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Honda updates its cute 'n' cuddly kei hatchback, and makes it stick-shift Every single kei car is cute, but some are lucky enough to hit every branch of the cute tree on their plummet to the streets of Tokyo. Kei cars like the Honda N One. This is it in mildly updated form, but Honda has sensibly left its adorable face pretty much alone. It’s all typical facelift fare: newly LED head and tail lights, minor tweaks for the grille and bumpers, and… nowt else. We want to cuddle it just as much as we did before. The biggest news sits betwixt driver and passenger. Go for the top-spec N One RS and you’ll have the option of a six-speed manual gearbox to replace the standard CVT auto. Being a car that slots into tight kei regulations – governing exterior dimensions not much larger than a roller skate, and engines to 660cc and 63bhp maximums – it’s not going to behave like a shrunken Civic Type R. But if Honda’s dinky kei roadster – the similarly cuddly S660 – is anything to go by, it’ll be a delightful and engaging manual. Inside a truly delightful little vehicle…

The 2013 Tokyo Auto Salon is just around the corner. It will be held at the Makuhari Messe International Convention Complex in Chiba from 11 January 2013 to 13 January 2013. Many Japanese auto firms and aftermarket companies will display their wares or projects at the show and Honda has announced its line-up for the upcoming auto show. Modulo, Honda's aftermarket products division has a couple of cars that will be presented at the show. Firstly, it is the S2000 Modulo Climax. It is practically an S2000 which was given a new exterior styling and interior parts. Next up is Honda's latest Kei car model, the N-One. It also receives Modulo's styling treatment, both interior and exterior. Mugen, another aftermarket and tuning firm closely associated with Honda, will also display several of their cars. First up is the Honda CR-Z Mugen RZ. On top of the sporty looking exterior styling, the hybrid hatchback receives a supercharger which delivers around 174bhp which includes the supplemental 20bhp from the electric motor. The car also receives adjustable suspension, 17 inch forged wheels and larger front brakes. The car comes in only one body colour which Mugen calls Azure Blue Metallic and only 300 units will be made commercially. Mugen has also developed a couple of "Mugen treated" Honda N-Ones. The Mugen N-One did not receive any engine modifications, only exterior styling modifications and Mugen badged interior parts. The car comes in either red or white body colour. Honda will also display two cars from the Super GT racing series and they are the HSV-010 GT and the Mugen CRZ-GT. The Mugen CR-Z GT racing car won the 2012 Formula Nippon team championship under the Docomo Dandelion Racing team.

[extract] Just a couple of months ago, leaked brochure images of the Honda N-One car began to appear all over the world wide web. And recently, Honda dealers all over Japan have begun selling the car. Now, the guys at Mugen Motorsports have unveiled exterior and interior parts for Honda

[extract] A couple of months ago, computer generated images of Honda