Paris Auto Show: Honda CR-Z facelift – more details and interior pix

More details about the facelifted Honda CR-Z, which made its surprise world debut a week ago in Indonesia. The car is being showcased in Paris, the venue where it was originally supposed to have premiered.

We reported that exterior changes were made up of a newly-designed front grille and front bumper, reworked fog lamps, new HID headlamps, rear LED combination lamps, door mirrors, rear diffuser and a new design 17-inch alloy wheel – no additions to that.

We also mentioned that the hybrid’s output had been upped, and the latest numbers have just a slight variation from that reported earlier, with the 1.5 litre i-VTEC mill offering 121 PS (earlier, 120 PS in Indonesia) at 6,600 rpm and 146 Nm at 4,800 rpm for the six-speed manual, while it’s 118 PS for the CVT, with the 100-volt IMA motor providing 20 PS and 78 Nm.

As for combined output from the IMA hybrid system, that’s pretty much spot on too, 137 PS (earlier reported as 136 PS in Indonesia) at 6,600 rpm and 190 Nm between 1,000 rpm to 2,000 rpm, a jump of 13 PS and 16 Nm over the pre-facelift. For the CVT, it’s 135 PS at 6,600 rpm and 172 Nm from 1,000 rpm to 3,000 rpm.

Aside from an interior pix and studio shots of the car in its Premium Northern Lights Violet shade, additional info reveals that the car now features a lithium-ion battery, and the change from the previous nickel-metal hybrid (Ni-MH) unit has helped increase the the motor’s power output from 14 PS (10 kW) to 20 PS (15 kW). Performance figures include a 0-100 km/h time of 9.0 seconds (9.7 sec on current car) and a top speed of 200 km/h.

Elsewhere, the engine has been updated with changes to the variable valve timing system and ECU. An anti-vibration knock sensor has been introduced and the material of the crankshaft has been upgraded.

Finally, an explanation of how the Plus Sport (S+) boost system works, even though it’s not all complete. If the battery is more than 50% charged, the driver can activate the system using the S+ button on the steering wheel. When the accelerator is pressed, an electric boost delivers increased acceleration for up to 10 seconds.

A flashing gauge on the dashboard indicates when the system is active, and S+ can be used in Econ, Normal or Sport modes. No word as to how much it all is in specific numbers in terms of output and performance improvement, so that’s a pretty half-baked explanation thus far.

Source;
http://paultan.org/2012/09/28/honda-cr-z-facelift-more-details-and-interior-pix/