Honda: Fit/Jazz News
07-19-2013, 02:27 PM
#481
07-19-2013, 06:06 PM
#482
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07-19-2013, 10:56 PM
#484
07-20-2013, 09:36 PM
#485
Senior Moderator
I like it.
07-20-2013, 10:01 PM
#486
09-05-2013, 09:10 AM
#487
Race Director
http://www.autonews.com/apps/pbcs.dl...#axzz2e1jkPi5B
TOKYO -- Honda Motor Co. President Takanobu Ito called the redesigned Fit the company's "most important" car and predicted the nameplate would see its biggest sales jump in North America.
The third-generation of the small car, crucial to Honda's U.S. expansion plan, chalks big fuel efficiency gains over the outgoing model as well as a longer body and bigger interior.
Speaking at the Fit's launch today in Japan, Ito declined to give a sales target for North America. But he said the market holds the biggest growth potential for the Fit hatchback and its family of spinoffs, which are expected to include a crossover and sedan.
He is clearly aiming high. A new assembly plant is being built in Mexico with annual capacity for 200,000 vehicles.
It opens next spring, and the bulk of that output is expected to be Fit family vehicles targeting the U.S. market. That compares with North American sales of 57,900 in 2012.
High expectations
Globally, Ito said sales of the Fit hatchback and its variants will reach 1.5 million units by 2016. He predicted that the Fit family will eventually supplant the Civic sedan as Honda's No. 1 nameplate. It now ranks No. 4 behind the Civic, CR-V and Accord.
"This is the most important model," Ito said of the Fit, which goes on sale in Japan on Friday and should hit U.S. showrooms around mid-2014. "I have high expectations for demand."
The car is key to Ito's efforts to jolt the company back into growth mode on the back of new technology, more efficient product planning and fresher, eye-grabbing design.
The redesigned Fit claims a number of Honda firsts:
• It is the first vehicle showcasing the Honda brand's new sleeker, creasier design language, dubbed Exciting H Design.
• Its hybrid variant is the first using Honda's new one-motor, dual-clutch gasoline-electric drivetrain. That replaces the underpowered one-motor system that delivered what many deemed lackluster fuel economy in previous hybrids such as the Insight.
• The U.S. version will be the first Fit manufactured in North America. Also, the third-generation Fit is the first car coming out of Ito's overhauled global vehicle development strategy.
MPG imperative
Fuel efficiency will be a big selling point.
The hybrid, which mates a 1.5-liter Atkinson cycle four-cylinder to a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, delivers fuel economy of about 86 mpg, under Japan's testing regime. That marks a 35 percent improvement over the hybrid version of the current Fit, sold in Japan.
Senior Managing Officer Sho Minekawa predicted 70 percent of Japanese buyers would opt for the hybrid.
Japan is the Fit's biggest market. Last year, Honda sold 209,00 Fits here, including a wagon variant called the Fit Shuttle.
The traditional gasoline engines also achieve big improvements thanks to the deployment of Honda's new Earth Dreams engine lineup of fuel injected and otherwise tweaked power plants.
The 1.3-liter Atkinson cycle engine, mated either to a continuously variable transmission or five-speed manual, gets about 61 mpg -- roughly a 35 percent improvement over the previous model.
The 1.5-liter direct injection engine, combined with either a CVT or 6-speed stick shift, gets about 51 mpg, or about a 16 percent gain from the previous model.
Those fuel economy figures don't translate directly into U.S. EPA ratings because the testing cycle differs in Japan. But they give an idea of the level of improvement to be expected.
Bigger inside
The car has not yet received an EPA fuel economy rating.
The Fit, already known for wrapping a big interior inside a compact frame, ekes further gains there too.
Fit chief engineer Makoto Konishi extended the car's length by 5.5 centimeters (2 inches) to 3.955 meters (155.7 inches), while increasing the wheelbase by 3 centimeters (1.2 inches).
This allowed for an additional 8 centimeters (3 inches) between the front and rear seats and a wider cabin with 3.5 centimeters (1.4 inch) of additional shoulder space in the front.
The car's overall height and width remain unchanged.
The third-generation of the small car, crucial to Honda's U.S. expansion plan, chalks big fuel efficiency gains over the outgoing model as well as a longer body and bigger interior.
Speaking at the Fit's launch today in Japan, Ito declined to give a sales target for North America. But he said the market holds the biggest growth potential for the Fit hatchback and its family of spinoffs, which are expected to include a crossover and sedan.
He is clearly aiming high. A new assembly plant is being built in Mexico with annual capacity for 200,000 vehicles.
It opens next spring, and the bulk of that output is expected to be Fit family vehicles targeting the U.S. market. That compares with North American sales of 57,900 in 2012.
High expectations
Globally, Ito said sales of the Fit hatchback and its variants will reach 1.5 million units by 2016. He predicted that the Fit family will eventually supplant the Civic sedan as Honda's No. 1 nameplate. It now ranks No. 4 behind the Civic, CR-V and Accord.
"This is the most important model," Ito said of the Fit, which goes on sale in Japan on Friday and should hit U.S. showrooms around mid-2014. "I have high expectations for demand."
The car is key to Ito's efforts to jolt the company back into growth mode on the back of new technology, more efficient product planning and fresher, eye-grabbing design.
The redesigned Fit claims a number of Honda firsts:
• It is the first vehicle showcasing the Honda brand's new sleeker, creasier design language, dubbed Exciting H Design.
• Its hybrid variant is the first using Honda's new one-motor, dual-clutch gasoline-electric drivetrain. That replaces the underpowered one-motor system that delivered what many deemed lackluster fuel economy in previous hybrids such as the Insight.
• The U.S. version will be the first Fit manufactured in North America. Also, the third-generation Fit is the first car coming out of Ito's overhauled global vehicle development strategy.
MPG imperative
Fuel efficiency will be a big selling point.
The hybrid, which mates a 1.5-liter Atkinson cycle four-cylinder to a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, delivers fuel economy of about 86 mpg, under Japan's testing regime. That marks a 35 percent improvement over the hybrid version of the current Fit, sold in Japan.
Senior Managing Officer Sho Minekawa predicted 70 percent of Japanese buyers would opt for the hybrid.
Japan is the Fit's biggest market. Last year, Honda sold 209,00 Fits here, including a wagon variant called the Fit Shuttle.
The traditional gasoline engines also achieve big improvements thanks to the deployment of Honda's new Earth Dreams engine lineup of fuel injected and otherwise tweaked power plants.
The 1.3-liter Atkinson cycle engine, mated either to a continuously variable transmission or five-speed manual, gets about 61 mpg -- roughly a 35 percent improvement over the previous model.
The 1.5-liter direct injection engine, combined with either a CVT or 6-speed stick shift, gets about 51 mpg, or about a 16 percent gain from the previous model.
Those fuel economy figures don't translate directly into U.S. EPA ratings because the testing cycle differs in Japan. But they give an idea of the level of improvement to be expected.
Bigger inside
The car has not yet received an EPA fuel economy rating.
The Fit, already known for wrapping a big interior inside a compact frame, ekes further gains there too.
Fit chief engineer Makoto Konishi extended the car's length by 5.5 centimeters (2 inches) to 3.955 meters (155.7 inches), while increasing the wheelbase by 3 centimeters (1.2 inches).
This allowed for an additional 8 centimeters (3 inches) between the front and rear seats and a wider cabin with 3.5 centimeters (1.4 inch) of additional shoulder space in the front.
The car's overall height and width remain unchanged.
09-05-2013, 04:10 PM
#490
This one looks better than the hybrid on the previous page. The front end looks much better with the fog lights/LED lights and dark grille trim, and the side skirts help a lot.
Hybrid:
Non-hybrid:
Hybrid:
Non-hybrid:
09-06-2013, 04:32 AM
#492
11-14-2013, 07:20 AM
#493
Safety Car
Japan
Japan loves the new compact hybrid
The all new Honda Fit, which also comes in a hybrid version, might be small, but it's making big waves in its home market, displacing the perennially best-selling Prius hybrid during the month of October. That's only the original Prius, though. The Prius C hybrid, which is called the Toyota Aqua in Japan, is also selling quite well and if you add the two together they sell significantly more than the Fit. So it all depends how you look at it.
Deliveries of the Fit more than doubled from a year earlier to 23,281 units last month, according to data released today by the Japan Automobile Dealers Association. That compared with 20,886 for the Prius and 19,984 for the Aqua, the figures show.
While the hybrid version of the new Fit is most interesting to us, even the non-hybrid should be quite fuel-efficient (there's no US MPG rating yet).
As we always say, it's better for the environment to walk, bike, or take transit. But if you have to drive (not everybody lives in cities, and it can be harder to always use alternatives in non-urban areas), find the most-fuel efficient model that meets your needs. For a lot of people, a space-efficient subcompact like the Fit is more than enough.
11-20-2013, 07:17 AM
#494
Safety Car
Green Car Reports
The new 2015 Honda Fit will have a combined EPA gas mileage rating of 36 mpg, according to Honda officials.
That's the 2nd-highest rating for any 5-door subcompact hatchback, and notably improves on the current 2013 Fit's highest rating of 31 mpg.
In a company media preview held 2 days ago at Honda's global research and development center in Togichi, Japan, the rating was announced by the company's executive in charge of product and brand strategy for automobiles, Toshihiko Nonaka.
The 36-mpg Fit model will use a 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine and Honda's new continuously variable transmission (CVT), which replaces the 5-speed automatic transmission offered on all Fits through the 2013 model year. (There will be no 2014 Fit.)
The U.S. market will not be receiving the Honda Fit Hybrid model that is already the company's best-selling Fit version in Japan, however.
With a price that's roughly $3,000 higher than the standard Fit, Honda doesn't feel the added fuel economy would justify the extra cost in the price-sensitive U.S. subcompact market.
The U.S. 2015 Fit also won't have the start-stop feature offered on Fits in other markets, to reduce acceleration lag, it appears.
Honda is proud that its new 2014 Honda Accord Hybrid received a 47-mpg combined rating, Nonaka said at the briefing.
The new 2015 Fit will combine "dynamic performance and innovative styling," he said, with best-in-class fuel economy.
Indeed, only 1 2014 subcompact does better: the 2014 Ford Fiesta SFE model, fitted with a 1.0-liter 3-cylinder EcoBoost turbocharged engine.
Some observers suggest a small asterisk may need to be appended to the 3-cylinder Fiesta's rating, because real-world mileage achieved by drivers of Ford vehicles with larger EcoBoost engines has often been considerably lower than their EPA combined ratings.
1 model of the 2014 Nissan Versa Note is rated at 35 mpg combined, using a 1.6-liter engine and Nissan's own CVT. The best 2014 Chevrolet Sonic and Toyota Yaris models come in at 33 mpg combined.
While the 2014 Mitsubishi Mirage is rated at 40 mpg combined, it's considered a minicar--and is considerably slower than the 2015 Fit will be.
The new 2015 Fit for North America will be built in Mexico, in a plant modeled heavily on the Honda's advanced new Yorii assembly plant for the Fit in Japan.
Specifications, features, and pricing for the new 2015 Honda Fit will be issued closer to its on-sale date next spring, most likely in January.
Honda provided airfare, lodging, and meals to enable High Gear Media to bring you this 1st-person report.
11-20-2013, 08:05 AM
#495
Senior Moderator
Thread Starter
@ no Hybrid in the US? Thought it was simple, drop the Insight and start selling this instead. I'd have to imagine they'll bring it over at some point.
11-26-2013, 04:52 PM
#499
I drive a Subata.
iTrader: (1)
Why is that "City" in this topic?
11-26-2013, 06:05 PM
#501
I drive a Subata.
iTrader: (1)
There are ton of models from a brand that share the platform.
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Sly Raskal (11-28-2013)
11-26-2013, 07:46 PM
#503
I drive a Subata.
iTrader: (1)
11-26-2013, 11:43 PM
#504
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11-27-2013, 06:14 PM
#505
You'll Never Walk Alone
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When you look at the Yaris, there's the Yaris sedan and Yaris hatchback. How about the Versa? Versa sedan and Versa hatchback?
Honda might just combine the City and Fit under Fit (i.e. Fit sedan, Fit hatchback). Who knows. So should we start a separate topic on the "City" or "Fit Sedan"? May be? May be Not?
11-27-2013, 08:20 PM
#506
there are not any Honda models that share platform. Fit and City are now same interior, engines and platform. even the front end has become almost the same. USDM models will come with larger standard rims so side profile will be much better.
11-28-2013, 05:20 PM
#509
11-28-2013, 08:06 PM
#511
The newer one has longer wheel base so I think much better ride.
http://www.hondasacuras.com/2013/07/...h-7-speed.html
The wheelbase has in fact grown by around 50mm,
You sit marginally lower than before, and you can feel the car’s improved stability from the off. The Jazz also feels bigger and sturdier than its predecessor, but turns in eagerly with virtually no understeer and plenty of feedback through the wheel. There’s not much body roll for such a high-sided car, and the tyres grip well in tight corners
The wheelbase has in fact grown by around 50mm,
You sit marginally lower than before, and you can feel the car’s improved stability from the off. The Jazz also feels bigger and sturdier than its predecessor, but turns in eagerly with virtually no understeer and plenty of feedback through the wheel. There’s not much body roll for such a high-sided car, and the tyres grip well in tight corners
11-29-2013, 11:37 AM
#512
That's our SSFTSX, always discussing the important parts of a car. Side mirror aerodynamics, ground clearance, HVAC vent location... now he's all about that flat floor hype. That and shorter overhangs than the competition. That's what sells!
By the way, I also noticed that the Fit/Jazz has shallower door pulls than the Mazda. That probably equates to a 0.03 mpg increase!
By the way, I also noticed that the Fit/Jazz has shallower door pulls than the Mazda. That probably equates to a 0.03 mpg increase!
11-29-2013, 11:52 AM
#513
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hahaha he's very "detail oriented" for sure!
Back on topic, 50mm longer wheelbase (2") is quite nice. It doesn't sound much but the benefits should be quite noticeable.
Back on topic, 50mm longer wheelbase (2") is quite nice. It doesn't sound much but the benefits should be quite noticeable.
12-02-2013, 12:29 AM
#514
30 minute video on every thing about Honda Fit based models along with Tokyo motorshow
http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/the...ides-in/299692
New Honda Fit is the most important launch in Honda history as almost 4 new factories simultaneously are launching it.
http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/the...ides-in/299692
New Honda Fit is the most important launch in Honda history as almost 4 new factories simultaneously are launching it.
http://www.autonews.com/article/2013...#axzz2mI2OppjL
Honda's new plant takes manufacturing to the next level
Read more: http://www.autonews.com/article/2013...#ixzz2mIR5qqpA
Follow us: @Automotive_News on Twitter | AutoNews on Facebook
YORII, Japan -- Honda Motor Co.'s newest assembly plant was seven years in the making, twice delayed and may be the last greenfield car factory in Japan for a long time.
But the Yorii factory, nestled in rolling green foothills just north of Tokyo as part of Honda's Saitama assembly complex, provides a look at the next-generation manufacturing technologies Honda aims to transfer to its overseas factories.
The factory, which opened in July with annual capacity to make 250,000 vehicles, specializes in small cars based on the Fit platform. It bustles with hyperefficient machinery that shaves cost and time from Honda's already lean manufacturing process.
Yorii makes the new-generation Fit hatchback and will soon produce a Fit-based compact crossover that will go on sale next month in Japan and eventually in America.
Efficiency gains
Overall, the advances slash 30 percent off assembly costs, compared with the older Sayama plant nearby, plant manager Takehiro Kono said during the factory's Nov. 7 dedication. Some examples of the savings:
• Stamping efficiency improved 40 percent by introducing a high-speed press and a high-speed die-swapping machine.
• Energy consumption in the paint shop dropped 40 percent.
• Production engineers cut the number of processes on the assembly line by 9 percent, thereby shaving the time required for final assembly by 40 minutes, Honda said. The company declined to give the time required before or after the changes.
Automation was taken to the next level.
Take tire mounting. At Yorii, only two robots are needed. At Sayama, it is four.
In contrast, additional automation was introduced to a number of processes, including glass attachment, interior panel installation, seat mounting and door fitting.
The general welding station at the typical Honda plant, where body panels are joined, has 16 robots welding 94 points.
But Yorii's streamlined welding station has 10 robots welding 126 points -- doubling the operation's efficiency.
Yorii is also the first Honda plant to get an indoor test course, screening every car coming off the line, rain or shine.
Double delays
Honda unveiled plans to build a cutting-edge factory at Yorii in 2006. The plant was supposed to be churning out cars by 2010. But the global financial crisis upended that plan.
Construction started in 2007. Then the project was delayed twice as the economy fell apart and the rising yen challenged the wisdom of building a factory in high-cost Japan.
Honda President Takanobu Ito resurrected the project in 2010.
Yorii's lines may boast some of the latest production methods. But that the factory exists at all is a bit of an anachronism.
Japan's domestic auto market is shrinking, the Japanese work force is rapidly aging, the export industry is as susceptible as ever to fluctuating exchange rates and a new philosophy, build where you sell, is the global mantra.
No other Japanese carmaker plans to expand its domestic capacity with a new factory.
Still, Ito sees value in investing in a new plant, viewing it as a kind of petri dish for pioneering new manufacturing technologies.
Honda's overseas factories, especially in emerging markets, won't get these capital-intensive technologies soon. But Honda wants them eventually to migrate across its global base.
"For Honda to progress," Ito said, "we must advance the technology of manufacturing, not just the technology of our products."
Read more: http://www.autonews.com/article/2013...#ixzz2mIRBZb33
Follow us: @Automotive_News on Twitter | AutoNews on Facebook
Honda's new plant takes manufacturing to the next level
Read more: http://www.autonews.com/article/2013...#ixzz2mIR5qqpA
Follow us: @Automotive_News on Twitter | AutoNews on Facebook
YORII, Japan -- Honda Motor Co.'s newest assembly plant was seven years in the making, twice delayed and may be the last greenfield car factory in Japan for a long time.
But the Yorii factory, nestled in rolling green foothills just north of Tokyo as part of Honda's Saitama assembly complex, provides a look at the next-generation manufacturing technologies Honda aims to transfer to its overseas factories.
The factory, which opened in July with annual capacity to make 250,000 vehicles, specializes in small cars based on the Fit platform. It bustles with hyperefficient machinery that shaves cost and time from Honda's already lean manufacturing process.
Yorii makes the new-generation Fit hatchback and will soon produce a Fit-based compact crossover that will go on sale next month in Japan and eventually in America.
Efficiency gains
Overall, the advances slash 30 percent off assembly costs, compared with the older Sayama plant nearby, plant manager Takehiro Kono said during the factory's Nov. 7 dedication. Some examples of the savings:
• Stamping efficiency improved 40 percent by introducing a high-speed press and a high-speed die-swapping machine.
• Energy consumption in the paint shop dropped 40 percent.
• Production engineers cut the number of processes on the assembly line by 9 percent, thereby shaving the time required for final assembly by 40 minutes, Honda said. The company declined to give the time required before or after the changes.
Automation was taken to the next level.
Take tire mounting. At Yorii, only two robots are needed. At Sayama, it is four.
In contrast, additional automation was introduced to a number of processes, including glass attachment, interior panel installation, seat mounting and door fitting.
The general welding station at the typical Honda plant, where body panels are joined, has 16 robots welding 94 points.
But Yorii's streamlined welding station has 10 robots welding 126 points -- doubling the operation's efficiency.
Yorii is also the first Honda plant to get an indoor test course, screening every car coming off the line, rain or shine.
Double delays
Honda unveiled plans to build a cutting-edge factory at Yorii in 2006. The plant was supposed to be churning out cars by 2010. But the global financial crisis upended that plan.
Construction started in 2007. Then the project was delayed twice as the economy fell apart and the rising yen challenged the wisdom of building a factory in high-cost Japan.
Honda President Takanobu Ito resurrected the project in 2010.
Yorii's lines may boast some of the latest production methods. But that the factory exists at all is a bit of an anachronism.
Japan's domestic auto market is shrinking, the Japanese work force is rapidly aging, the export industry is as susceptible as ever to fluctuating exchange rates and a new philosophy, build where you sell, is the global mantra.
No other Japanese carmaker plans to expand its domestic capacity with a new factory.
Still, Ito sees value in investing in a new plant, viewing it as a kind of petri dish for pioneering new manufacturing technologies.
Honda's overseas factories, especially in emerging markets, won't get these capital-intensive technologies soon. But Honda wants them eventually to migrate across its global base.
"For Honda to progress," Ito said, "we must advance the technology of manufacturing, not just the technology of our products."
Read more: http://www.autonews.com/article/2013...#ixzz2mIRBZb33
Follow us: @Automotive_News on Twitter | AutoNews on Facebook
12-19-2013, 10:42 AM
#516
Race Director
http://www.autonews.com/article/2013...turbo-for-u-s#
WAKO, Japan -- Honda Motor Co. is ready to take a run at one of the U.S. auto industry’s fastest-growing segments: compact, sporty crossovers.
The Vezel -- a small crossover based on Honda’s redesigned Fit subcompact -- goes on sale in Japan on Dec. 20 and in the United States in the second half of 2014.
It will compete in an increasingly crowded segment of small utility vehicles that includes such rivals as the Mazda CX-5, Nissan Juke and Subaru XV Crosstrek.
It will be slotted below the CR-V, one of Honda’s top-selling U.S. models with annual sales projected to top 300,000 units for the first time in 2013.
Vezel is the car’s Japan-market name. The U.S. name will be announced later, Honda said today.
In the United States, Juke sales have climbed 4 percent this year and Mazda CX-5 demand has surged 95 percent. Sales of the new Subaru XV Crosstrek have totaled 48,216, while Buick Encore sales are 29,195.
CR-V vs. Vezel
The Vezel is about 9 inches shorter than the CR-V, currently the smallest crossover in Honda’s U.S. lineup, as well as 1 inch narrower and 1 inch lower. The wheelbase is also about 1 inch less. The vehicle is 7 inches longer than the current Fit hatchback.
In Japan, the hybrid version of the Honda Vezel is expected to account for 90 percent of sales. Not so in the United States.
Honda won’t even offer the hybrid variant in U.S. showrooms initially. When U.S. sales begin, the Vezel will have a standard gasoline engine.
Down the road, the Vezel will get a turbocharged version to improve fuel economy and boost power, Yoshiharu Itai, the crossover’s chief engineer, says.
Turbo timing unclear
Timing of the turbo debut hasn’t been decided, but Itai said he expects to use the new line of small turbo engines Honda introduced last month before the Tokyo Motor Show. He is considering the 1.5-liter turbo, which Honda showed in an Acura ILX sedan.
“We haven’t decided yet what model year it will be, but we have that in our plan,” Itai said of a turbocharged Vezel at a recent briefing outside Tokyo. “We are creating a package so that turbocharging could be installed with this model.”
A hybrid version may come to the United States, but no decision has been made.
The front-wheel-drive Vezel weighs about 680 pounds less than the front-wheel drive CR-V. The Vezel comes in a front-wheel or all-wheel-drive layout.
The Vezel’s hybrid drivetrain is the same newly developed one-motor, dual-clutch lithium ion battery system used in the third-generation Fit hatchback that debuted this year in Japan.
Engine combos
The hybrid system combines a 1.5-liter direct-injection Earth Dreams engine with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and 22-kilowatt electric motor. The standard gasoline version teams the 1.5-liter engine with a continuously variable transmission.
The current U.S. Fit hatchback uses a 1.5-liter engine. The CR-V has a 2.4-liter engine.
Honda has not divulged the U.S. drivetrain configuration for the Vezel.
The 1.5-liter turbocharged engine Honda has developed is seen as a replacement for 1.8-liter powerplants. Compared with a 1.8-liter naturally aspirated engine, Honda says, the 1.5-liter turbo provides 15 percent better fuel economy and 45 percent better torque.
That engine is expected to hit the market in early 2016.
Mexico plant
Honda is waiting on a hybrid for the United States, partly because demand doesn’t warrant importing it from Japan. Honda plans to source all U.S. Vezels from its new plant in Mexico, Itai said. Honda built the plant as a hedge against exchange rate losses on imports and as a low-cost manufacturing center that could deliver better margins on entry-level cars.
A spokesman said Honda wants to establish the gasoline version in the market before deciding on whether to add a hybrid option to the lineup.
The crossover is key to Honda President Takanobu Ito’s push to boost global sales to 6 million vehicles in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017, from 4.01 million in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013.
By 2016, the Fit hatchback and its Vezel crossover and City sedan variants will account for worldwide sales of 1.6 million units, Ito says.
U.S. sales surge
Honda is also banking on the vehicle to fuel a big surge in U.S. sales. Honda built the new plant in Mexico with capacity of 200,000 units just to make the crossover and the Fit hatchback. More than half of the plant’s capacity will be devoted to the crossover, says Ito.
That incremental volume would bring Honda a big step closer to its ambitious North American sales goal of 2 million in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2016. Honda sold 1.7 million units in the last fiscal year and expects to sell close to 1.8 million in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2014.
Itai said the company ideally wants to keep the name standardized because it is a global strategic vehicle. But Honda officials say it may be tweaked to suit local markets.
The Vezel -- a small crossover based on Honda’s redesigned Fit subcompact -- goes on sale in Japan on Dec. 20 and in the United States in the second half of 2014.
It will compete in an increasingly crowded segment of small utility vehicles that includes such rivals as the Mazda CX-5, Nissan Juke and Subaru XV Crosstrek.
It will be slotted below the CR-V, one of Honda’s top-selling U.S. models with annual sales projected to top 300,000 units for the first time in 2013.
Vezel is the car’s Japan-market name. The U.S. name will be announced later, Honda said today.
In the United States, Juke sales have climbed 4 percent this year and Mazda CX-5 demand has surged 95 percent. Sales of the new Subaru XV Crosstrek have totaled 48,216, while Buick Encore sales are 29,195.
CR-V vs. Vezel
The Vezel is about 9 inches shorter than the CR-V, currently the smallest crossover in Honda’s U.S. lineup, as well as 1 inch narrower and 1 inch lower. The wheelbase is also about 1 inch less. The vehicle is 7 inches longer than the current Fit hatchback.
In Japan, the hybrid version of the Honda Vezel is expected to account for 90 percent of sales. Not so in the United States.
Honda won’t even offer the hybrid variant in U.S. showrooms initially. When U.S. sales begin, the Vezel will have a standard gasoline engine.
Down the road, the Vezel will get a turbocharged version to improve fuel economy and boost power, Yoshiharu Itai, the crossover’s chief engineer, says.
Turbo timing unclear
Timing of the turbo debut hasn’t been decided, but Itai said he expects to use the new line of small turbo engines Honda introduced last month before the Tokyo Motor Show. He is considering the 1.5-liter turbo, which Honda showed in an Acura ILX sedan.
“We haven’t decided yet what model year it will be, but we have that in our plan,” Itai said of a turbocharged Vezel at a recent briefing outside Tokyo. “We are creating a package so that turbocharging could be installed with this model.”
A hybrid version may come to the United States, but no decision has been made.
The front-wheel-drive Vezel weighs about 680 pounds less than the front-wheel drive CR-V. The Vezel comes in a front-wheel or all-wheel-drive layout.
The Vezel’s hybrid drivetrain is the same newly developed one-motor, dual-clutch lithium ion battery system used in the third-generation Fit hatchback that debuted this year in Japan.
Engine combos
The hybrid system combines a 1.5-liter direct-injection Earth Dreams engine with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and 22-kilowatt electric motor. The standard gasoline version teams the 1.5-liter engine with a continuously variable transmission.
The current U.S. Fit hatchback uses a 1.5-liter engine. The CR-V has a 2.4-liter engine.
Honda has not divulged the U.S. drivetrain configuration for the Vezel.
The 1.5-liter turbocharged engine Honda has developed is seen as a replacement for 1.8-liter powerplants. Compared with a 1.8-liter naturally aspirated engine, Honda says, the 1.5-liter turbo provides 15 percent better fuel economy and 45 percent better torque.
That engine is expected to hit the market in early 2016.
Mexico plant
Honda is waiting on a hybrid for the United States, partly because demand doesn’t warrant importing it from Japan. Honda plans to source all U.S. Vezels from its new plant in Mexico, Itai said. Honda built the plant as a hedge against exchange rate losses on imports and as a low-cost manufacturing center that could deliver better margins on entry-level cars.
A spokesman said Honda wants to establish the gasoline version in the market before deciding on whether to add a hybrid option to the lineup.
The crossover is key to Honda President Takanobu Ito’s push to boost global sales to 6 million vehicles in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2017, from 4.01 million in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2013.
By 2016, the Fit hatchback and its Vezel crossover and City sedan variants will account for worldwide sales of 1.6 million units, Ito says.
U.S. sales surge
Honda is also banking on the vehicle to fuel a big surge in U.S. sales. Honda built the new plant in Mexico with capacity of 200,000 units just to make the crossover and the Fit hatchback. More than half of the plant’s capacity will be devoted to the crossover, says Ito.
That incremental volume would bring Honda a big step closer to its ambitious North American sales goal of 2 million in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2016. Honda sold 1.7 million units in the last fiscal year and expects to sell close to 1.8 million in the fiscal year ending March 31, 2014.
Itai said the company ideally wants to keep the name standardized because it is a global strategic vehicle. But Honda officials say it may be tweaked to suit local markets.
01-14-2014, 06:18 AM
#518
Safety Car
Detroit
01/13/2014 - DETROIT
More powerful, refined and fuel-efficient Fit set to launch this spring
All-new U.S. model showcases dynamic styling and upgraded interior packed with class-leading features and technology
Earth Dreams™ Technology engine and transmissions deliver heightened fun-to-drive performance and class-leading fuel efficiency
Honda unveiled the all-new 2015 Fit at the North American International Auto Show today. Set to go on sale in the U.S. this spring, the new Fit is completely redesigned from the ground up to deliver an unparalleled combination of style, interior space, fun-to-drive performance and fuel efficiency plus leading-edge safety and vehicle connectivity.All-new U.S. model showcases dynamic styling and upgraded interior packed with class-leading features and technology
Earth Dreams™ Technology engine and transmissions deliver heightened fun-to-drive performance and class-leading fuel efficiency
"The Honda Fit is a small car with big aspirations. Faster, more fuel-efficient and more fun, it's a subcompact with larger-than-life-capabilities," said John Mendel, executive vice president of automobile sales for American Honda Motor Co., Inc. "It's simply the best Fit to date and, we believe, a new benchmark in the small-car category."
Modern Styling with Class-Leading Packaging
The 2015 Fit debuts with a sleek, modern and sporty exterior style. A more aggressive front fascia showcases a new grille and headlight design. A strong character line runs along the side of the Fit, emphasizing the vehicle's aerodynamic profile. Larger 16-inch tires outfitted with a new 5-spoke wheel design give the Fit a planted and sporty stance. In the back, rear reflectors and LED taillights run along the hatch with a chrome tailgate garnish and rear diffuser, all contributing to the Fit's more substantial and dynamic appearance.
Retaining a similar exterior footprint to the current model, the new Fit is slightly shorter (-1.6 in.) and wider (+0.3 in.) with a longer wheelbase (+1.2 in.), resulting in improved handling and maneuverability. Inside, the Fit builds on its already class-leading interior space, airy cabin and large greenhouse thanks to an all-new efficient platform that incorporates a unique center-mounted fuel-tank layout. The new Fit also delivers a significant increase in passenger volume (+4.9 cu ft) and rear legroom (+4.8 in.) compared to the previous model. With the Honda-exclusive Magic Seat® offering multiple configurable seating positions, the Fit provides an unrivaled 52.7 cubic feet of cargo space when the second row seats are folded flat. With an overall height of 60 inches, the Fit allows for easy loading of items into the rear cargo and ingress/egress for passengers.
Enhanced Interior and Technology Features
The 2015 Fit will deliver above-class interior refinement and features while offering value at every trim level. All 2015 Fit models will be equipped with class-leading standard features including Bluetooth® connectivity, a multi-angle rearview camera, and Expanded View Driver's Mirror. For customers looking for premium features in the subcompact segment, Fit will be available with smart entry with push-button start, heated side mirrors, a moonroof, heated front seats, Honda's exclusive LaneWatch™ display and a 7-inch Display Audio1 touchscreen interface with HondaLink™ smartphone connectivity. Soft touch and premium materials are used throughout and, for the 1st time, the Fit will be offered with available leather-trimmed seating.
Improved Performance, Efficiency and Safety
The 2015 Fit marks the U.S. debut of an all-new direct-injected 1.5-liter DOHC i-VTEC engine. Generating 130 horsepower2 at 6500 rpm and 114 lb.-ft. of torque2 at 4600 rpm, engine output is increased by 13 horsepower and 8 lb.-ft. compared to the outgoing engine, while reducing weight and improving efficiency. Paired to two new transmissions, a slick-shifting 6-speed manual or a sporty and fuel-efficient Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) with available paddle shifters, the Fit powertrain offers superior acceleration and passing performance and is anticipated to have class-leading3 EPA-estimated fuel economy ratings of 33 city/41 highway/36 combined4 (CVT-equipped models).
Complementing the new powertrain is a revised chassis that provides for improved handling, ride comfort and NVH. A more rigid body, new rear dampers and revised suspension geometry notably enhance the 2015 Fit's ride quality and fun-to-drive handling characteristics.
The 2015 Fit benefits from the most extensive use of ultra-high strength steel in the model's history, providing increased body stiffness while reducing platform (underbody and chassis) weight by 57 pounds versus the outgoing model. Equipped with the next generation of the Honda Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™) body structure, the Fit is anticipated to earn top safety scores from NHTSA and IIHS, including a NCAP 5-Star Overall Vehicle Score and a TOP SAFETY PICK rating with a GOOD rating in all IIHS test modes, including the rigorous small overlap barrier test.
North America Production
The 2015 Fit will be manufactured for the first time in North America at the new Celaya, Mexico plant. With an annual capacity of 200,000 units, the facility will begin mass production of the 2015 Fit next month, adding production of an all-new small Honda SUV later in the year. With introduction of the new manufacturing facility in Mexico, Honda's North American automobile production facilities will have a total annual capacity of 1.92 million units, and will have the capability to manufacture vehicles in all product segments, from subcompacts to light truck models. With the added production, approximately 98 percent of all Honda-brand vehicles sold in the United States will be sourced from Honda plants in North America.
01-14-2014, 07:42 AM
#519
Senior Moderator
Thread Starter
I think this will sell like gangbusters. If they get the pricing right. Not sure about the US, but up here, the Fit was more expensive than a Civic. Which I assume had a lot do to with availability and being built in Japan. Now that production won't be limited and its being built in Mexico, I would expect sub Civic pricing equally equipped.
02-10-2014, 01:11 PM
#520
The sizzle in the Steak
Honda recalls Fit, Vezel hybrids over dual-clutch transmission
Honda has reportedly issued a third recall of its Fit and Vezel hybrids sold in Japan, amid ongoing problems with the new seven-speed dual-clutch transmission.
Defective control systems are said to be blamed for several glitches, sometimes causing affected cars to take longer to start from a stop, or fail to move at all, according to a Reuters report.
"Honda sincerely regrets causing this considerable inconvenience to its customers due to the fact that the defect was not discovered during the development and product quality verification processes prior to the introduction of a new technology to the market and the defective product quickly came to market," Honda said in a candid statement.
Engineers have developed a new control program that promises to solve the transmission problems, though some vehicles are still expected to require full transmission replacement.
The recall affects over 80,000 vehicles produced between July 2013 and now, causing a temporary halt in production as the new control program is implemented.
Defective control systems are said to be blamed for several glitches, sometimes causing affected cars to take longer to start from a stop, or fail to move at all, according to a Reuters report.
"Honda sincerely regrets causing this considerable inconvenience to its customers due to the fact that the defect was not discovered during the development and product quality verification processes prior to the introduction of a new technology to the market and the defective product quickly came to market," Honda said in a candid statement.
Engineers have developed a new control program that promises to solve the transmission problems, though some vehicles are still expected to require full transmission replacement.
The recall affects over 80,000 vehicles produced between July 2013 and now, causing a temporary halt in production as the new control program is implemented.
Run from any new Honda Transmission product.It's like the 5AT issue all over again.
Rule of thumb, if it's not a manual transmission, and it's a "new" transmission built and designed by Honda, don't buy it for a few years down the road.