When it first appeared on the market, the CR-Z was a light sports car derived from the base Civic. While the chassis was similar, the car featured more powerful engines and a much more aggressive look. The current generation of the car is a lot more different than that. It still uses the same platform as the Civic but it is now available with a hybrid powertrain which is average at best meaning that many people preferred to ignore this model altogether. The more interesting part is that not too long ago a concept was leaked with the 2018 Honda CR-Z which is a lot more different than what we first thought.
2018 HONDA CR-Z PRICE
Unlike the ongoing generation the new car is expected to be part of the Civic lineup so it will return to its roots. On top of that the new Honda CR-Z 2018 is expected to become Honda’s future high performance Civic model for the US market where the usual Type R might not be offered or it might be offered only in a sedan shape.
The CR-Z will be slotted above it, similar to what Ford does with the Focus ST and RS models. This also means that the base price for the car is going to increase quite a bit over what we currently known so don’t get too surprised when the CR-Z is going to hit the market at over $35,000.
DESIGN: INTERIOR AND EXTERIOR
One of the most important aspects of the upcoming 2018 Honda CR-Z is going to be the way it looks and the good part is that, so far, the renders of the upcoming model look amazing. Honda is expected to share some of the design cues with the all new generation Civic but in order to create a unique car they are certainly going to use some of the design of the original CR-Z with the rather short wheelbase, long cabin and really short back, similar to what the current CR-Z has but designed in a slightly more aggressive manner.
While the current model or even the previous generation of the Civic were quite basic and rather uninteresting inside the cabin, the future CR-Z is expected to be a lot more comfortable with much better quality materials and a more modern design. The first step was done with the new Civic which features a much better looking interior with cleaner lines and a lot better in terms of build quality. The CR-Z should follow closely with a likely identical dashboard but with much better sport seats, better materials as standard such as Alcantara or carbon fiber and even a better equipment level than most Civics.
ENGINE OF 2018 HONDA CR-Z
The heart of the upcoming 2018 Honda CR-Z is not going to be a tiny hybrid like on the current model but instead Honda is expected to install their brand new 2 liter turbocharged inline 4 petrol engine which was first released on the European Type R and later developed for the US market. This will be made in the US, unlike the unit built for Europe, and it should be quite a bit more different even though it will share its basic design with the European powertrain. We, as many others, expect Honda to release this new 2 liter engine with over 320 horsepower and 300 lb-ft of torque which should give the new CR-Z a fighting chance against the all new RS.
However, unlike many of its competitors the CR-Z will remain a front wheel drive car with a 6 speed manual transmission so it might be the best choice for those looking for pure driving pleasure. Also, while the performance levels might be a bit behind the RS, the CR-Z should be more than capable to keep up with the more expensive and likely more powerful Ford.