Honda CR-Z review
by David Finlay (4 June 2010)
The fact that the CR-Z, Honda's first hybrid-drive sports car, is largely based on the Insight is not, as far as I'm concerned, a great start, since to me the Insight is the most disappointing vehicle in the entire C segment. But the CR-Z is really rather good fun.
The Insight connection is that the two cars share the same platform, roughly the same engine (though the CR-Z's is larger, at 1.5 litres) and the same electric motor. Visually, they also look similar - and in my view rather daft - at the rear, where neither has anything like a sufficient amount of glass, though the CR-Z bears a much closer resemblance to the S2000 at the front.
I like only two things about the Insight, and they are both carried over to the CR-Z. The first is the subtle way the engine fires up: one moment it isn't running, and the next it is, with almost no obvious mechanical clanking in between. The second is the steering, which is quite magical - light but very precise, and once again with hardly any sense of there being a mechanical connection between the wheel you're holding and the ones on the ground.
The engine is very quiet most of the time, becoming quite sporty-sounding towards the peak power speed of 6100rpm and then a little strangled in the last few hundred remaining revs before the limiter kicks in. You can control the noise levels of the CR-Z more accurately than you can those of the Insight, though, since this car has a close-ratio six-speed manual gearbox rather than the Insight's CVT automatic.
But you can't do much about the road noise, which is intrusive on anything other than very well-surfaced roads above about 20mph. That makes the CR-Z feel built down to a price, and so do the thin plastics used throughout the cabin (though Honda has done a much better job of designing the interior than it did with the Insight).
There's a total of 124bhp available, 112 of that coming from the engine and 14 from the motor - no, I realise that doesn't add up, but the two units don't offer their full potential at the same time. The point I was trying to make before you interrupted is that the CR-Z isn't a particularly powerful car, and therefore not a very fast one either; a 0-62mph time of 9.9 seconds isn't going to excite anyone.
However, the CR-Z justifies its description as a sports car by being very good through corners. It wouldn't be up to much on a race circuit, but you can place it as accurately as you need to on the public road, and it has a great deal of grip and a very good front/rear balance. It also rides well - a little fussily over sudden bumps, but nothing to get worked up about - so it's also enjoyable to drive even when you're just pottering around gently.
It's comfortable too, at least in the front, where there is plenty of room for two adults. The rear is so cramped that it's almost impossible to imagine anyone being able to use them, though in fairness not many owners are likely to want this to happen. The CR-Z isn't that kind of car.
As is generally the way with hybrids, there are three driving modes called Eco, Normal and Sport, selectable by prodding buttons to the right of the instrument panel. Each has its own distinct character, but nothing really fancy is going on: the differences are simply in throttle sensitivity and steering assistance, so the official combined economy and CO2 figures of 56.4mpg and 117g/km should be achievable whichever mode you choose.
All of the above applies to all three versions of the CR-Z - S, Sport and GT - since they vary only as regards levels of equipment. Honda reckons that the Sport, £1000 more expensive than the S at £17,999, will be the best-seller, though if you want a panoramic sunroof, heated front seats, automatic lights and wipers, auto-levelling headlights, front foglights and Bluetooth connectivity you'll have to choose the GT. But that costs £19,999 (not including the satellite navigation system which is an option on this version only) and frankly the CR-Z doesn't feel special enough to be worth anything like that sum.
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