CR-Z Si: why would this not work?

Mitlov

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Nov 14, 2009
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1,374
Location
Medford, Oregon, USA
Car(s)
2011 Civic Si, 2002 SV650
The CR-Z being named Japan's car of the year, combined with my newfound Honda fanboyism (did I mention I love my Civic Si?), has made me think about the four-wheeled enigma that is the CR-Z. And I couldn't help but think:

(1) Rip the powertrain out of a CRZ.
(2) Put a K20 under the hood.
(3) Put SH-AWD where the hybrid batteries used to live.
(4) Call it the CR-Z Si.
(5) Profit.

Why would this not be a smart move for Honda? It'd be a parts-bin special that wouldn't be too expensive for Honda to develop and build, but it'd also be a bit of a halo car now that the S2000 is gone.
 
Sounds like a modern-day K-sight.
 
why would you make it awd? its heavy enough as it is (for what it is). I'm with you on ditching the batteries and crap and throwing a k20 in there though

I'd throw in the SH-AWD because

(1) otherwise, it's too similar to a Civic Si with no back seat, and
(2) it just seemed to me that a Honda halo car should have SH-AWD.
 
Yeah, don't throw in the SH-AWD. Go for lightness to make it like the CR-X. The CR-Z should, in no way, be the halo Honda car.
 
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if you are going to go AWD use a K24A2 or even better the K23A1 for extra low end grunt you are going to need to deal with the extra weight and driveline loss. I mean don't get me wrong the K20 is great but when you make max torque at 7k it puts a damper on your awd acceleration
 
Rip the drivetrain out, put in K20 from the Si. That should do it.
 
Hm, anyway to put in an F20C and a transmission tunnel in there? =D

And it should rev all the way to 9krpm.
 
if you are going to go AWD use a K24A2 or even better the K23A1 for extra low end grunt you are going to need to deal with the extra weight and driveline loss. I mean don't get me wrong the K20 is great but when you make max torque at 7k it puts a damper on your awd acceleration

I wish Honda/Acura would use the K23A1 in more applications. Its a great engine in my friend's RDX.
 
The CRZ as it stands is just further proof that Honda has gone completely to hell...or turned into Toyota. Same difference. An Si version would be a big step forward, but I don't see it happening.
 
Altima: Honda only sells cars to fund their other divisions, specifically racing and motorcycles, that's all. They just make them good enough to sell well in the marketplace and that's all they have ever done overall.

That said, they just got a new CEO over there, and one of his former pet projects was the NSX - so we'll see if he improves the product lineup over the next few years.
 
Altima: Honda only sells cars to fund their other divisions, specifically racing and motorcycles, that's all. They just make them good enough to sell well in the marketplace and that's all they have ever done overall.

That said, they just got a new CEO over there, and one of his former pet projects was the NSX - so we'll see if he improves the product lineup over the next few years.

They make pretty good cars for allegedly half-assing it. For every car they've made that's genuinely head-scratching (CR-Z), they've got two that are very, very good at what they were designed to do (Civic, Odyssey, etc). They've got a lineup-wide issue with road noise, but that's really the only fault I can consistently find with their mass-market models.
 
They make pretty good cars for allegedly half-assing it. For every car they've made that's genuinely head-scratching (CR-Z), they've got two that are very, very good at what they were designed to do (Civic, Odyssey, etc). They've got a lineup-wide issue with road noise, but that's really the only fault I can consistently find with their mass-market models.

Weak automatic transmissions that Honda has still not addressed a decade on come to mind...

They last until they're out of warranty, and that's all that matters. :p

That said, Honda's half-assing it is still better than a lot of companies' best efforts. On the other hand, it isn't as good as it could be. See the neglected NSX, see the interior adhesives that start coming apart at 150K on the dot, etc., etc.
 
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Food for thought...

- a K20A with a 6-speed weighs about 400lbs
- I can't find weight specs for the LEA engine, but the 1NZ-FXE from the Prius (with no trans) is only 194lbs... and they're both tiny 1.5L jobbers

So for shits and giggles, lets say the 6-speed and the hybrid system weigh about 200lbs. Throwing in the current gen Si's K20 and ditching the hybrid system actually ends up breaking even the 2700lb CR-Z, but moves it from 112hp to 192hp.

CR-Z: 24.11 lb/hp - 2700lbs @ 112hp
CR-Z Si: 14.06 lb/hp - 2700lbs @ 192hp

And with that, we have almost exactly the power/weight of a current-gen Miata.
 
Food for thought...

- a K20A with a 6-speed weighs about 400lbs
- I can't find weight specs for the LEA engine, but the 1NZ-FXE from the Prius (with no trans) is only 194lbs... and they're both tiny 1.5L jobbers

So for shits and giggles, lets say the 6-speed and the hybrid system weigh about 200lbs. Throwing in the current gen Si's K20 and ditching the hybrid system actually ends up breaking even the 2700lb CR-Z, but moves it from 112hp to 192hp.

CR-Z: 24.11 lb/hp - 2700lbs @ 112hp
CR-Z Si: 14.06 lb/hp - 2700lbs @ 192hp

And with that, we have almost exactly the power/weight of a current-gen Miata.

And if you didn't rev the pants off it every chance you got, it would probably return pretty darn good mileage too.
 
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