While the Honda CR-Z might have been expected to fade quietly away because of its meager sales, Honda is rumored to give the sporty coupe a second try and with turbo VTEC power.
Speaking to Car and Driver, a Honda source says the next-generation CR-Z will bow sometime in 2017, pitched as a halo coupe for the brand. Instead of being based on the Fit, the new coupe will be more like a shortened Civic, like the original CRX. The name could also be changed to Civic CR-Z, which sounds a lot like Civic CRX. Just saying.
That means the new CR-Z would use Civic engines, and in this case it’s tipped to get a version of the 2.0-liter turbo four that’s just been shown in the Honda Civic Type-R. C/D claims around 200 horsepower, rather than the Type-R’s 310. But still, that’s a welcome improvement over the 130 combined gas-electric output of the current CR-Z. At least in Japan, however, the CR-Z may still be available as a hybrid.
The idea of the CR-Z was always better than the execution, and sales never really topped 12,000 in this country. Last month, a lowly 175 cars were sold in the U.S., and it’s been dropped from Europe and other markets since last year. It just wasn’t the second coming of either the CRX or the first-gen Insight like people thought it was going to be.
Which is why I’ve been surprised to hear of no plans to drop the car, from the U.S. market at least. And a Civic-based successor with a turbo four might be the reason why.
Bring it on.
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