SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8
This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here probably applies to the models you can get at home.
*To read one of our road tests, just select from the menu on the left.
*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.
We drive the Honda CR-Z hybrid sport coupé
Pulls like a pit pony
Published in The Witness Motoring on Wednesday November 24, 2010
Let's get something out of the way first; the Honda CR-Z may be hybrid but it is not quite the same as a Prius or an electrified Lexus. For one, you cannot drive on battery power alone and second, the electric motor does not kick in like a turbo.
Responsible for only 10 kW of power, but delivering a useful 78 Nm of torque at low to medium revs, it is installed between engine and gearbox. In this position it doesn’t feel like an added power source at all. The result is that the assisted 1.5 litre Jazz motor makes 90 percent as much power as a Civic 1800, and the same torque output of 174 Nm, but it peaks at 1 500 rpm rather than 4 200 rpm on the bigger motor. A six-speed manual gearbox transmits power to the front wheels.
The small economical engine pulls like a pit pony from just above idle and sprints quite well, doing zero to 100 in 10.2 seconds. Honda calls it a parallel hybrid drivetrain with integrated motor assist, or IMA. As others have done before, Honda added a driver-selectable three-mode control system, each with its own set of operating parameters for throttle response, steering feel and IMA boost.
To best suit prevailing driving conditions, personal preferences and requirements, or to optimise operating efficiency, Normal, Sport and Econ are easily selected from a small wing off to the right of the steering column and engage instantly.
Normal, as its name suggests, looks after the needs of daily driving, with standard responses to accelerator and steering. Sport sharpens up reaction and feel, while Econ is probably best suited to traffic jam conditions. Steering is the same as in normal mode, accelerator response is more relaxed to simulate feather-footed driving and the single channel aircon defaults to 'recirc' to save energy. Common to both econ and normal modes is stop-and-start that turns off the engine when stopped and out of gear, and restarts when the clutch is depressed and first gear selected.
Dash displays show the mode you are in, the amount of assistance being used, the state of the battery and recharge rate, real time fuel consumption and how economically you have driven since the start of your journey. There is the by now almost mandatory reminder of when to change gear, as well. Being a cussed individual who prefers to make his own decisions about that, I was pleased to see that the reminder switches off in sport mode.
Because this car is a hybrid sport coupé, there are a couple of trade offs. Forget seating any but the tiniest in the back - it's OK, there are ISOFIX anchorages for kiddie chairs. And the boot loses some depth to the 100.8-volt NiMH battery. There is still 196 litres of cargo space though, and it expands to 370 litres when the single backrest is folded down. A neat twist is that the pullout cargo cover can be removed and attached to the floor, about two thirds of the way back. When the cover is pulled up and slotted into the upper notches, it creates a useful hiding space for small objects while giving the impression that the boot is empty.
The front seats are both mechanically adjustable for height and can be set to warm your pampered posterior in chilly weather. You sit low in this car with the steering wheel adjustable for both height and reach. It feels good. View out the front and sides is excellent, but rearward is a bit odd, as you look partly through a vertical glass panel in the boot hatch and partly through the back window, with a horizontal 'bar' between them. I'm sure one would adjust eventually.
Equipment on the CR-Z includes six airbags, active headrests, Vehicle Stability Assist and Hill Start Assist, as well as ABS with EBD and EBA for the all-disc braking system. Automatic climate control is standard, together with a 360 watt, six-speaker CD receiver with a boot-mounted subwoofer. The system includes an iPod-compatible USB port. Also standard is leather upholstery, a chunky leather steering wheel with audio, cruise and information controls, alloy pedals, and HID headlights.
It's hard to describe the driving sensation of the CR-Z: it pulls hard with torque available from almost zero revs, it accelerates well and it handles nicely, but something is missing. It does everything right, but you find yourself missing the cheaper car you drove last week... It's the way you sometimes feel after a wonderful date. S/He's perfect for you, but there's no magic...
The numbers
Price: R299 900 (117 gm CO2 per km)
Engine: 1 497 cc SOHC 4-cylinder 16 valve, with IMA
Total power: 91 kW at 6 100 rpm
Total torque: 174 Nm at 1 500 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 10.2 seconds
Maximum speed: 200 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: about 6.3 l/100 km
Tank: 40 litres
Warranty: 3 years/100 000 km
Service plan: 5 years/90 000 km
This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.
What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.
I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go to kick back and relax.
So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!
Comments?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you thoroughly disagree with what I say? That's your privilege, because if everybody agreed on everything, the world would be a boring place. All I ask is that you remain calm, so please blow off a little steam before venting too vigorously. Contact me here
Back to Home page
This site is operated by Scarlet Pumpkin Communications in Pietermaritzburg.
Unless otherwise stated, all photographs are courtesy of www.quickpic.co.za
Copyright this business. All rights reserved.
SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8