Honda CR-Z 2010 Review

Honda CR-Z

Not so much
>> Power lets CR-Z down...
>> Even more so in Eco mode
>> Price in Oz could yet be steep

Overall rating: 3.5/5.0
Engine/Drivetrain/Chassis: 3.5/5.0
Price, Packaging and Practicality: 3.0/5.0
Safety: 4.0/5.0
Behind the wheel: 3.5/5.0
X-factor: 4.0/5.0

About our ratings

OVERVIEW
-- Sporty above all else
The Honda CR-Z is still about 18 months away from an Australian launch, but interest in the hybrid sports hatch is growing apace. No wonder, since the CR-Z -- the name is intended to recall the iconic CRX from the 1980s and 90s -- is a far better attempt at an affordable hybrid for the mass market than Honda's original Insight from 2001.

There's a new Insight on the way here and we'll see it before the end of this year, but it's a Jazz-like five-door hatch with hybrid-drive technology and owes nothing to its older namesake, other than the hybrid drivetrain concept.

Unlike the original Insight, which sold fewer than 50 units in Australia over a four-year period, according to VFACTS, the CR-Z is a sporty car first, a hybrid second. Honda says, for example, that the CR-Z rides on conventional tyres, not the low rolling resistance tyres like those fitted to Toyota's Prius.

Honda invited the Carsales Network to test the new model in Germany, where the car will be sold with a six-speed manual only. When it reaches Australia late next year, the CR-Z is expected to be offered with both this transmission and a CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) option.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
-- Got the yen for a sporty hybrid?
Priced right (unlike the first Insight), the CR-Z could be a minor-league hero for Honda Australia and may further the market penetration of the importer's expanding range of hybrid vehicles. Much of the CR-Z's potential for success rests with the currency exchange rate when the car goes on sale late 2011.

Ideally, Honda would like the Japanese yen to be hovering around 75 or 80 to the Aussie dollar when the CR-Z reaches Australia. That would allow the importer to pitch the Insight at around $30,000 and the CR-Z to come in about $5000 higher -- $35,000.

For that money, you could expect a basic car with the standard six-speed manual transmission. Let's say for the sake of the argument that the CVT option (assuming we see that here) could cost an extra $2000 or thereabouts.

It's unlikely, we understand from Honda Australia, that a base variant would be equipped as well as the cars driven in Germany last month. Word is that there may be two levels of trim for the Australian market. That being the case, don't bet on the $35,000 base model featuring the leather seat trim, six-disc CD audio system, steering wheel audio controls, cruise and sunroof fitted to cars sold in Europe.

And there are two wheel sizes in Europe also. If there are two grades of CR-Z sold in Australia, the base model will ride on 16-inch alloy wheels, but there may be 17-inch wheels fitted to the upmarket model.

MECHANICAL
-- Performance of a 1.8 and all that Jazz
From its conception, the CR-Z was intended to be a parallel hybrid, in which the electric motor provides supplemental torque.

In contrast, Toyota's Prius is defined as a power-split hybrid vehicle and is ultimately more efficient, but Honda argues that the parallel hybrid system (referred to as IMA -- Integrated Motor Assist), is lighter, less complex and more flexible.

Where the IMA set-up is more flexible is in the ability to couple the electric motor in a car with a manual transmission or to package the drivetrain components in a neater configuration. Since the CR-Z is not as dependent on the electric motor as the Prius is, the Honda can make do with smaller battery storage.

The Honda system provides fuel efficiency gains principally through running a smaller-capacity internal-combustion engine and relying on the supplemental power from the electric motor to enhance performance, on those occasions when required. According to the manufacturer, the difference in fuel consumption between a parallel hybrid and a power-split hybrid is not that great, since the former can still automatically kill the internal combustion engine while the car is at standstill -- and then restart immediately on demand.

Powering the CR-Z is a 1.5-litre SOHC four-cylinder with i-VTEC and four valves per cylinder, complemented by an electric motor developing 10kW of power and 78Nm of torque. The petrol engine produces 84kW of power and 145Nm of torque.

Combined, the two drive units peak at 91kW and 174Nm, but the electric motor produces its output at lower speeds than the petrol engine does. This results in performance that's linear rather than peaky. The electric motor provides its peak torque when the petrol engine is still not quite there. According to Honda, the result is low-end torque on a par with a conventional 1.8-litre petrol engine.

Derived from the Brazilian-market Jazz but with a modified cylinder-head, the petrol engine is fitted with the same sump as that of the 1.3-litre engine of the Insight, to simplify the integration of the electric motor in the IMA system with this petrol engine. Honda engineers have worked overtime establishing the right sort of engine note for the CR-Z, concentrating their efforts on engine mounts and sound insulation throughout the car.

According to Honda's test figures, the CR-Z with six-speed manual will consume 5.0L/100km of petrol in combined-cycle testing. Over the course of the same test, the CR-Z emits 117g/km of CO2. Battery power for the electric motor is stored in a 100.8-Volt Nickel-Metal Hydride pack.

There are three selectable drive modes for the CR-Z: Sport, Normal and Economy. Each mode changes settings for the throttle, steering, climate control and IMA assistance. Sport mode reduces power assistance to the steering, enhances throttle response and increases output to the (front) drive wheels from the electric motor.

In Economy mode, the CR-Z reduces sensitivity to throttle input and optimises the engine's fuel economy by adjusting the engine management mapping. When the electric motor runs in this mode, it's enhancing fuel efficiency rather than improving performance. Economy mode also recirculates air automatically and reduces the compressor operation for the climate control facility.

Normal mode is a compromise of the other two modes.

The CR-Z is built around a modified version of the new generation Insight platform, with the wheelbase reduced 115mm and the track widened 20mm at the front and 25mm at the rear. Overall length of the CR-Z is 310mm shorter than the same dimension for the Insight. Springs, dampers and anti-roll bars are exclusive to the CR-Z, but the sporty hybrid shares the basic underpinnings with the Insight.

That means MacPherson-strut setup at the front, with forged aluminium lower control arms for the CR-Z, versus pressed steel units for the Insight. At the rear, both cars feature a torsion beam, but the CR-Z has revised trailing arms to boost the track.

Steering is a rack-and-pinion system, assisted electrically. The CR-Z's brakes feature ventilated discs at the front and solid discs at the rear. As standard, the CR-Z rides on 16-inch wheels fitted with 195/55 tyres.

PACKAGING
-- Kamm styling outside, cosy accommodation within
For the CR-Z, Honda has employed the 'long hood, short deck' look much mimicked by American muscle car builders in the 1960s. The style, an element of aerodynamic design first proposed by Doctor Wunibald Kamm, is also described by Honda as a 'one-motion wedge' in the case of the CR-Z.

As with other cars employing the same aerodynamic style, the CR-Z is slightly compromised by its outward appearance, which is also diminished a little by pedestrian safety constraints around the front end. All the same, Honda claims the production CR-Z has remained close in style to the concept car unveiled in Tokyo three years ago.

Inside, Honda engineers have fashioned a layout that places most instruments and controls within easy reach of the driver. The car's ergonomics are conventionally sensible, although information displayed in the instrument binnacle can keep your eyes wandering until you learn what it all means.

Honda has developed four different driving aids to keep the driver informed as to how much/little fuel is being used. There's an Eco Guide Bar which shifts right in varying degrees when accelerating and drops back to the left when decelerating. An Ambient Meter glows green when the driver is operating the vehicle for optimum efficiency and blue when the driver is hooning. It's claimed by Honda that fuel efficiency can improve by as much as 10 per cent if the driver changes gear when the Shift Indicator Light prompts.

Honda doesn't have a name for it, but the fourth aid displays leaves growing if the driver is using less fuel. Keep it up long enough and the display will 'grow' a flower. It all seems fairly complex initially, but after a two-hour drive it was all beginning to sink in.

Headroom was plentiful for adults, even with the standard sunroof fitted. Legroom in the front seemed to be at a premium, even with the seat set all the way back. The seats themselves were a little flat in the cushioning and, while it's hard to assess from our brief drive, they didn't inspire much confidence that they would hold the occupant during harder cornering.

We didn't even attempt to sit in the rear. The folding rear seat, which raises the luggage capacity to 401 litres when lowered is definitely for kids only. At least it's there though; the CR-Z to be sold in the US will be limited to two seats.

The figure of 401 litres is with the rear seats folded flat and the car filled to the roofline using the VDA method, as well as drawing on 19 litres of under-floor storage in addition.

Instruments (including entertainment system/satnav) were spread across the dash, encroaching slightly on the space ahead of the front passenger. Vents for the passenger were placed close together, which worked fairly well.

The cabin was trimmed in different coordinating colours of leather, perforated in some parts. The light grey plastic was hard, but the overall feel of the cabin, with mid-grey carpeting and black cloth for the rear seat, was prestigious, thanks also to the bright-finish decorative trim pieces.

SAFETY
-- Rigid cell for handling, roadholding
Honda claims that the CR-Z approaches the Civic Type R for body rigidity. This is primarily for the purpose of endowing the hybrid car with adept dynamics rather than crash safety per se. Metal gussets around front and rear suspension towers stiffen the structure, as does an H-shaped rod for the rear floorpan.

The CR-Z's body structure benefits from what Honda calls Advanced Compatibility Engineering, which ensures that load paths for impact energy are equally effective, irrespective of the bumper height of the other vehicle involved in the crash.

Although the specification for the Australian-delivered CR-Z is a long way from being finalised, we feel on safe ground suggesting that the car will arrive here with at least six airbags (including two side curtains) and active front headrests.

Similarly, stability control is expected to be offered as part of the standard specification and there's an outside chance that Hill Start Assist will be incorporated also.

COMPETITORS
-- Bracketed by dynamic diesels
Neither of the two cars most likely to be cross-shopped against the CR-Z are hybrids. They are the MINI D and the Volvo C30 DRIVe.

Both cars can claim to be more economical in combined-cycle testing and offer similar levels of impracticality posing as sportiness. But if, to you, sportiness is in the way a petrol engine delivers its power and torque, the CR-Z remains the only choice.

The Volvo and the MINI are hovering around the mid-$30K range and boast sporting aspirations and environmental credentials. As such, they're the right sort of mix to go up against the CR-Z, but if you are willing to compromise on any one of those criteria, the range of competitors opens up.

The CR-Z might find Toyota's Prius to be a formidable rival, if buyers can acquire the Prius at the right price. Against the Honda, the Prius is probably faster in a straight line and should be more economical when driven accordingly. The Toyota is more practical by far, but practicality is plainly not the major factor driving a purchasing decision in favour of the CR-Z.

Toyota will also sell you the Camry Hybrid, which has more of the same over the CR-Z: Larger, more practical still, even more performance in a straight line.

If sport's more your bag, you might check out the Polo GTi, when that arrives. It's not far off the mark for fuel economy (5.9L/100km), but could be a better solution to balancing comfort and practicality with sporting appeal. Once you've kissed goodbye to worrying about the environment, there are plenty of other small sporting cars that might meet your needs, among them the Alfa MiTo.

ON THE ROAD
-- Leave it in Sport, sport
It may be politically incorrect to say, but hybrid or not, we'd leave the CR-Z in sport mode permanently. It provides a stronger launch and everything about the car just feels more cohesive in that mode.

Although the steering doesn't offer as much feel as it arguably should in a sporty car, it's fairly good for an electrically-assisted system -- and there's nothing much wrong with the CR-Z's turn-in and handling. When pushed, the car lets the driver know it's nearing its dynamic limits.

The engine sounds really good, but the way it delivers power and torque make the CR-Z easy to drive rather than startling. To illustrate, the CR-Z wouldn't keep up with an Accord Tourer (Euro wagon) with a 2.4-litre engine and auto transmission when it was driven hard.

With manual transmission and supplementary torque from the electric motor, the CR-Z feels healthy enough up to 5000rpm, but we would argue that there's little point holding a gear beyond that engine speed. Might as well change up...

The gearshift is light enough without being especially precise for a sporty hybrid hatch. Mostly though, it's an easy enough shift pattern to master. Curiously, the pedals in this left-hand drive car felt skewed too far to the right. It will be interesting to see whether we end up with a mirrored problem in right-hand drive cars when they reach Australia late next year. Hopefully not.

Every once in a while, a launch will throw a curve ball at you -- and so it was with the CR-Z. Following our guide, who was driving an Accord Tourer at the time, we observed the wagon's stop lights illuminate suddenly and the car's tail lifted high. We began emergency braking in the CR-Z, since it was clear that something was wrong ahead.

It was only after the tyres began to squeal that we saw the problem: A semi-trailer overtaking a tractor -- and both heading towards us. The driver of the Accord braked and headed right to avoid the on-coming semi, now very much committed to using our side of the German country road as well as his.

Approaching rapidly from the rear, the CR-Z was locking brakes and unlocking them in Sport mode as the car slewed to a halt. It's not often you find yourself in that sort of situation, but it's nice to know that the CR-Z had the right stuff to pull everything back together. Many small cars would have run up the rear of the Accord, but the CR-Z avoided the nose-to-tail collision with a few metres to spare.

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