Honda Motor Co.'s new CR-Z sporty hybrid is the car that nearly wasn't. According to Automotive News, the hatchback was almost killed twice because engineers weren't convinced it was a unique concept and because U.S. bosses originally didn't want it.
When Norio Tomobe was appointed chief engineer of the project in the summer of 2004, the car was still a blank sheet. And in the early years, the working model had a traditional gasoline engine. "I really struggled for a new idea, and we decided to start over from scratch. The hybrid finally gave us the wow factor," he said.
Today, critics assail the CR-Z as neither especially fuel-efficient nor sporty. And Tomobe is quick to admit at least one thing he wishes the CR-Z had: "more horsepower." He said he would like a Type R sporty version of the CR-Z someday with a spunkier power-to-weight ratio that lives up to its sporty styling.
But in the meantime, the CR-Z is an exercise in compromise. It was conceived as a 1.3-liter car for Europe but was given a 1.5-liter engine to appeal to U.S. drivers. It aims to be sporty with a six-speed
stick-shift option but also comes in a version with continuously variable transmission to squeeze out extra fuel economy. Click here for more from Automotive News on how the Honda CR-Z hybrid almost failed to make it to U.S. showrooms.
