Honda CR-Z
The Honda CR-Z has been a long time coming. Although the concept debuted in 2007, as a project it's been kicking around Honda for over 10 years. Since the first Insight was launched in 1999, there have been numerous stop-start projects to produce a hybrid successor to the much-loved CR-X coupe. So when Honda invited us to drive their latest hybrid offering, it was too good an opportunity to pass up.
I should admit to having two vested interests here: firstly as a former CR-X owner back in the 1980's and secondly as a Honda designer for a decade in the 1990's. We were forever proposing CR-X updates then and I must have worked on at least three replacement projects, so I'm not totally impartial on this one.
The CR-X reborn
When the first generation CR-X was launched in 1983, it was a unique proposition: a hi-tech baby coupe with twin roles as an entry car for college kids in the US and a sportier hot hatch for other markets. The second-generation CR-X offered much more powerful and advanced VTEC engines and full 2+2 seating, while the third-generation ‘Del Sol' model took a different turn with its odd two-seat targa styling and complicated stow-in-the-trunk roof.
In many ways the CR-Z is a straightforward update of the original concept: a very advanced low-slung coupe with modest power, in this case supplemented by an electric motor.
Viewing the car in bright sunlight, there's much more volume in the fenders than photos suggest. Together with the flowing roof, short hood, heavy tinted glass and big, curved screen, they give the car an impressive stance. Less impressive is the cheap-looking front grille that doesn't have the attention to detail you'd find on a VW or Citroën these days. It's not so much the hexagon texture of the grille that let it down, but the three unrefined bars in the top section with blanked-off areas behind and the crude mounting of the license plate.
Available in S, Sport and GT trim levels, the top-spec GT adds a glass moonroof, leather front seats, blue-look lenses on the HID lamps and LED running lamps over the Sport we drove.
From the inside
Getting into the car feels very familiar to a former CR-X owner. The wide doors, low set driving position, the over-the-shoulder view and the tiny sunroof brings the memories flooding back.
The cockpit's design is very ergonomic and the golf ball-sized shifter has a high tactile quality to it. There are numerous bins in which to store loose items and generally, there's decent visibility out of the driver's seat. The only real hindrance is the bar that travels across the backlight, which significantly impedes rearward visibility.
There's also a busy use of materials in this interior, which is typical of current Hondas. Smoked chrome is used on outer edges of the console, across the top under the center display screen and on door grabhandles. There's an open weave texture used in the lower spoke of the steering wheel and sides of the console, with matte aluminum used on the steering wheel spokes, around the gearshift gaiter and gearknob.
The inner door releases have the same finish yet appear low rent, and lacking the attention that VW designers would lavish here these days. And, while the main impression is of good quality, some switchgear also seems a bit dated – the electric window buttons and the door lock paddles for instance.
One-mile rear seat
This latest interpretation also offers a 2+2 seating package (though not in the US market). It has been misunderstood by much of the media but it's actually a great feature; an essential part of this car's appeal. For a start, it makes the CR-Z stand out: it's not another run-of-the-mill B-segment GTi. From outside, the roof profile declares ‘I only offer two seats' – a rather more exotic proposition than a Scirocco or Mégane coupé for instance. Likewise, you'd never drive around in a Golf GTi with the rear seat folded down, but in the CR-Z it's the obvious default mode that not only makes the interior look tidier but adds the sheen of two-seat glamour to the package.
Sure, a normal-sized driver will find their seat hard against the rear cushion but small children will love the non-adult nature of this rear seat, while it adds an extra delight to be able to squeeze in occasional passengers for a short ‘one-mile' ride. The everyday benefit is a neat pair of secret storage lockers under the folded rear seat squab that are ideal for slinging in a laptop, camera or shopping bag to stop them from spilling around and remain hidden from view.
Complex displays
The instrument panel is a complex series of volumes and controls, with a lower glovebox area that runs straight across rather than pushing forward as does the adjacent upper IP.
Two pods sit either side of driver's binnacle, somewhat reminiscent of the old NSX. The right hand one houses HVAC controls, with a main rubber rotary control and readout for temperature and air direction. There are three outer buttons for recirculation and demist functions, while the other side has three buttons for Sport, Norm and Econ driving modes that illuminate blue on their outer edges. Inboard are lighting and mirror controls, with two angled air vents above.
There are a hectic series of displays too. The large, central rev-counter also houses a readout for speed that appears as a floating field in front of the main dial. An inner halo ring changes color according to driving mode – blue for Norm, red for Sport, green for Econ. To the right are bar graph readouts for fuel and instantaneous fuel usage. Below are a series of digital readouts for average fuel usage, range, distance and temperature gauge.
The opposite side contains all warning lamps, cruise control and power mode readouts. Above these is the charge assist readout which encourages one to keep the needle in the center. Gunning the car shoots needle to the right, coasting or overrun shoots it left. Above that is the battery condition readout. That's a lot to read, and it's confusing to pick out the precise readout you want at speed.
Sporty Coupe (&; Hybrid)
As the first hybrid that's fun to drive, the CR-Z was worth the wait, but in our mind Honda has got its market positioning a bit wrong. The CR-Z is billed as a Sporty Hybrid Coupe – in that order, whereas the hybrid drivetrain should be merely an aside.
But it's a good result, and the flood of orders coming in for the car in Japan is testament to its instant appeal. With the old CR-X, each subsequent model became bigger and less focused so it's good to see the CR-Z get back to the purity of the original and the hybrid powertrain should be regarded as simply today's version of the 1983 CR-X's cutting-edge hi-tech engine.
Vital Statistics: Length 4079mm; width 1740mm; height 1395mm; wheelbase 2425mm; curb weight 1147kg.
Source: http://www.cardesignnews.com/
Source: http://www.cardesignnews.com/
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