Honda CR-Z Hybrid

 The Honda CR-Z hybrid might be the least anticipated gas-electric car heading to the market. Honda says that the CR-Z combines fun, small and efficient in a sporty package. Critics say the price—anticipated at around $20,000—is too much for a two-seater that lacks the size and practicality of the more affordable Honda Fit. They say the CR-Z’s 122 horsepower make it anything but sporty. And worst of all, the fuel economy of such a small hybrid should be far more than its average of about 37 mpg.

Honda CR-Z 2011 Review

The Prius Rule: Electric motors attached to internal combustion units mercilessly dispose of any pleasure left in the already sanitized modern driving experience.
Glance at its lineup and you could be forgiven for thinking that Honda closely adheres to The Prius Rule. Despite Honda's efforts to persuade us otherwise, the automaker's Insight, the cheapest hybrid currently on sale in North America, is a Prius by another name.
Yet this is the brand that has given us the zippy S2000, the sublime NSX and even the highly-entertaining mainstream Accord sedan and coupe. Stretch back a few years and you'll find one of the greatest “affordable enthusiast” cars ever created, the Honda CRX. These little two-door fastbacks are the automotive gods' gift to autocrossers and canyon carvers thanks to their trim dimensions and sporty demeanor.
And that's precisely what the CR-Z is designed to recreate, albeit in a politically correct 2011 sort of way. Call it a new segment: The world's first hybrid sports car.

Honda CR-Z Review Picture

   

Honda CR-Z Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 3-door hatchback


BASE PRICE: $19,950


ENGINE TYPE: SOHC 16-valve inline-4, 113 hp, 107 lb-ft; brushless DC electric motor assist, 13 hp, 58 lb-ft; combined power rating, 122 hp, 123 or 128 lb-ft

TRANSMISSIONS: continuously variable automatic with manumatic shifting, 6-speed manual


DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 95.9 in Length: 160.6 in
Width: 68.5 in Height: 54.9 in
Curb weight (mfr’s est): 2600–2700 lb

FUEL ECONOMY (MFR’S EST):
EPA city/highway driving: 31–35/37–39 mpg