HondaJet

The question these days is not whether the Japanese automotive manufacturers will enter the general aviation market, but when. Toyota certified an aircraft variant of its Lexus automotive engine in the 1990s, but never put it into production. Toyota for a number of years flew a high-performance single-engine airplane in Southern California ... Honda and Continental Motors signed an agreement in 2003 to study the marketplace for a four-cylinder, liquid-cooled avgas engine designed by Honda. Meanwhile, in Greensboro, North Carolina, Honda R&D Americas has stealthily been flying the HondaJet, a new-generation light business jet powered by a pair of the new engines.

... Honda tends to enter markets only when it can produce a product that performs better and at a higher value than other products in that category. In fact, the stated goals for the HondaJet project are to develop a lightweight business jet with a larger cabin, lower fuel consumption, and higher speed than existing business jets. If the test results hold true, it appears to be on that path with the HondaJet. The company says the five- to six-seat airplane will cruise at 420 knots at 30,000 feet and fly as high as 41,000 feet while maintaining a cabin pressure of 8,000 feet. Each Honda HF118 turbofan engine produces 1,670 pounds of static thrust (lbst) at takeoff. Slightly smaller overall than the Cessna CJ1+, the HondaJet cruises 10 percent faster, has a cabin that is 30 percent larger, and has a range about 40 percent greater on about 14 percent less thrust.

Although no one at Honda will commit to a price - stressing once again that the company considers this a research project at this point - some in the company suggest the price would be in the $3 million-to-$4 million range, compared to a Cessna CJ that starts at about $4.1 million.

- Fans can expect no less from Honda (see the figures in bold) - equal or better performance while consuming less resources, more bang for your buck et al. Speaking of which, if you have a couple of million of bucks, or more like $4 million, you can sign up for the waiting list (if there's going to be one). Me, I'd be happy to be able to put in the $30-40K for downpayment on a 2006 Civic. Or maybe that should go into the emergency reserve funds. Or oil stocks *grin*. We'll see.

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