The information was revealed by a spokesperson from Honda as they learn that Pioneer is veering away from the development of television but focusing on the market of car electronics.

The Japanese car maker is looking into the great potential of a possible collaboration with a company that has a vast experience on in-car entertainment technology.

The investment of Honda according to expert estimates may reach between $30 million and $50 million. Aside from the in-car next gen of Blu-ray players, the partnership will also include Pioneer car stereos, other entertainment units, and navigation systems.

In-car technology advancement has a big chunk of effect on the driving experience of a car owner in terms of finding his way on the road, being comfortable, and entertained with friends or family.

The new technologies in blu ray and navigation can open new doors of experience in terms of multimedia entertainment and vivid details in terms of providing direction for the driver.

The amount of money being invested is really irrelevant since Honda will create a strong partnership in the auto electronics side of the production line.

The Honda partnership may also be a good timing for Pioneer which has been struggling in recent years due to the drop in sales of their home electronics segment.

The car company is making continuous studies on the technologies of bioethanol production in collaboration with Research Institute of Innovative Technology for the Earth or RITE. The research processes began in 2006, with experiments done in a facility of Honda, the Fundamental Technology Research Center since April 2007.

The cellulosic ethanol process of the RITE-Honda partnership makes use of genetically modified Corynebacterium glutamicum to be able to produce ethanol out of combined sugars. Last November 2008, RITE-Honda had won the Grand Prize of the 18th Nikkei Global Environment Technology Award for their outstanding contribution to biofuel research industry.

Honda decided to create a new research and development institute for them to speed up the production and practical use of their latest technology. It is indeed needed to carry out the research and experiments on a large scale facility to allow them to obtain precise evaluations.

The planned facility, Honda R&D Co., Ltd. Fundamental Technology Research Center, will be constructed within Kazusa Akademia Park located in Kisarazu, Chiba. The car company is intending to construct a single building measuring 1,050 m2 for a research facility on a 5,000 m2 lot. On April 2009, the construction will start to be able to start the facility’s operations in November 2009.

Much more on Bio-Ethanol on Green Cars are GReat!

The Japanese car maker is re-thinking its strategy and line of cars to mold their approach to market amid dwindling car sales around the globe.

Honda experienced an 18% drop of car sales in 2008. The December year over year performance was significantly lower by 35%. The tough times led to Honda’s decision of calling off the production of the NSX supercar scheduled to be out by 2010. The NSX super car was destined to have a V10 power plant in its engine bay.

A rear-driven Acura with a V8 engine was being designed by Honda to rival BMW. Plans of having this car by 2015 were also scrapped off. The V8 was seen as an unsuitable option because of the sky rocketing fuel prices.

Honda executives discloses that Honda will concentrate more on building more fuel efficient vehicles to better survive and deal with the current economic climate.

Other moves to mend the hard punch of the economic crisis include the following:

Honda decides to back out from F1 racing. This will enable them to cut on costs. This is a tough decision for the company since Honda has a long history in formula racing.

The new research and development center in Japan plus two other factories will not be opened soon. They are also delaying the release of new diesel fuels to the US and Japan. Company expansions to Turkey and India are also being delayed.

Salaries of the executives are also being trimmed by as much as 10%. Honda is expected to lay off around 450 people come February 2009.