Living with a Honda CR-Z

So, to begin.

After trying my damn hardest to buy one of these as my first car, it was not to be. After trying and trying something always got in the way and I ended up buying a 2004 (54) Civic Sport instead - which almost blew up on me. 5 months past and in January 2016 I was finally able to buy what is quite possibly my new favourite car. So, what is it like to live with on a day to day basis?

Day to day driving:

Well, for such an awkward car, its surprisingly easy to drive each day. Providing you don’t have more than one passenger. Yes, if you haven’t seen the rear leg room in a CR-Z its basically non existent. I did manage to get my younger cousin in the back seat once whilst on a short journey. He was spread over the two rear seats, head crouched like he had a hump back then eventually had a sore neck when he got home.

Safe to say, if you have a small family or friends with no cars and want/need to take passengers, well, this isn’t the car for you. Then again who cares, that’s why they have buses.

Power:

The CR-Z is powered by a 1.5l Hybrid petrol engine making a modest 125hp and 107ib-ft of torque. It’s just enough to make this little hybrid fun enough to drive but it really could have done with just a bit more punch. Which is exactly what Honda did for the 2013-2016 models. They changed the batteries in the rear under the boot/trunk to Lithium-Ion ones which gave the engine an extra burst of power to 137hp.

Later models also included an S+ button on the steering wheel which when you are in Eco or Normal mode and press said button, the batteries come to life and give all the assistance to the engine making for a quick clean overtake. Or you could just have it in sport mode all the time..

Handling & Responsiveness:

The handling of the car in anything other than Sport mode simply feels like any other car. its light, quick and accurate which is easy for normal roads and city driving. But what happens when you’re on your favourite road, that twisting piece of tarmac you love to pin every apex on again and again? Well. This is where the CR-Z shines.

Yes lets get out all the Honda jokes out the way, may aswell!

                                                                        ''Hey bro! Your washing machine makes no power!''
                                                                          ''My lawn more makes more torque than that bro!''

But bro, your Mustang injures people at car shows for no apparent reason. Anyway..

The CR-Z’s handling in Sport mode gets heavier and it feels just right for the perfect hoon. Its not too heavy that it feels over-cumbered like it doesn’t actually want to turn at all and its not too light that you can’t feel the tarmac through your finger tips. It’s just right. Hats off to the engineers at Honda JP.

Responsiveness of the accelerator also increases or decreases depending on your driving mode . In Eco, the car really doesn’t want to move. In fact you have to thrash it to make progress. Normal mode it just feels, well normal. Like anything else and in Sport mode it becomes rather sensitive but once you get used to it feels great getting those shifts out of the corner nailed. Yes, I did type shifts..

Driving sensation:

Driving the CRZ to me feels special. Yes its FWD, Yes its not got a lot of power or torque and with the batteries in the rear, its heavier than it could be without them but it just feels perfect when you’re giving it a good blast on a country road or tearing down a motorway. The driving position is spot on, all the pods and pretty much all of the dashboard is pointed towards the driver, like its your own little cockpit. It partially is, passengers can’t see your instrument cluster, only you.

The purr of the little engine makes for quite a good noise, in Sport mode the exhaust crackles and pops. Ever so slightly but you do hear it and for me personally, that gives me a giggle and a smile on my face.

The fantastic, short throw 6Speed MT is a hoot. Since the batteries in the rear act as a Turbo to the combustion engine, they only give extra power. You can’t drive this Honda on electric power alone, thanks to IMA (Integrated Motor Assist). Taking this little car to the redline, smash down the clutch and engage the next gear, for it all to start up again is a lovely experience. Granted it redlines only at 7000rpm which isn’t a lot but still, it feels great!

Pros and Cons of long term ownership:

The pros outweigh the cons by quite a bit so lets start with them.

Pros:
Fantastic handling.
Good throttle response in Sport mode.
Easy on fuel - Full tank lasts me 2 weeks, driving it everyday and not exactly going slow all the time either.
Cheap roadtax - £20 for year for 2010 - 2012 models.
Rarity - Its quite amazing how rare this car is, I’ve went months without seeing any on the road.
Good size boot, it is quite shallow but if you put the back seats down its rather impressive.
Insurance - Also cheap because its classed as a 4 seater, even if you can only ever use 2.

Cons:
Power - Despite it being enough, I just wish it had a few more as standard on pre 2013 models.
Rear seats - They can’t be used whatsoever, but lets not kid ourselves. If you buy this car, you didn’t plan on it anyway.
MPG - Yes it does get good MPG but for what it is, a Hybrid, it does not. I average around 32.5MPG.

And that’s really it for the cons. I left out looks because that is in the eyes of the beholder. Most people I’ve spoke to don’t mind the odd, futuristic looks but a few of my friends think its pig ugly. I think its superb. One thing I love most, over the mechanical and styling parts of the car is just how rare it is, I had on heart have had a decent amount of people come up to me and ask me what it was, they seemed interested enough for me to talk about it and I’ve seen plenty of people turn heads.

I was actually out with a good friend of mine one night who also has one, we were standing in a takeaway and this man kept looking at the cars, looking at us, then the cars. Once we walked out he was asking us what the hell we were driving and was surprised to find out that it was a Honda. I love those moments.

The fantastic owners I can now call very good friends on the Honda CR-Z Owners Community on Facebook have been a blast to talk to and have fun with, even before I had one! So yes I do find it easy to drive one each day, and I highly recommend it to anyone wanting one but be warned. In the UK these cars are becoming even more rare, they don’t sell them here anymore. So what is already on our shores is the last of them, unless they bring out a new one which is supposedly coming in 2018.

Thank for reading.