Honda originally planed to equip future generations of large cars like the Accord and Acura TL, TSX and RL models with diesel engines capable of returning higher fuel economy than the gas-powered engine lineup and cleaner emissions than many. Combine that with excellent drive-ability thanks to gobs of torque, and they'd have had a winner on their hands. Honda Europe's current 2.2 i-CTDi is widely considered one of the best diesel powertrains on the market. Last year, we tested it in a Honda Civic, getting 72.4 MPG in the process. Now, future generations of that engine will be dropped in favor of gas/electric hybrids as fitted to the 2010 Honda Insight.

The company officially cites the difficulty involved in getting diesels through current US and Japanese emissions test, but we think that's a bunch of hot air. Or at least we'll let our oil-burning love cloud our vision enough to see it that way. [via Automobile]

Kato explains the problem with battery-powered vehicles as a simple problem of weight versus energy content: lithium-ion batteries hold less than half the energy by weight of gasoline. While improvements are being made through programs like the Japanese government's advanced battery development program, which has a goal of boosting energy storage capacity by seven times and cutting cost to 2.5% of its current level, there's still a long way to go. "It's impossible to imagine a date at which such a breakthrough could occur,'' says Kato.

Placing bets on fuel cells versus batteries may seem like a longshot, but Honda's track record is solid. The company has stayed out of V8 engines and full-size trucks, keeping development dollars focused more on monolithic chrome grilles efficiency, so we wouldn't be the least bit surprised if Honda was the first out with a production fuel-cell vehicle...after which Toyota will more than likely perfect it and sell five million of them. [Bloomberg]