Honda Confirms New Sports Cars In Its Plans

[LP700-4]

Honda has not one but two new sports cars up its sleeve, and here's the first: official sketches of The Small Sports Car EV Concept. And when they say small, they mean small. Very small.

(The second is a rumoured "new NSX", set to debut at the Detroit motorshow in January and the Avengers movie in May. Back to that in a minute, but you can see it below)

So, the small one pictured above. Honda says this little concept will preview a new sports car, so it is for real. But it's a little harder to work out exactly what it is.

Despite some reports, this isn't the car to end the Top Gear Feud of Feuds; a car with the spirit of the Honda S2000 to keep Jeremy smiling and the dynamics of a Boxster to please James. Don't holster your weapons yet gentlemen.

It is an EV. A pure electric too, like a Nissan Leaf, only much cooler. And we're not exaggerating about its smallness. It's in Japan's tax-and-parking-ticket-dodging Kei-class - so the size of a Mitsubishi Icar. And like the I, it's been designed for overseas markets, including the UK.

If it's got a spiritual antecedent it is the Smart roadster. And there's nothing wrong with that. It's not made of anything exotic, so unlikely to be expensive either. Sound like fun? Let us know what you think: we'll know a lot more once the Tokyo Motor Show opens its doors later this month.


In other Tokyo news, Honda is also showing a generic plug-in hybrid called the AC-X, complete with neon blue side graphics liberated from the BMW i8 concept last time it was allowed out in public.

There's also a curious Russian doll of an idea; an electric Micro Commuter Car that features, hidden inside, a detachable Motor Compo electric scooter that features, hidden inside, a detachable battery, to power other stuff in your life.

There's also another called E-Canopy, an electric trike and another RC-E, a kind of electric Fireblade. Honda is clearly not expecting batteries to go out of fashion any time soon.

See pictures of the new Honda concepts to launch at the Tokyo Motor Show

And a final word about that new NSX. Honda has made it clear that having made Ferrari blush once, it has no intention of repeating that exercise. There's clearly another target this time: lightweight, V6-powered but with electric wheel motors, it would seem to suggest, alongside this little fella, that Honda has decided the future of sports cars is guilt-free. BMW i8 alternative anyone?

Source

Sounds interesting.

[death_blossom]

I hope the HSV program gets re-opened. second coming of the NSX!

I'm sure Honda saw all the positive attention that Toyota was getting with the FT-86 and said "we gotta get our sh!t together!"

[XplicitLuder]

bout fuckin time!!! new nsx too eh ? :

[Spectre_Cdn]

Honda Beat version 2?

[Ludepower]

An EV roadster is believable.
but a halo car like a new NSX has been rumored for the past 10 years...Honda is too jew to build another one.

[CP.AR]

I AM A PROPHET

Originally Posted by Amuro Ray

I hope that if this sells well, it will spark Honda to get on their assess on a proper sports car.

HSV in production?? OMGWTF

Originally Posted by Ludepower

An EV roadster is believable.
but a halo car like a new NSX has been rumored for the past 10 years...Honda is too jew to build another one.

if it ain't broke don't fix it

[Onassis]

With the return of the 86 it's like the late 80's/early 90's again. Hope this brings back the Type-R program, Honda has been seriously lacking the last few years.

[ajax]

I wish the made a road version of the HSV, its such an aggressive and sexy vehicle.
Posted via RS Mobile

[bloodmack]

nothing will ever be as good as the orginals, gurantee it.

[twitchyzero]

just give us a N/A track prepped CRZ
then slap on a Type-R badge...the demand for it will be madness

[Groot]

oh please please please honda dont make a grille like that..

[spoon.ek9]

i'll seriously sell my EF and buy a new honda if they make something desirable

[Manic!]

It looks like a single seater.

[Nlkko]

Kind of relevant:
Honda unveils next-generation engines at Tokyo show

The specifications for the new Honda engines are:

-- A 3.5-liter V6 with 310 hp and 265 lb-ft of torque. This is 30 more horsepower and 11 more lb-ft than the outgoing 3.5-liter engine in the Acura TL.

-- A 2.4-liter inline-four with 181 hp and 177 lb-ft of torque. This will be the base engine in the redesigned Accord coming next fall and could find its way into the midcycle change for the CR-V in 2013.

-- A 1.8-liter inline-four with 148 hp and 133 lb-ft of torque, which could be installed in the 2013 midcycle change for the Civic.

-- A 1.5-liter inline-four with 127 hp and 111 lb-ft of torque for the Fit, perhaps in time for the midcycle change in 2012.

-- A 1.6-liter turbodiesel engine that has comparable power to a current 2.2-liter diesel, with 220 lb-ft of torque but much better fuel economy.

Ohtsu said the power figures were preliminary and likely understated. Compared with the current four-cylinder engines, the new design will carry at least a 10 percent fuel economy advantage.

New transmissions

In addition, Honda has designed three continuously variable transmissions, one for mid-sized cars such as the Accord, and two for smaller vehicles such as the Civic, Fit and minicars.

Honda is betting big on continuously variable transmission technology and will use it as its base automatic transmission offering across all four-cylinder engines.

Although current CVTs have a “rubber band” feeling similar to a slipping clutch under acceleration, the Honda system has less feeling of slippage, said Hideki Wakamatsu, general manager of Honda r&d.

Also, the engine control software has been remapped so there is less hunting between the engine and CVT for optimal engine revs and transmission ratios during sudden acceleration, Wakamatsu said.

Honda will continue to offer manual transmissions for markets such as Europe that prefer stick shifts. And traditional stepped-gear automatics will be offered for vehicles such as sport sedans and sports cars where more immediate performance impact is needed, Wakamatsu said.

Hybrid advancements

As for hybrid advancements, Honda's upcoming Accord two-mode hybrid, when combined with a four-cylinder engine, will have equivalent power to the Camry Hybrid but better fuel economy than the Camry's combined 41 mpg rating, said Yusuke Hasegawa, senior chief engineer with Honda r&d.

When combined with a V6 engine, the hybrid system will create V8 power and four-cylinder fuel economy. The system can run in EV-only mode, EV-and-gasoline for passing and acceleration, or gasoline-only for highway cruising.

The two-mode hybrid uses a twin-cam profile. But instead of using its VTEC profile for more power, the hybrid version shifts between the Atkinson cycle for leaner-burning of fuel, and the traditional Otto cycle when more power is needed, depending on the torque load on the engine, Hasegawa said.

In EV mode, the Honda plug-in hybrid can travel for as many as 15 miles at speeds up to 62 mph. The plug-in system has a switch that will allow the driver to save EV-mode ability until later in his drive, such as if he commutes from the empty suburbs to the crowded downtown.

Honda also showed an electric all-wheel hybrid drive system that sends power to the outside wheel during cornering, which aids in traction and performance.

When the new 3.5-liter V6 is combined with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission with an integrated hybrid-electric motor, the torque output between left- and right-side wheels is independently meted to the outside wheel, using the energy from regenerative braking to provide the power boost.

No V8. Give me my V8 with vtak damn it!

[Spectre_Cdn]

Originally Posted by Manic!

It looks like a single seater.

Nope,

The EV-STER, an electric rear-wheel-drive two-seater, uses an all-new platform. Honda plans to offer the production version of the car with either a gasoline engine or as a pure electric vehicle.

The small sports concept skips the traditional steering wheel in favor of twin joysticks. Honda calls the setup "twin-lever steering."

The EV-STER is equipped with a lithium-ion battery and has an output of 78 horsepower. Honda says it sprints from zero-37 mph in 5.0 seconds and has a range of about 99 miles. Honda says the driving range was made possible by the "adoption of carbon materials."

[dinamix]

dat steering wheel

anyone have the part number for that? I want it for my Ek

[Bert Stahre]

interesting steering wheel design. looks like no shifter either?

[Nlkko]

Next NSX gets hybrid V6 and AWD

Honda has revealed that it is working on a new concept that hints at a range-topping sports coupe. The Super Sports concept will follow the Small Sports EV Concept that will be unveiled at this week’s Tokyo motor show.

Yoshikazu Kigoshi, general manager for Honda research and design centre, described the Super Sports concept as “a halo model that will be a successor to the NSX.”

The Super Sports concept will be unveiled at Detroit in January next year and is likely to be powered by a 300bhp-plus, all-wheel drive, petrol-electric hybrid system dubbed ‘Super-Handling AWD’ (SH-AWD).

Using a new 3.5-litre V6 petrol motor to drive the front wheels and an electric motor to power the rear wheel, the car benefits from a torque-distribution system on the electric rear axle and improves handling safety and response. It’s also possible that a new seven-speed double-clutch gearbox will be fitted as standard.

Kigoshi described how the Super Sports would be badged an Acura in America but would be likely to still arrive in those countries that don’t have the Acura brand – including the UK – badged as a Honda.

The aggressive-looking big coupe will arrive weeks after three new Tokyo motor show concepts that point firmly towards the brand’s more cohesive and range-wide future design direction. Creative director of Honda design, Toshinubu Minami, who designed the Super Sports concept, admitted that the halo model would “wear the same Honda face as the Tokyo concepts, because of course there must be consistency, but they won’t be the same.”

[Cillu]

Noooooooooooooo! Not a hybrid NSX!

[optiblue]

This is like Honda's last chance at redemption for creating their pointless CR-Z that even MUGEN couldn't rescue. In a world of upcoming EV's, at least this is a sports version that might appeal to more people ie myself! I'm all for electric cars because it doesn't cost much to fill it up, next to no maintenance, and has potential for power because of it's instantaneous torque capabilities. If Honda wants to rise up over Hyundai, they should definately stick to EV performance cars as currently, there's no hope for their Vtec to beat turbo's and V6's from hyundai!

A new NSX would be nice, but the best ones will forever be the ones from the 90's

[twitchyzero]

from all these articles it actually sounds like they are interested...we can probably thank hyundai and toyota for sparking their interest?