2011 Honda CR-Z Wins Japan “Car of the Year”

[xcel]

One of the few recognitions for a very fun car to drive... Especially with a stick

Wayne Gerdes - CleanMPG - Nov. 9, 2010

2011 Honda CR-Z parked alongside a “Field of Dreams” in Central Iowa.

My take? It is a slick looking 2-door coupe that is not only fuel efficient but fun to drive. It also includes a spirit of adventure not usually found in a hybrid automobile.

Honda announced that their CR-Z has been awarded the Car of the Year Japan by the Japan Car of the Year Executive Committee. The Hybrid CR-Z is the culmination of the Fit’s 1.5L i-VTEC engine mated to Honda’s Integrated Motor Assist system that provides a driving like no other hybrid on the road while still providing excellent fuel economy.

In Japan the CR-Z with the CVT is rated at 58.8 mpgUS, the same car here is rated at 37 mpgUS combined. The Stick is rated at just 34 combined but is so much more fun

Takanobu Ito, President and CEO, Honda:

We are very proud that the CR-Z has been selected from the strong contenders of new models as the Car of the Year Japan 2010–2011. This award shows that the public has accepted Honda’s aspiration to supply exceptional environmental performance in a fun-to-drive hybrid car at an affordable price, as well as Honda’s desire to spread the joy of owning and driving a car. We also believe that this award for the CR-Z reflects the true value of the combined efforts of our business partners and the many others who supported CR-Z development and production. Going forward, Honda intends to bring more joy to an even larger number of customers.

Through Oct. 2010, 3,349 US Consumers have made the 2011 Honda CR-Z their own.

[ItsNotAboutTheMoney]

This award shows that the public ...

So the CEO of a manufacturer thinks that an award voted for by automotive journalists reflects what the public thinks.

Oh s**t.

[volton]

A Hybrid with a stick. For that reason alone it gets my approval! I will definitely miss a stick when we go to EV cars.

[xcel]

Hi INATM:

He knows the difference but his PR Group speech writers through that in to "sound good". The way the automotive and probably every other entity works nowadays is through very carefully orchestrated message. If its to keep the legal hounds at bay or to convey a direction without adding anything more, the stuff I read continues to appear year after year after year in some cases. It is all a “Dog and Pony” show in some respects but behind the scenes when engineers and managers are swearing at one another about adding or changing some part or a CEO and Director are going head to head on some new direction or initiative, that is where the real work is getting done and although we will never see the strife, we are all benefitting from it mightily

Volton, I could not agree with you more. Honda, Toyota and Ford CVT's remove you from the driving experience so much that driving is somewhat bland by comparison to other more "Fun to Drive" vehicles w/ their hand shakers and ability to “do things” we want to do vs. what they have allowed you to do. BEVs other than the VW/Audi/Porsche brands are going to do the same thing. While adding a 5 or 6-speed stick to a hopped up electric motor may be overkill by 2 or 3,000 percent, 2 or three gears really do help keep currents down to reasonable levels at higher speeds yet everyone praises the motor for its ability to do it all form 0 RPM right up until its ready to come apart. We know better but the first batches we will see are all single speeds and will be boring to drive by comparison.

I guess that says I would much rather drive a Vette with 6-speed stick and a separate EV drivetrain to the front wheels than a CVT or single speed anything

Wayne