Honda's new CR-Z in KL

Mention the word hybrid and frugal fuel consumption comes to mind first, ahead of fun, zippy driving or aggressive looks.

Honda’s CR-Z or Compact Renaissance Zero wants to turn that perception on its head.

With its aggressive wedge-shaped body that leans toward the futuristic, it could be said that the CR-Z’s appeal stems more from its flashy looks than any fuel-sipping capabilities.


If not for the hybrid badge at the rear, almost all of our friends who saw our test unit from Honda Malaysia would have not thought of it as a hybrid.

“Nice sports car. The turbo engine must be very powerful. This one cannot be a hybrid-lah,” were some of the quips received during our two days’ drive with the car.

To set the record straight, the CR-Z is not turbo-charged but gets its Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) hybrid drive system with a 14hp electric motor from the Honda Insight 1.3-litre hybrid.

But to give the CR-Z an extra boost, it uses the larger 1.5-litre single cam i-VTEC engine with 114bhp – similar to that used in the Honda Jazz.

And it gets a six-speed manual transmission for a more engaging driving experience instead of a continuously variable transmission like most of other Japanese hybrids.

Honda Malaysia says a hybrid car featuring manual transmission would appeal to hybrid enthusiasts who want a balance between performance and eco-friendliness.

However, we are confident that the CR-Z version featuring the easy driving continuously variable transmission would make its way onto Malaysian roads soon.

Basically a 2+2 coupe, the rear seats of the CR-Z are stingy with leg and head room. However, they do come useful in emergencies when you need space for a third or fourth person on board.

The front seats offer ample support and are as comfortable as any Honda model.

The CR-Z’s dashboard layout is easily one of the most striking I have ever seen in a mass produced car with its driver-focused cockpit styling and an array of electronic gauges and digital displays.

They make anything with analogue dials look so dated. Besides a solid dashboard build, switches and dials have a premium look and nice tactile feel to them.

Gear shifting on its manual transmission is accurate and with short throws makes slotting the gears a delightful experience.

The clutch pedal is among the lightest for manual cars which I have tested in a long time and does not tire out the left foot easily.

Even if you had not driven a manual car for years, the clutch bite is progressive so you will know when to throttle up a bit to prevent the engine from stalling.

In fact, my old school mate, KB, was able to drive the CR-Z easily although the last manual car he had driven was my mum’s Datsun 120Y.

And that was more than 25 years ago after he obtained his driving licence.

Though hardly the last word in feel, the electric steering is very responsive. That, together with a low-slung set-up consisting of wide tracks, short wheelbase and sports suspension means the CR-Z scores rather highly in agility and handling.

To help the driver achieve Honda’s claimed best fuel economy of 22.5km per litre (4.4 litre per 100km), a number of assistance systems are bundled in.

Among them are the instant fuel consumption read out display and the speedometer backlighting colour that stays green when the CR-Z is driven conscientiously but changes to blue the fuel is wasted unnecessarily.

Another useful aid is the shift indicator that prompts the driver to upshift or downshift to get the optimum gear position for lowest fuel consumption.

The CR-Z also comes with Normal, Econ and Sport drive modes. These alter the responses of the throttle, power steering assistance, idle stop timing, climate control and the level of assistance provided by the IMA hybrid system.

Under the Normal mode, the car is triggered to provide a balance between fuel economy and driving performance.

When I switched to Econ mode, the throttle became less responsive and the car felt lethargic but the plus side was improved fuel economy. This mode also increases the frequency of automatic engine shutdowns to further save fuel whenever the CR-Z is at idle or waiting for the traffic lights to change.

My favourite mode is Sport where the car felt more alive and willing to surge ahead with a slightest tap on the throttle, making me forget that I was driving a hybrid at all.

In this mode, the speedometer backlighting also changes to red and power assistance to the steering is reduced for more feel.
To build up speed, you have to rev the engine high and quickly upshift to maintain the momentum.

While doing this, you can see the hybrid power usage gauge showing full power delivered to the electric motor to assist the driving wheels.

Hard driving will use up the charge in the battery fast but the nickel metal hydride hybrid battery also recharges quickly from electric energy recovered from regenerative braking.

In this driving style, I never expected the fuel economy to come close to Honda’s official figures but the thrill was worth it.

Though the CR-Z is still quick and takes 9.9 seconds to do the 0-100kph sprint, it is in no way a performance beast.
However, a well-driven CR-Z should be able to keep pace with 2.0-litre family sedans.

Safety features include six airbags, anti-lock braking system, electronic brakeforce distribution, vehicle stability assist and Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body structure for enhanced occupant protection.

Standard equipment are halogen headlights with LED positioning lights, hill start assist, shark fin radio antenna, audio system with six speakers and USB/AUX support, cruise control and 16-inch wheels.

So, would Malaysian consumers go for a niche sporty manual hybrid car that is priced around RM115K? Yes, if you count the 1,000 plus booking for the car since its launch in November last year.

The CR-Z comes with a three-year/100,000km warranty and a six-month/10,000km free service. Meanwhile, the hybrid battery gets a five-year/140,000km warranty.

But should you need to replace the battery, it’s RM7,580.

Available colours are Premium White Pearl, Storm Silver Metallic, Milano Red and Crystal Black Pearl.