and defer to our DPSM for approval on “heated cases” for those. Honda’s 3rd party warranty audit company is desperately trying to claw money back on these vehicles.
We don’t drive ours very far or even on the highways much at all, was just a fairly cheap lease for a comfy EV so we went with it, so we’re not stressing about it, just annoyances at this point, but again only 4K miles and has these annoyances, Honda’s gotta be figuring out how to spin this as their first big US EV deployment.
While I respect our Honda brothers, Acuranity is the foundation of our country, so unless I know for sure someone celebrates Honda Days, I will continue to wish people a Merry Season of Performance Event
I’m a strong believer in Ford Festivus for the rest of us.
Serenity Now.
When Ford cancelled the Festivus ST, they made December only a time to remember.
I am a believer in Ford Festivus for the rest of us.
Serenity Now!
And I bet we Festivus believers will defeat all others in the Feats of Strength. Though the Stellantis clan will win the Feets of Stanky
And of course, the Airing of Grievances…
Be careful so you won’t be distracted by tinsel!
I ALSO HOPE YOURE HAVING A HAPPY ACURA SEASON OF PERFORMANCE
Unfortunately every year after Happy Honda Days, I need Acura for my hangover.
Every day is a Happy Honda Day with my Elroy. Soon to be 11 1/2 years old and a transport to 41 states. All fun, no troubles.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/26426975@N02/36923543475/in/album-72157695446557291
Keep HONDA in Happy HONDA Days!
Even though they’re not really around anymore, let’s not forget Saturnalia!
Enjoyin’ Happy Honda days every time I load bikes in mah ‘18 Odyssey. Also a great place to have coffee on the drive to work…280hp minivan that drives like a giant Honda Fit…not too bad!
I’d like to see a more literal, physical appearance version of happy Honda days, applied to all manufacturers: let’s stop designing cars that can only appear on the range from moderately cranky to positively homicidal. Please?
Once again, you’ve forgotten about those of us trying to have a December to Remember.
Edit: unless you are lumping us in with the Toyotathonians. We are a different, superior, denomination.
What’s the aper this year?
0% so it’s all good.
Aper, Todd? Do you mean A.P.R.? Do you think this car only cost $3000?
Pretty sure it’s aper.
We celebrated Happy Honda Days early this year and donated wifey’s 2007 Honda Fit Sport to charity. The Sunburst Orange Metallic had faded, but after 120k miles that little 4cyl still loved to rev. Soichiro would have loved the combination of gokart handling and cargo hauling.
Happy Honda Days stresses me out. I can’t wait for it to be over because that means Shark Week is right around the corner!
My first motorcycle was Honda 305 Dream, when I was 16 years old. What a smooth riding and running machine. Only my BMW motorcycles have been as good.
Your professional appearance on History Channels “The Cars That Built the World”: Episode 4, taught me that Soichiro became determined to succeed on his own after Toyota rejected him as a piston ring supplier. Also, that he had to resort to black market gas to power his first motorized bikes, throwing off inspectors by topping off containers with turpentine! I enjoyed that series very much!
https://share.google/EVqpeN5Wtp2mCpfSg
I’ve owned 2 products from Honda. One was a stick shift DB 1993 Acura Integra. That was a pleasant car, maybe I should have kept it. The other was 1980 C70 Passport, which was really a Super Cub, but Piper Aircraft wouldn’t allow Honda to use that name in the US. I probably should have kept that one, too.
What about Festivus?
I think you mean Festivas (Shout-out to GENERIC_NAME – I stole this from your comment on the other article). We’re celebrating it tonight.
I guess it’s not the “feets” of strength either
Festivus feels Nissan-y, somehow.
Sorry Ford Festivus is solid
Agreed! Festivus is the Altima(te) holiday after all. You have to be Versa(tle) about which family to visit. Especially the ones who’ve been alive a Sentra(y) or so. Play nice or your gift will be a Rubik’s Cube and the Juke will be on you! Holidays destinations are like a Quest and a new Frontier for all. A Titan of a holiday Festivus is for sure! Hoping you remember every Stanza of jingle bells! Forgetting could cause your Pulsar to go up to unhealthy levels. Don’t want to Maxima out your blood pressure over a forgotten Stanza, either. Happy holidays and don’t let the stress of it all cost you any lost Z’s.
COTD
“I got a lot of problems with you people!”
Thank you Torch! With you as our Pilot, we have reached an Accord that we will all behave Civicly. Your article also serves as a Passport on our Odyssey to a brighter future. And while it may not be exactly what we CR-V, at least our view from the Ridgeline provides us with a Prelude of what is possible. Let not 2025 be our epilogue; rather let it be a Prologue to a great year to come!
You Beat me to the puns Today…… S2000
That’s a tough Acty follow! Story of my Life.
You are a legend and all that jazz.
I read this and had a fit.
Thank you for your Insight.
And let our Brio Amaze, Inspire, and Elevate everyone in the City as we are Freed like a Breeze.
As a faithful owner of a GR Corolla and old Celica GTS from the Pro / Celebrity races, I firmly celebrate Toyotathon. But I recognize my Honda Days and atheistic Subaru friends as well!
I was a firm believer in Happy Honda Days after experiencing the incredible reliability and usefulness of a CR-V. But one little whoosh/pop of the turbo in my GR Corolla, and now I’m Toyotathon 4 Lyfe.
And a Happy Honda Days to you, good sir, even though I don’t celebrate. I have left out some large S-shaped Stella Doro cookies for Dr. Oldsmobile however, in hopes he will cook me up a W-machine or two.
Remember… you could be visited by three angry spirits if you are one of those BAH! Stromberg! people.
We also would have accepted “Bah! Humber!”