2011 Honda CR-Z Debuts - Another Honda Fail?

Interesting choice, is this the trend ?

 

It makes sense for an assist hybrid. There is only 15hp generator to slow the car down anyway.

 

Sporty? No
hybrid? Kinda
I say fail

 

I think people are missing the point with this car. And Honda is partly to blame for this due to the poor choice of advertising words they have used to market the CRZ.

I have to say that the is a nice looking car and every reviewer OUTSIDE N.America seems to complement the design instead of bash it. That's wholly due to the fact that Americans judge cars by size and not much else.

Yes...the IMA system is not that great and doesn't maximize fuel economy. Yes...the performance of this car isn't one of a sports car (hence Honda's mistake to market it as such...especially in this country). But it's a first attempt and a nice try IMO. It's a nice looking car, has performance on par with regular IC cars with similar power and yet gets slightly better fuel economy than they do.

Good luck getting 40MPG with a Fiesta....I've driven many come nowhere close to that figure ...hwy or otherwise...and I drive gently.

Why do Americans always judge cars so black and white? Perhaps this is why so many of the cool cars you find in Europe never make it here because the manufacturers know that nothing they offer will ever satisfy the ludicrous demands of American consumers...and the irony being that our tastes and enthusiasms are nowhere near as sporty or serious as the Europeans.

What they find sporty, we find stiff. What they get as styling, we find it over-the-top. What we find as "large and comfortable," they think we drive oversized turds (which I think we do).

Another aspect to consider is emissions...even if this car does nothing better than an IC car performance-wise or mileage-wise, it's probably ALOT lower emissions-wise.

We should embrace cars like this so better ones are offered in the near future. Honda will A) dramatically improve the IMA system or B) dump it for a better system. But if they keep hearing people whine constantly about whatever they bring out, they'll probably tell us to shove it and just bring over the bland cars like Accord and Civic and we'll be happy as a peach.

 

The point is Honda delivered a small two-seater hybrid that got phenomenal gas mileage... the original Insight! Now they give us this and the Insight 2, both failing to come anywhere close to that car's performance and you can't understand why we're underwhelmed?

 

And why not? The CR-Z is far to underpowered to be a pocket rocket, so why not produce a car that could surpass the original Insight and the Prius in economy? Oh, right...

 

I wouldn't consider the CR-Z because it's 2 seats only and couldn't fit my drums in cases in cargo area.

Few k's more to get G3 Pri, seats 5, fits drums and it's all working for me.

 

Honda will sell some #'s of the CR-Z. I don't think it will be a failure. Maybe it will sell 10% of the G3 Pri #'s.

 

What are you underwhelmed about? You're comparing a tiny 2 seater car that has no safety compared to the CRZ and you're wondering why the same fuel mileage isn't there?

There's not a SINGLE car that has taken the place of an older model that has made any significant, if any, improvements mileage-wise that I can really mention that's worth of mentioning in the last 10-15 years.

Don't blame that on Honda specifically but the entire corrupt auto and oil/gas industry and government that has no interest in improving mileage and has no interest in reducing oil consumption.

Honda has one of the best fleet fuel mileage values in the industry...still not good enough frankly as far as I'm concerned but still well above most everyone else.

The point is that the CRZ is a START...just a START. Many more good things will hopefully come. But if there is no support and only whining, I wouldn't blame them if they say screw it and start offering the same large garbage vehicles everyone else is offering.

 

Where did you get the idea that the CRZ is supposed to be a "pocket rocket???"

My 87 GTI that weighted 2300 lbs had 105 HP...that was considered a pocket rocket too.

 

HONDA should have kept the CR-X probably the most fuel efficient car they ever built, too bad they failed when it came to building a hybrid... I see they have some new hybrids for 2010.

I test drove the Insight and thought the car needed allot of engineering, I guess in time they may get this vehicle right.

The Honda civic was alright when I test drove it however needs engineering to improve overall MPG and whats up with the battery?

Only time will tell if the fit achieves anything at all as a hybrid.

The CR-Z looks like a nice ride too bad the MPG is too low, thank GOD for the prius...

 

Unfortunately, while the car has excellent driving dynamics (it's like the the Insight g2, which handles better than the Prius g3 stock for stock, IMO), it weighs quite a lot more that it should have (likely due to SUV-driving-idiot-prevalence-induced safety standards). The light weight and low c/d of the original Insight made it a wonderful little car when you stuck a K20 in it.

 

"What are you underwhelmed about? You're comparing a tiny 2 seater car that has no safety compared to the CRZ and you're wondering why the same fuel mileage isn't there?"

The CR-Z is also a tiny 2 seater! Honda is marketing it as a sports car, not me! When the average person sees the ads they'll think "Finally! A hybrid that can kick some butt!" And when they test drive it and return to the dealer with a disgusted look, what's the sales person gonna say? "Yeah, but it gets mileage in the 30's!"

 

Quite true.

But the CR-Z can even best the MPG of the HI-II if that is what the driver wants. Our test drives have indeed proven that this car can satisfy the MPG needs of a typical hybrid owner when it is driven for that purpose.

However, if the driver wants to have some fun and toss the car into a few turns then there is no hybrid competition that will match it and that is an ingredient that has long been missing in our market.

Frankly, knowing what we now know, I am quite excited about the CR-Z and I can't wait until we pit the CVT model against the MT-6 for a detailed overview of what MPG it can achieve.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

The mid-size Ford Fusion Hybrid leaves this little car in the dust on MPG. Heck, I'll bet the Fusion Hybrid could tow the CRZ and still get better MPG than the CRZ by itself.

 

On Saturday, I was driving on the 405 through the Culver City / Santa Monica area, and I saw a few billboards on the side of the highway for the Honda CR-Z. The signs said "Coming soon," but then separately, and perhaps subliminally but non-binding, had "8-24-2010" on the signs.

 

Would a k series engine even work with this car?