Honda JAZZ Shuttle (Honda FIT Wagon) Released in Japan

by Gregory Sze of www.paultan.org

Revealed in full last month, the 2015 Honda Jazz Shuttle has finally gone on sale in its home market of Japan. The elongated, uber practical Jazz estate was first presented for JDM consumption way back in 2011, then based on the second-generation Honda Jazz (Fit) hatchback.

Prior to adopting the Shuttle nameplate, said vehicle was badged as the Honda Airwave instead. As for its styling, the latest Jazz Shuttle carries forward a number of aesthetic cues that may be familiar to Jazz owners including the marque’s “Solid Wing Face” front grille.

Elsewhere, “inline-type” LED headlights boast an ingenious design that, when lit up, allows the assembly to appear as a single piece – achieved by the placement of structures that reflect the LED light source. In profile, 16-inch wheels are featured, along with a bold crease of a line that extends just aft of the front wheels and terminate beneath the taillight assembly.

Under the skin, the 2015 Honda Jazz Shuttle is offered with a choice of a hybrid powertrain as well as a conventional petrol-powered variant. Said hybrid model is offered in three different flavours – a regular Hybrid trim, the mid-range Hybrid X and the range-topping Hybrid Z. The petrol unit comes in a single G-spec trim.

The hybrid variants employ the marque’s Sport Hybrid i-DCD powertrain layout which is made up of a 1.5 litre Atkinson cycle DOHC i-VTEC engine. Said mill is paired to a seven-speed DCT gearbox while juice comes courtesy of a lithium-ion battery. Power figures remain unknown but what we do know is that said powertrain records a fuel consumption figure of 34 km/l.

As for the regular petrol variant, a 1.5 litre direct-injection DOHC i-VTEC engine gets mated to a CVT gearbox. On both hybrid and petrol models, power goes to the front wheels as standard while an all-wheel drive option is offered. Other technical bits and bobs include the adoption of “front and rear amplitude reactive dampers”, supposedly meant to increase ride quality and high-speed stability.

On the inside, the interior has been designed to “create a relaxing cabin space for all occupants”, made possible with liberal applications of soft-touch panels throughout. The seats themselves are trimmed in what Honda calls “an ultra fine fibre” that is allegedly “smoother and softer than suede.”

Luggage capacity stands at 570 litres (including a 30-litre underfloor storage compartment) with the rear seats folded up. Fold them down and one gets a cargo room of 1,141 litres while the loading length gets increased to a total of 184 cm. The boot itself features a flat floor design coupled to a large tailgate aperture for easier loading of luggages.

An additional compartment is present in the form of a storage unit located underneath the loading bay – said storage box is made up of a stain-resistant plastic material. On the Hybrid X and Z variants, a pair of “multi-use baskets” are to be found on the back of the rear seats. When not required, said baskets are stored flush against the seatback.

Prices for the 2015 Honda Jazz Shuttle begin at 1,690,000 yen (RM50,472) for the FWD petrol model, AWD at 1,884,400 yen (RM56,278). The base, FWD hybrid is priced at 1,990,000 yen (RM59,432), the Hybrid X at 2,190,000 yen (RM65,405) and the Hybrid Z at 2,380,000 yen (RM71,080). All-wheel drive costs 2,184,400 yen (RM65,238), 2,384,400 yen (RM71,211) and 2,542,000 yen (RM75,918), respectively.

Source;
http://paultan.org/2015/05/15/2015-honda-jazz-shuttle-sale-japan/

Honda Shuttle Revealed for Japan (Think Wagon version of the Honda FIT/Jazz)

Hybrid version available

Following last month's leaked patent pics, Honda has taken the wraps off the 2015 Shuttle for the Japanese market.

Basically a wagon version of the new generation Fit/Jazz, the 2015 Shuttle comes with a significantly longer rear overhang granting superior cargo capacity over the standard supermini which offers 354 liters with rear seats up and 884 liters after folding them down. The official webpage of the product doesn't reveal an exact figure, but with the seats up the Shuttle should provide more than 500 liters of room judging by that massive rear end.

It will be available with an AWD hybrid setup consisting of a 1.5-liter Atkinson-cycle engine working together with an electric motor, a lithium-ion battery and a dual-clutch gearbox. In the Jazz/Fit supermini, this hardware arrangement enables the model to do 36.4 km/l (85.6 mpg US / 102.8 mpg UK or 2.7 liters / 100 km). A regular version with a 1.5-liter engine and a front-wheel drive layout will also be commercialized in Japan.

In terms of equipment, the range-topping version gets 16-inch alloy wheels, Honda smart key system, cruise control, navigation and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. It also benefits from LED technology in lighting clusters, heated front seats, roof rails, fog lights and wood trim on the doors and dashboard.

Honda says they will release more details about the Shuttle (JDM-spec) "soon."

Source;

http://www.worldcarfans.com/115041792340/honda-shuttle-revealed-for-jdm

Next Generation Honda FIT Shuttle Spotted Testing.... (not for North America)

For those of you that don`t know, the Honda FIT-Jazz has an extended wagon version called the Honda Shuttle that has been sold in different markets around the world (Japan, Malaysia, among others). Looks like Honda might be working on a successor....

Source;
http://minkara.carview.co.jp/en/userid/872304/blog/35170527/

Next Generation FIT Shuttle Information and Rendering (Not for North America)

I used Google Translate for the verbage below....

Wagon version of the Fit is a sign of the car model Honda Fit Shuttle. To deliver the information of the next-generation.

Current fit to be a third generation has been developed with a view to sale in the whole world . In addition to its fit , Vu~ezeru of crossover SUV will debut , and constitutes a global compact series with City that is sold in Thailand and India .

Not a global model , derived shuttle wagon has also been line-up to fit as you know . It was a driving force that has expanded again the domestic wagon market is supported as a hybrid wagon with a wide luggage compartment , there was shrinking .

The fit shuttle , running behind the scenes toward a model change . Of course , the basic components such as the chassis is diverted from the new fit , are wagon of being remade is mainly behind half . Like the current model , because the rear door to be shared with the fit probably , rear will be the exclusive design from ( the side window of the trunk part) quarter window .

The direction , likely to be fearless sport wagon is high. It 's look at is how to inherit and take advantage of the deep press line sculpted disposed in the side of the body fit . It will be followed in terms of vertical combination lamps have also been arranged . That luggage space large wagon unique is ensured a matter of course.

1.5L and 1.5L hybrid direct-injection is the powertrain lineup . Goodness of efficiency should be pursued 7-speed DCT Atkinson cycle engine , lithium ion battery are combined in the latter . On the other hand , fuel consumption and excellent ride that brisk CVT by the latest improved is likely to be incompatible with gasoline vehicles .

※ It is a prediction article of the release of our new car at 25 February 2014 . It does not guarantee publication

Source;
http://www.carsensor.net/contents/newmodel/_24634.html

Is Honda Nuts? Its Japan-Only Fit Wagon Would be a U.S. Hit

By Jim Motavalli May 24, 2011

Honda’s management has just made half of a good decision. Taking a page from Toyota’s playbook, it is enlarging the “family” of the popular subcompact Fit hatchback. The new Fit Shuttle, to officially debut next March, stretches the 31-mpg combined base car into a minivan/wagon, which is basically what Toyota did with the larger Prius V. But Toyota is selling the hybrid V in the U.S. and so far Honda has no such plans for the Shuttle. Are they crazy? It’s a perfect car for the American market.

Outdated thinking?
Honda’s thinking on withholding the Shuttle is probably historical, but it’s also probably outdated. What you might call mini-minivans are huge hits in Honda’s domestic market and in Europe, but have often flopped in the U.S. The Kia Rondo, discontinued after the 2010 model year, comes to mind. But the Rondo — which touted three rows of seats in a mini wheelbase, was trying to do too many things at once. It started out strong with 28,000 sold in 2008, but sales fell to half that in 2009.

Kia’s sales drop also make sense when you realize that larger SUV sales rebounded in 2009 when the $4 gas of 2008 went away. The Rondo was cramped, especially that third row. But now gas is up again and the roomy, five-passenger Shuttle could slot nicely into Honda’s lineup, especially if more weight doesn’t hurt fuel economy too much. According to Jack Nerad, an executive analyst at Kelley Blue Book:

In the present climate, the Shuttle could do very well. But it will depend on whether high gas prices turn out to be an era, or just a blip. If it’s an era, then in all likelihood the car could sell in significant numbers.

Trying to track future gas prices is like grabbing o to an eel, but if I were in Honda’s management suites I wouldn’t be banking on a sustained return to $2.50 or $3 gas — though there could be some decline during the summer.

The number one seller in Japan
The Fit is a huge deal in Japan, where with the hybrid version (also not available here) it has been the number one seller for 20 months (having dethroned the hybrid Prius, and offering similar fuel economy). And it’s no slouch in the U.S., either — on the strength of high gas prices, April sales (8,116) of the subcompact were up 72.7 percent in the U.S. compared to the same month in 2010.

Another Fit would be a welcome addition to the American lineup. The base car has found a market because it offers a C-segment interior in a B-segment body, with 50.7 cubic feet of storage space if you tuck the back seat under the fronts (one of five possible configurations).

There’s a new website up for the Shuttle (in Japanese), but it doesn’t say much beyond that the new car will have “a roomy interior and ample luggage space.” Given the exterior photos, the revised interior layout probably adds a bit of both.

Too many hybrids
For Japan, Honda will also make a hybrid Shuttle, and there things get a bit trickier. As Nerad points out, Honda has struggled finding a coherent hybrid strategy. The Insight lacks distinctiveness compared to the much better-selling Prius. The perennial also-ran and somewhat bland Civic Hybrid has been completely redesigned for 2012 as part of a much-needed overhaul of the Civic family. So throwing the Shuttle into that mix might mean too many hybrid offerings for the company’s American dealers.

Honda isn’t talking about its Shuttle intentions. According to spokesman Chris Naughton:

We don’t discuss future product, but we’re always looking at our international markets to determine what might be a good fit for the U.S.

A good fit, Chris, is more Fits! But we are, in fact, getting the Fit EV, a 100-mile electric, in calendar year 2012. Details of that program are lacking, though a small number of cars are going into California test fleets at Google, Stanford University and the City of Torrance. Honda needs to get more high-profile with this program if it wants to ensure success. It should be talking to charging partners, discussing markets, and more. The company seems to be more enthused about its FCX Clarity fuel-cell car, which goes into production in 2015.

I wouldn’t suggest that Honda should be seeing a goldmine in either hybrid or electric Fits, but the Shuttle is a gas price-driven home run for American showrooms. Fuel economy + utility = hit in 2011.

Source;
http://www.bnet.com/blog/electric-cars/is-honda-nuts-its-japan-only-fit-wagon-would-be-a-us-hit/4281