The question of the 'Hot' CR-Z : the official Honda answer

The 'new' CR-Z, actually the mid-term MMC for the CR-Z was officially launched in Malaysia on February 21st last week. This is actually very fast as the MMC was launched in Japan barely a few months away. When the CR-Z was first launched here, I asked a question to Norio Tomobe-san, the LPL for the CR-Z which it seems was quite widely circulated. I asked him about the rumours of the 'hot' CR-Z which was continously making its rounds especially in the internet and on UK magazines. At that time, he gave me a 'thumbs up' which I took it to mean 'YES' and excitedly reported it. Unfortunately nothing happened at all for more than a year. To be honest, I had more or less gave up and had written Honda off for making a fake promise. 

When the MMC for the CR-Z was launched, I saw that it endowed the CR-Z with 12ps more along with a few other 'performance' upgrades. Suddenly it struck me, that I might have misinterpreted Tomobe-san's answer all along. It seems quite likely that Tomobe-san might well have been thinking about this MMC when he gave me the thumbs up, while I was actually referring to rumours of the CR-Z Type-R and such. 

So during the press conference for this MMC, I decided to ask the same question again. But this time more directly and more bluntly. And this time, instead of publishing my understanding of his answer, I took a video of him answering (and the translator's answer in english) and posted that video up so you can listen to the answer yourself and make your own judgement and interpretation of it. This time, the PA system is quite clear and I hope you can hear the answer much better.

I only video'ed what I will call the 'official Honda answer' to my question. To give you the whole picture, below is roughly the question I asked to Tomobe-san:

Firstly, congratulations to Honda for launching this 'new' CR-Z MMC. It is much needed to help ensure the continued success of the CR-Z here in Malaysia (Asia).

Ever since the CR-Z was launched a few years ago, there have been incessant talks and rumours about a 'hotter' version, a high performance version. A couple of years ago, the U.K. magazines Autocar and Auto Express published articles stating Honda officially confirms that a hot high performance version of the CR-Z is being developed and will be launched soon. Auto Express claims that a CR-Z Type-R will debut at the end of 2011 and as we all know, nothing happened at all. When the CR-Z was launched here in Malaysia, I also asked the same question directly to you, Tomobe-san, to which you also confirmed the rumour. So my question to you now is this : is this 'new' CR-Z MMC that 'hotter version' ? Or NOT ?

The video of Tomobe-san's answer is below. An additional info which is relevant to this answer is that I have been told that as R&D engineers goes, Tomobe-san is very senior in the organization and thus well respected and very influential. So at one time it was suggested to me that whatever Tomobe-san wishes to do, management typically lets him do it.

So do your own interpretation from the video and we welcome you to share and discuss it here.

'New' CR-Z coming to Malaysia this month

For Malaysian enthusiasts who might have been waiting eagerly, the 'new' (i.e. MMC) CR-Z will be launched here in Malaysia this month itself, the 21st, in fact right after the 'Chinese New Year' week (i.e. next week), less than 2 weeks away. 

My understanding is we will be getting the JDM-spec version, with the 'new' 136ps engine and not the lame one used in the 'new' USDM CR-Z. Following this, the rest of ASEAN will of course be getting this car as well. In the media gathering, I overheard that there will be a private Q&A session with the CR-Z LPL the day before the launch but reserved for selected people only so expect news of the 'new' CRZ to start coming out on the 20th. We will be asking our questions during the press conference in the launch day itself.

Another answer to the Honda Proton collaboration

This video is taken from the same press conference and is of Honda Malaysia's new COO Mr Roslan bin Abdullah answering the same question as Yoichiro Ueno-san - about the Honda-Proton collaboration. The answer is a bit more intelligible this time but the PA system volume was quite low so you need to turn up the volume on your computer speakers in order to hear what Mr Roslan was saying (basically nothing more than what we have already reported here on 'Honda Fan').

Honda Malaysia CEO's official answer to the Honda Proton collaboration

The by now infamous announcement about the Honda-Proton collaboration continues to be of interest to many Honda fans with many questions still unanswered. To date, other than the original press release, neither party has made any further clarifications. As Proton is a Malaysian car manufacturer, naturally we are expected to be in a position to find out most about the details of this collaboration.

A few months ago, I managed to get an unofficial comment from a Honda Malaysia person whom told me that the agreement was only for a feasibility study and nothing more. In yesterday's Honda Malaysia event for the media, the same question was asked to the panel of senior Honda Malaysia managers during the press conference. This time however, clearly the answer has to be an official version.

The video in this post is of the Honda Malaysia CEO Yoichiro Ueno-san's official response to this question. I am posting the video so that readers will be able to hear the whole answer themselves instead of reading my interpretation of it. 

The video is captured on my Panasonic digital camera using the video mode and is in 1080p AC3 (2 channels). Unfortunately the PA system is very echo-y and this is captured by the camera. The echos makes the answer difficult to hear at times but I had the same problem during the actual press conference itself.

HONDA CITY TOPS ASEAN NCAP SAFETY RATINGS

Honda City was rated 5 Stars in Adult Occupant Protection and achieved the highest rating in Child Occupant Protection among 8 vehicles tested.

Honda Malaysia today announced that the Honda City model, has achieved 5 Stars in Adult Occupant Protection and the highest safety ratings in Child Occupant Protection in the ASEAN New Car Assessment Programme (ASEAN NCAP) crash test.

The results were released by the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (MIROS) at the ASEAN NCAP open day in Ayer Molek, Melaka. A total of eight car models were subjected to an offset frontal collision test at a closing speed of 64 km/h.

Honda Malaysia Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Yoichiro Ueno said, “Safety is Honda’s commitment and priority. We always proactively comply with new regulations. We are pleased to note that the Honda City achieved 5 Stars rating score in the Adult Occupation Protection and highest in Child Occupant Protection. The crash test reaffirms the high safety standards of the current Honda City on Malaysian roads. In fact, all Honda cars’ safety standards and crashworthiness meet the UN Economic Commission of Europe (UNECE)’s R94 and R95 regulations. Honda is committed to continuous research and development of advanced technologies that enhance the safety of the driver and passengers.”

TIME TO FREED! HONDA MALAYSIA DEBUTS THE NEW FREED IN MALAYSIA.

Honda Malaysia Sdn Bhd today introduced the New Freed in Malaysia. This Best Urban MPV adopts Honda’s innovative technology that offers spaciousness, stylish design, advanced features and quality. The New Freed enhances both driver’s and passengers’ comfort with its practicality, improved features, interior and exterior design. These transformations make the improved version of Freed an even ideal car for young professional urban families, who aspire for a quality lifestyle.

Honda Malaysia Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Yoichiro Ueno said, “We are pleased to introduce the New Freed, which is a product that maximizes the joy of driving for Malaysian motorists. The latest Freed is a Completely Build-Up (CBU) unit from Indonesia. To-date, Honda Malaysia has sold over 2,500 units of Freed since its launch.”

The transformed Freed features a number of enhancements that cater to young professional urban families or professionals who appreciate spending time with family and friends, and also enjoy outdoor living. It comes with 5-speed auto transmission powered by 1.5L i-VTEC engine that promises fuel efficiency with lower gravity and stable run.

Providing premium comfort to both driver and passengers, the Grade E Freed is equipped with plush leather seats while the introduction of armrest on both sides are available in both Grade E and Grade S. The driver’s seat height adjuster further emphasizes comfort based on individual preference. The extraordinary feature of the Freed is its unique flat floor design for passengers to move easily in the car. Cargo loading and unloading is also made more convenient with the low tailgate opening.

Other features of the New Freed are as follow:

Exterior	Interior	Utility
·      Chrome Front Grille ·      Chrome Rear License Plate Garnish ·      Stylish Front Bumper ·      Sporty 15” Alloy Wheels	·      Dual Layer Dashboard with Chrome Plating ·      New Coloured Multi Layer Meter Cluster	·      Automatic Sliding Doors with Remote Control* ·      Walkthrough Cabin ·      Third Row Foldable Seats

Safety features that are available in this stylish Honda Freed MPV: dual front SRS airbags, 6-Star Japanese New Car Assessment Program (JNCAP), G-Force Control Technology (G-Con), Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD), Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) and Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS).

The New Honda Freed family car comes in two variants: Grade S and Grade E. The Grade S is available in Brilliant White Pearl, Polished Metal Metallic and Crystal Black Pearl, whereas Grade E comes in Brilliant White Pearl.

Honda Malaysia offers 5 years or sixty (60) months warranty with unlimited mileage, from the date of registration. This unlimited mileage warranty is applicable only when regular preventive maintenance is performed as per required intervals. Customers are also entitled to a Free Service Coupon (FSC) to enjoy up to six times of free labour charge during service. The FSC coupon is applicable for the 1,000km; 10,000km; 30,000km; 50,000km; 70,000km and 90,000km mileage service.

The Best Urban MPV Honda Freed offers a complete package of premium comfort, spacious cabin and best utility for the best quality travel experiences to owners. The on-the-road price of Freed S is RM 99,800 and Freed E is priced at RM 113,500.

It is time to Freed! Customers can test drive and place their booking for this latest Best Urban MPV at any authorized Honda dealers nationwide. For more information, please call Honda Toll Free number at 1-800-88-2020, or log on to www.honda.com.my.

TOV talks to Erik Berkman on the new NSX

For readers who are not members or a regular at our forums, TOV principal Jeff Palmer met up briefly with Erik Berkman, one of the lead designers of the new 2G NSX during the recent NAIAS. As the conversation was informal, Jeff did not put it in a formal article but shared it in our forums. Extracted and quoted below are Jeff's quick summary of his conversation with Berkman.

Basically he re-affirmed some of the stuff that been out there, particularly the 'reference list' of 3 or 4 performance targets (458, GT-R, McLaren MP4-12C, R8 GT). Said they have very rigid targets on power to weight ratio (which implies performance bogeys) and are very serious about meeting or surpassing those targets, but said top fuel efficiency is #1 target. Acknowledged that the competition is pretty stiff and they love the challenge. Hoping to beat the targets but noted something to the effect of 'even if we fall short, it won't be by much and it will still be one HELL of a performer' (that's paraphrased). I indicated that to me a 10th of a second here or there wouldn't matter as long a the overall driving experience was one of the best, as the past NSX offered a very rewarding driving feel/connection that other 'faster' cars couldn't touch. I said it needed stay true to Honda/NSX's roots, and to have a visceral element (high revs, high hp/l, etc...). Low mass very important to me (I DEFINITELY don't want a fat TECHNO-tank like the GT-R). He didn't comment much but seemed to be in general agreement with my sentiments. Indicated that there's a LOT of work to be done. Oh, I suggested that since they boxed themselves in with the V6 hybrid decree that a turbo would almost be a necessity to meet their performance targets and I didn't really get much of a denial, nor any sort of confirmation on that. Now I'm wishing I remembered his exact words there but several times during our conversation he indicated I should probably see if I could get any more info from some of the team members. We have a pretty good relationship with Erik, and I told him I'd like to speak to him more formally at a later point and he said he'd love to talk to us some more, but we'd obviously have to go through the proper channels to get it set up. (PR gatekeepers).