CR-Z a production reality

Honda’s new CEO, Takanobu Ito has announced that the sporty CR-Z hybrid has been given the green light for production. It will go on sale in Japan from February 2010. European sales dates will emerge towards the end of 2009.By Gareth Dean

The CR-Z made its first appearance at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show, and despite its futuristic appearance many have since dubbed it a spiritual successor to the popular CRX hatchback of the 1980s. According to Honda the CR-Z (Concept Renaissance Zero) will combine good looks performance with miserly fuel consumption, courtesy of a hybrid drivetrain similar to the IMA (Integrated Motor Assist) in the company’s Civic Hybrid and Insight vehicles.

Honda will also integrate its IMA system into the Honda Jazz within the next few years, and is currently developing a new hybrid system intended for installation in mid-to-large vehicles.

The demand for hybrid vehicles on the Japanese market has exceeded the company’s expectations, especially with the release of the latest generation of Insight. As a result, Honda has earmarked excess capacity on line 3 of its Suzuka plant for production of the Insight in mid-June 2009.

As a successor to Takeo Fukui as CEO of Honda, Ito’s decision to green-light the CR-Z seems fitting – especially given his background as an engineer and the instrumental role he played in pushing another revolutionary Honda model, the NSX, from prototype to production.