Honda's CR-Z Hybrid a Compromised Product That Barely Got Green Light - Report
By Scott Doggett March 8, 2010
Honda Motor Co.'s new, highly anticipated CR-Z sporty hybrid is the car that nearly wasn't, according to a report published today by the subscription trade journal Automotive News.
The wedge-shaped, two-seat hatchback - pictured above at its world debut at the 2010 Detroit Auto Show in January - was almost killed twice because engineers weren't convinced it was a unique concept and because U.S. bosses originally didn't want it.
When Norio Tomobe was appointed chief engineer of the project in the summer of 2004, the car was still a blank sheet. And in the early years, the working model had a traditional gasoline engine.
"We had serious doubts about whether this would bring new value," Tomobe said during a recent interview with Automotive News reporter Hans Greimel at Honda's Tokyo headquarters. "I really struggled for a new idea, and we decided to start over from scratch. The hybrid finally gave us the wow factor."
Yet going hybrid brought its own problems. Today critics assail the CR-Z as neither especially fuel-efficient nor sporty. And Tomobe is quick to admit at least one thing he wishes the CR-Z had: "more horsepower."
He said he would like a Type R sporty version of the CR-Z someday with a spunkier power-to-weight ratio that lives up to its sporty styling. (Edmunds' Inside Line reported recently that a CR-Z Type R is indeed in the works.)
But in the meantime, the CR-Z is an exercise in compromise. It was conceived as a 1.3-liter car for Europe but was given a 1.5-liter engine to appeal to U.S. drivers. It aims to be sporty with a six-speed stick-shift option but also comes in a version with continuously variable transmission to squeeze out extra fuel economy.
The result: a 122-hp package that delivers a 0-to-62-mph time that, at 9.7 seconds, barely edges the Toyota Prius. And fuel economy is only 36/38 mpg, well below the Prius' 51/48.
The 0-62 time comes from a leaked early edition of the Japanese sales catalog. Honda has dropped all references to it. Indeed, Honda conspicuously omits a 0-60 speed for a car that it touts as sporty.
The CR-Z went on sale in Japan in February and reaches U.S. showrooms this summer.
Honda plans to sell 40,000 to 50,000 CR-Zs a year worldwide, 15,000 in North America. Japan sales are projected at 12,000 a year, and Europe will get the rest.
Tetsuo Iwamura, president of American Honda Motor Co., was skeptical right up until he drove the final prototype.
"He kept saying they don't need a hybrid," recalled Tomobe.
"In the American market, people equate hybrids with the Prius," he said of Iwamura's cool response. "If the hybrid is sporty, it's going to confuse the customers and dealers."
The CR-Z's fate was put before Takanobu Ito, now president of Honda Motor but then head of r&d. "He said, 'Don't worry about the States, just keep developing it,' " Tomobe said.
While driving early prototypes, Iwamura relentlessly derided the car, Tomobe said. But when he got behind the wheel of the final version, his reaction changed.
Suddenly, the project was a go.
"It's ironic that the United States was the most vocal in saying they didn't want the car, but the CR-Z still made its world debut at the Detroit motor show," Tomobe said.
Tomobe, who cut his teeth as chief engineer on Japanese market projects such as the Mobilio Spike and Elysion minivans, is unapologetic about the CR-Z's compromises.
"I'm satisfied," he said. "This is what the future of sports cars will be for Honda. We are not pursuing absolute maximum speed. What we aim for is a car that is exhilarating to drive."
On paper, the CR-Z's power may seem lackluster. But sporty handling makes up for it, Tomobe said. The three-mode drive system helps by delivering extra throttle responsiveness.
Drivers can select normal, economy or sporty driving modes. In sporty mode, drivers of the CVT can simulate stepped shifting manually by flipping paddle shifters on the steering wheel.
The CR-Z borrows liberally from its hybrid forerunner, the Insight, which came out last year. It has the same engine room, front flooring, fuel tank and hybrid system. The motor, battery and inverter essentially are the same as the Insight's, Tomobe said.
Not only is its engine larger than the Insight's 1.3-liter, but the CR-Z's engine has 16 valves instead of the Insight's eight. This is to help increase power at higher rpm and improve efficiency at lower speeds.
Up to 2,300 rpm, one intake valve per cylinder is closed to limit fuel consumption. Above that, all four valves are working to optimize power.
The CR-Z is also the first Honda hybrid to get a six-speed manual transmission.
Honda already is eyeing improvements. By boosting the storage capacity of the battery and making the motor and inverter smaller and lighter, future generations of the CR-Z should deliver better performance.
Said Tomobe: "There is room for further evolution."
Critics say Honda could score by offering a gasoline-only CR-Z. But Tomobe said the company has ruled that out. The car's identity is too closely linked to being a hybrid, he said.
But a Type R racing incarnation is another story. "If that appeals to people and contributes to Honda's sporty image, we need to consider all options," Tomobe said, adding that he would like to see an R.
That would require reworking the power-to-weight ratio and boosting the maximum speed. Tomobe said that is still a tall order for the current CR-Z and its eco-friendly mission.
Said Tomobe: "The CR-Z is supposed to be an intelligent sports car."
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Click here to comment on this entry.Clearly Honda doesn't know what they're doing. This car needs more power and it should not have been released in its present condition. It's too much of a compromise and the reason for not making a gasoline only version is so weak it borders on stupidity. Objectively speaking Honda had everything to gain by making a non-hybrid version and on top of that a non-hybrid version would easily outsell this sadly lacking hybrid version. I also fail to see how the hybrid system added the "wow" factor to this car. Given the dismal perfomance specs it produced in both speed and mpg I would state more people would find that this is what make the CR-Z a dud. I actually find the fact that its a hybrid to be the unattractive feature of this car. I also strongly disagree with your statement that sporty handling (which still remains to be seen) makes up for being slow and underpowered. I can't speak for the rest of the world but at least for me a car this slow will never ever be considered "exhilirating to drive". If this reflects the kind of "muddled" decision making by Honda, I fear the future does not bode well for Honda's future products.
If the CR-Z is supposed to be an "intelligent sports car" (I really don't understand what this means) but if the CR-Z is suppose to be considered an "intelligent sports car" I guess this means slow, underpowered and overpriced.
On paper it doesn't look that great. But really, neither does the Miata. Maybe people should reserve judgment until after driving one.
My brother's 1985 CRX has 75 hp and it was responsive,but certainly not fast. I guess Honda was benchmarking the '85 model when they envisioned the CR-Z. Honda has made a lot of mis-steps recently-- including the Insight-- but this CR-Z would seem to be the worst of them.
The Miata weighs between 2441 to 2573 lbs. (for the phrt grand touring model). It has 166 horsepower, does 0-60 in 7.0 seconds, is rear drive and has a much more sophisticated suspension than the CR-Z. Rear drive is the superior configuration for sports cars.
Even Honda on its own CR-Z website states that the CR-Z is underpowered and the chief engineer stated he wished it(the CR-Z) had more horse power. Honda knows this car is seriously underpowered that is precisely why the U.S. website does not state 0-60 times. A $16,000 toyota corolla can do 0-60 in 8.6 seconds.
The simple fact is this car is slow (I think even Honda would have to concede this point). In my opinion which is shared by many others this car is just too slow to be seriously considered a sports car (and no amount of handling will make up for the seriously lacking power in this car).
One final point on the Miata, I drive a Miata and while I find I love the handling, I still find that it needs a little more power.
I think Honda is saying it would have been difficult (or that it did not have the technical ability) to make the CR-Z faster and still retain a hybrid system. If this was the case and Honda just had to have a hybrid (although I still think Honda did not need another hybrid), then Honda ha should have either delayed the introduction of a hybrid version until the technology developed sufficiently to obtain more power (and just release a gasoline only version). Or in the alternative release the hybrid version in its current form and release a high performance gasoline version that would have satisfied the car enthusiasts.
I also don't really understand the explanation given by Honda that a gasoline version was ruled out "because this car's identity is too closely linked to being a hybrid". This makes no sense at all. I seriously doubt if anyone would really have been offended if Honda had chosen to do a gasoline only version. On the contrary, I think more people would have applauded Honda for making a gasoline only version.
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