nofearofdanger

Honda boss Itoh has refused to give its plummeting CR-Z hybrid a petrol-powered parachute because it would impinge on the struggling coupe's green credentials.

Sources at Honda insist the company's engineers had developed a rescue package for the ailing CR-Z program by stuffing its engine bay full of a 2.0-litre i-VTEC four-cylinder engine and a six-speed gearbox to create a sharper, more-aggressive model that was also cheaper to build.

However, sources insist the program, which was near production readiness, was killed off recently at the personal insistence of Honda's president.

"The green credentials of having a sports Hybrid were important to Honda and heavily publicised when the car launched," sources say.

"But the car is not selling well anywhere in the world and many people here thought the 2.0-litre program would go a long way towards saving it.

"The word came from the top, so we had to kill it off," the source said.

http://www.carsales.com.au/news/2011...prospect-24898

highwaystardoritos

in our area we've sold a lot of CRZ's. It's got a decent market here, but it's just painfully slow to do much else. I think it would have hurt Civic Si sales, I would pick a CRZ Si any day over a Civic Si

S2K-DJ

I can't believe people are buying them. Less power than a Civic, less mpg than a Civic, and more expensive than a Civic. Surely whatever novelty this car has in some places will fade very quickly. I too would take a CR-Z SI over a Civic SI. I do like the way the car looks, no doubt. If it had 160-170hp at least with the same gas mileage at around $20k, it would be worth looking into.

A 2

I have read this as well.If I'm not mistaken this has been out for a while. My understanding though was that it would contain a hybrid system with a bigger motor with a cumulative potential output of 160-170 HP.

Saki GT

Fwiw, that article is from Australia, but their car market is pretty interesting as well.

http://www.caradvice.com.au/117477/a...ures-analysis/

Saki GT

In other news, the Mugen CR-Z was unveiled today - http://www.whatcar.com/car-news/hond...-r-pace/257079

Priced for the die-hard Honda fan, apparently.

newyawkballa

I saw a black one inside the dealership and I was in love.

Steponme

It's a shame if that article has any validity to it. Honda could easily have 2 versions of the car: hybrid and petrol.

NuncoStr8

The shame is that Honda didn't introduce the model with a 2.0 gas engine, with a hybrid option. Then they'd at least have a kinda sporty car.