European Honda CR-Z to debut at Geneva Motor Show

Japanese manufacturer Honda has revealed more details on the European version of its new ‘sporty hybrid’ the CR-Z, ahead of its European unveiling at the Geneva Motor Show in March.

Featuring a six-speed gearbox – the first time one has been employed on a manual hybrid car – and a 1.5 litre, i-VTEC engine, the car features a 3-mode drive system to tailor steering, throttle response and IMA assistance.

“The CR-Z is a great-looking, sporty car – that’s also a hybrid,” said Tom Gardner, Head of Marketing, Honda UK. “Kart-like handling and direct steering will make it great fun to drive, but the hybrid system means exhaust emissions are kept low. With the torque boost of the electric motor, it’s ideally suited to ‘point-to-point’ driving in British towns and cities.”

Although yet to be officially confirmed, Honda is hopeful of the CR-Z achieving 56.4mpg on the combined cycle and CO2 emissions of 117g/km making it the most frugal coupe available in the UK.

The 3-Mode Drive System allows the driver to choose whether they wish to maximise enjoyment, economy or strike a balance between the two. The aim of Honda’s engineers was to give customers more choice in how the CR-Z would drive, depending on their needs and desires at the time.

While, ‘sport’ buttons have been around for years in cars Honda has taken this a step further by altering the behaviour of the hybrid drivetrain and power steering between the three modes.

When the CR-Z driver is away from the town or city and wanting to enjoy their drive, they can put the coupe into SPORT mode. This sharpens the throttle response, changes the behaviour of the IMA hybrid system to provide more electric motor assistance and increases the weight of the electric power steering. Our engineers recognise that even cars designed to excite the driver may still be driven in heavy traffic where enthusiastic driving is not possible, or desirable. In these situations ECON mode can be selected, which prioritises fuel economy in the operation of the drive-by-wire throttle, ECU, air conditioning and the hybrid system. At all other times the car can be run in NORM mode, which provides a balance between performance, economy and emissions and suits most driving situations.

Also featuring daytime running lights the Honda CR-Z hits the UK in the summer, with more information due at Geneva.

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