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Honda Motor Co. will recall 204,500 CR-V crossovers, Odyssey minivans and Acura RDX crossovers to replace a safety component. During internal testing of the vehicles, Honda discovered that in subfreezing temperatures it could be possible to shift the vehicle's transmission out of the park position without depressing the brake pedal. “This hasn't actually happened on a vehicle that is in customers' hands,” said Honda spokesman Chris Martin. “We have done it on vehicles that we own and test.” PHOTOS: Top 10 cars with lowest cost per mpg Martin said the possibility of such an occurrence creates the risk that a passenger could accidently shift the vehicle into drive.

The Lakers' playoff fate is in their own hands? As far as former Houston guard Kenny Smith is concerned, the Rockets will be the ones in control Wednesday night when they visit Staples Center to play the Lakers in the regular-season finale for both teams. If Houston comes to play, Smith said, it wins. But if the Rockets opt to sit players or give a half-hearted effort in hopes of securing a first-round matchup against Oklahoma City, Smith said, the Lakers will come out on top. “It depends on how they're taking it because they are a better team,” Smith, now an analyst for TNT, said of the Rockets in an interview with The Times.

Computer problems have forced American Airlines, one of the nation's largest air carriers, to keep hundreds of its flights from departing across the country. The Fort Worth-based airline said it has been struggling with intermittent computer problems for a while. Because of the latest glitch, all American Airlines flights that are on the tarmac will remain there until at least 2 p.m. PDT. [Updated , 12:45 p.m. PDT April 16: American Airlines said it would waive the change fees for passengers whose flights were delayed and who wanted to book another flight.

UCLA Coach Jim Mora wants Devin Fuller to become a problem. The plan is to have opposing defensive players doing pre-snap recon work, trying to locate Fuller before he reappears in the end zone with the ball. It may become quite a shell game. "We hope he becomes that 'Where's Waldo' guy," Mora said. "Every time someone prepares for us, they go into a game wondering, 'Where's No. 7.' Is he at quarterback, running back, receiver, slot, is that him on the kickoff return?" A lot will be expected from Fuller, a sophomore receiver.

NEW YORK - The songs are among the most popular of the baby boom era - "My Girl," "I Want You Back," "Dancing in the Streets. " They may be the staple of oldies radio; they haven't been part of a big Broadway musical. Now "Motown: The Musical" is about to become this season's big bet on the drawing power of the jukebox. The show will tell the real story that "Dreamgirls" was merely based on: the life of producer Berry Gordy, a onetime boxer who founded the Motown record label and signed some of the decade's biggest R&B stars, including the Supremes, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Smokey Robinson, the Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye.

BEIJING - In Washington, it is said, the definition of a gaffe is accidentally saying what you really think. That may be doubly true in Beijing, as Deng Yuwen can attest. Deng, an editor at the weekly newspaper run by the Central Party School, the main training institute for future Communist cadres, has taken on controversial topics in the past: deploring corruption and censorship, advocating political reform. But when he published a column calling for China to abandon its alliance with North Korea, he found himself out of a job within 48 hours.

It's not enough that medical insurance companies want to dictate how much and what kind of treatment our illnesses deserve. Now legislators and law enforcement agencies are butting in, trying to curtail the use of high-powered painkillers because too many people are dying from abuse of prescription drugs. A physicians group is asking the Food and Drug Administration for stricter guidelines on how the drugs are used, an FDA advisory panel has recommended limiting patients to fewer pills and making prescriptions harder to refill, and Congress is considering a bill that would bump hydrocodone-based pills - Vicodin, Norco and Lortab - into the same controlled-substance class as opium.

Californians no longer had to worry about crossing state lines for their 1-in-175-million shot at a Powerball win. The multi-state lottery game finally arrived here Monday. John Apodaca, 62, of Hawthorne was part of one line. The veteran said that after he returned from Vietnam, a woman read his palm and said he would be a rich man - so he goes to the Bluebird Liquor store every day at the same time and plays the same numbers. He's there so often that an employee welcomed him with a salute.

By now this was all supposed to have been resolved, yet the season is underway and the Dodgers' extra starters remain an unsolved issue. All five starters the Dodgers began with last season with are back. During the course of last season they added starter Josh Beckett, and then in the off-season Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu. The pieces put together into a rotation left Chris Capuano, Ted Lilly and Aaron Harang uncomfortably on the outside. A trade of at least one seemed logical, but spring began and all eight were still in tow. Most figured a deal would be made at the end of spring training, but the season started Monday and all eight remained.

Question: There's an overall deterioration in our homeowners association, and we're ashamed of the deplorable eyesores throughout the complex. There are cracks in the concrete and plaster and peeling paint everywhere. All the trees need more soil as exposed roots are cause for liability. The stairs have ragged or missing safety strips; gates have ugly, dated signs; patio tables and pool furniture are filthy; and there are corroded and rotting wood trellises and dying foliage.