4 Hybrids and 2 Diesels on the Way for Honda

2009 Honda FIT (2011 FIT Hybrid?!?) Nice.
Honda CRZ.
The Global Honda Hybrid, incorrectly termed 2010 Insight.
2010 Honda Stream/Latitude.

Honda seems to be the only major automaker making it through the tough times of high gasoline prices and for the future the Japanese automaker plans to keep doing what its doing - keeping compact and green. Honda plans to offer more hybrid and diesel technology in its future lineup which will also get smaller.

“A smaller minivan could fit into Honda’s future,” Dan Bonawitz, vice president for corporate planning and logistics at American Honda Motor Co., told Automotive News. ”Ultimately, there will be a lot more smaller cars. The U.S. will look a lot more like Europe.”

So far dealers are waiting on the arrive of the redesigned 2009 Honda Fit. A hybrid version of the Fit will arrive in 2011. Of course let’s the five-door hatchback that’s been keeping Honda in the headlines recently. The dedicated-hybrid model will arrive next year as a 2010 model year and will cost below $20,000.

Both of those hybrids will be followed by the Honda CR-Z hybrid that is due out in late 2011. The CR-Z will be followed by a redesigned Civic and Civic Hybrid along with a diesel powered Accord. The diesel engine will also make its way in the CR-V in 2010.

As for the gas-guzzling and larger models - the S2000 roadster’s future is unclear after sales have fallen off dramatically. The new redesign Pilot just hit the market this year and Honda has already cut production of the new SUV.

The Honda Ridgeline was just refreshed for the 2009 model year - the Element will see a redesign in 2010 along with the Odyssey. Another minivan, the Japanese Honda Stream, is expected to be imported to the U.S. by 2010 as a rival to the Mazda5.

Source; http://www.automotivenews.com/ subscription needed.

Honda considering bringing Japanese models to the U.S.

Aug. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Honda Motor Co., encouraged by U.S. demand for Fit subcompacts, is reviewing its Japanese lineup for other possible imports as near-record fuel prices spark interest in cars once viewed as too small or quirky.

"There are a couple of things that we are looking at again, whether they make sense right now,'' Dan Bonawitz, Honda's U.S. vice president for corporate planning, said in an interview yesterday, without naming specific models.

The U.S. introduction of the Fit in 2006, five years after its Japan debut, is helping Honda post gains in 2008 even as a slowing economy and gasoline that topped $4 a gallon erode industrywide demand. U.S. sales of the hatchback, rated at 30 miles per gallon in combined city and highway driving, jumped 73 percent through last month.

Those gains contributed to making Honda the only major automaker to expand U.S. sales this year. General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. are now also considering bringing in small cars designed for overseas markets.

Honda has studied the compact Stream wagon and a Japanese version of the Odyssey minivan that would be categorized as a station wagon in the U.S., Bonawitz said in an interview in Malibu, California. He declined to say whether either would be added to Honda's U.S. lineup.

The automaker is also benefiting from demand for fuel- efficient Civic small cars and four-cylinder Accords. Honda's U.S. sales have grown 3.2 percent this year, compared with an 11 percent industrywide decline through the first seven months.

The company won't rush any Japan market models to the U.S. until it's confident current U.S. patterns are likely to continue, said Bonawitz, who manages a team of U.S. product planners.
"We've got a fairly long-term product plan laid out and we're going to try to stick with that,'' Bonawitz said.

The company's U.S. headquarters are in Torrance, California.
To contact the reporter on this story: Alan Ohnsman in Los Angeles at aohnsman@bloomberg.net.

2009 or 2010 ?!? Honda Stream/Latitude

I get enough inquiries about this van that is currently not available in North America but has been rumoured to be brought aboard for the 2009 or 2010 model year (2009 seems unlikely, I haven't seen anything in Honda's ordering for the 2009 model matrix, although they could bring this vehicle over in limited supply and just 'drop ship' the vehicles into our inventory).

This is a van that would make a whole lot of sense for North America right now, people are looking for economical people-movers, and it doesn't get much better than the 1995-1998 Honda Odyssey (which is esentially what this van still is-a 4 cylinder, 7 passenger van).

Based on what Honda brought over to the malaysia, here is what I think will be brought over to us in North America;

-1.8 or 2.0 Litre sohc i-vtec engine with 140 - 160 horse power - 5-speed automatic transmission, with 4th and 5th being overdrive gears for better highway gas mileage.

-Front wheel drive

-Electric power steering and drive by wire throttle system

-MacPherson struts with a new side cancellation spring at the front, while the rear uses a compact reactive-link double wishbone.

-15" or 16" tires

-Tilt and telescopic steering wheel

-Air conditioning with micron filter

-Cruise Control

-Anti-lock Brake system with electronic brake distribution

-Front, side, and curtain airbags

-Available DVD and Navigation packages

-Both the second and third row seats can be folded down individually for a flexible seating configuration.

-Traction control with Vehicle stability assist

-Cd player with Mp3 playback and Auxillary input for i-pods etc.

-Keyless remote entry

-I hope they keep the 4-door aspect! (not a huge fan of sliding side doors).

-I'd expect a EX-L (leather package) with heated front seats.

Anyway, I think this van would be a sure winner in our market.

Here's a link to Honda's website on the van;

http://www.honda.net.my/models/stream.cfm

The Honda Stream or Latitude for the North American Markets in 2009?

According to the Temple of Vtec;

"Stream/Latitude (Crossover)
The buzz regarding bringing the Honda Stream into the US has been brewing for years, but we've yet to hear any sort of confirmation. Honda has been contemplating a crossover that would slot in between the CR-V and Pilot, and the Stream would almost be a candidate for that (at least in terms of passenger capacity), but it's based on the Civic architecture and is actually positioned below the CR-V in its home market. Whatever the case, we feel that Honda could capitalize on the US's renewed interest in small vehicles by placing the Stream into showrooms ASAP.

UPDATE: We've received word from a source that a new crossover is a go and it will be using the name 'Latitude'. Consistent with past rumors, it's also supposedly based upon the Accord architecture - so it's sounding less probable that it will simply be a re-badged Stream. It also sounds like that this may be one of the 2 "surprises". We're also thinking this will be positioned directly against the new Toyota Venza. Summary: An Accord-based crossover is supposedly on its way.

Available: 2009"

Here are some of my past articles on this subject;
http://thehondaportal.blogspot.com/2007/09/2007-honda-stream.html

http://thehondaportal.blogspot.com/2007/10/2010-honda-stream-update.html