Honda's Adieu to the Much Acclaimed CR-Z

MANILA: When most of the automakers are busy in enhancing their hybrid lineup, it seems Honda wants to capture the limelight by doing something different. Recently the brand introduced its special edition Honda City for the Filipinos and now the brand has announced to stop the production of its renowned CR-Z by the end of 2016. But, they have decided to do this in style, YES! Honda will be producing limited edition CR-Z sports model in Japan with “α Final label” to show its gratitude to its much praised model.

The reason behind ending the production of CR-Z is not revealed yet by the officials, but declining sales of CR-Z might be the reason behind ending the production. In 2015, only 732 models were sold in Japan, which is quite low when compared to the other models in the Honda's fleet. In 2016 also, the sales is quite low, as Honda has managed to sell only 388 models till May. Like Japan, CR-Z has not been able to perform well in the Philippines market as well, and only 10 models were sold between January and May 2016. Last year the brand tried to promote CR-Z with different kinds of promotions and events, among such attempts one was CR-Z selfie contest but despite several attempts, the sales number was mere 64 units in 2015. Clearly, Honda CR-Z has not performed as per the expectations and may be this is an appropriate step taken by the company.

Coming to the limited edition CR-Z, it will come with a special black interior, CR-Z Final Label embroidered on the sports seats, exclusive steering wheel garnish, and a special CR-Z Final Label badge in the centre console. Apart from this, the “CR-Z Final Label” logo can also be seen on the 17-inch aluminium wheels of this sporty hybrid hatchback. Under the hood the brand has not done any changes, and this special edition is equipped with the same 1.5-litre i-VTEC engine with 6-speed manual transmission or CVT. There is no news whether this special edition will be available in our market, but the customers of Japan can grab their hands on this special edition CR-Z from today onwards.