Mugen CR-Z.. The future of Hybrid Performance?

Jonnycoupe said:
Thats the price of the warranty I guess :o

Plus no one has really pushed the L15 other than Bisimoto whereas the K20 has had years of support and subequent volume has made the parts cheap.
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Yeah but Mugens prices never seen to go down, they seem to be trying to bring the Japanese market forces to the UK and as I guess they've found it's not the same. There's also the issue of they don't seem to continue making parts after the cars no longer sold. :(
 
The appeal is an EP3 level of performance for 35mpg minimum, if that's the case then it's very appealing. A 300bhp EP3 is a different animal. With that kind of power you would need an LSD (£600+ fitting) and the suspension to suit (insert another easy £1-1.5k here at the minimum). It wouldn't be very linear with a turbo and wouldn't be very balanced IMO.

£23k for a niche upgrade, not bad really. It's what the base car should have been though IMO. That's the point that needs to be made.
 
Dup said:
It's what the base car should have been though IMO. That's the point that needs to be made.
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Yeah I agree, there was so much rhetoric about the CRZ being a 'Sports Hybrid' but it didn't really have the figures to match, granted it does feel 'pokey' (or so I'm led to believe, I haven't driven one).

I honestly didn't think Honda would be releasing this as part of their line up but I'm glad to be proven wrong. :)
 
If the 197bhp version comes in at £23k, then it will be great.

However, I very much doubt that will happen. It could end up doing a DS3 Racing, in being far more expensive than its rivals, have 'questionable' looks, and be limited in numbers.

Shame, as the tech looks cool.
 
Dup said:
The appeal is an EP3 level of performance for 35mpg minimum, if that's the case then it's very appealing.
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Why is 35 MPG minimum appealing? I'd imagine any old 2.0 litre hatchback isn't exactly going to be ruinously uneconomical, and in terms of miles covered (which is quite important for translating MPG in to £, obviously) those when "being pushed" are going to be a tiny portion. It's just not possible to drive very far pushing a car.
 
PMKeates said:
Why is 35 MPG minimum appealing? I'd imagine any old 2.0 litre hatchback isn't exactly going to be ruinously uneconomical, and in terms of miles covered (which is quite important for translating MPG in to £, obviously) those when "being pushed" are going to be a tiny portion. It's just not possible to drive very far pushing a car.
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I owned an EP3 for 3 years of which Mugen CR-Z has the same power. I never saw more than 25mpg for daily driving, so when you compare the two then it's not bad. My MX5 only get about 25mpg too for a 130bhp 1.8 that weighs only a ton or so (4krpm at 80mph :/).

I don't know about competitors, I'm just comparing like for like in terms of Hondas own. 35mpg seems like a nice figure compared, and if driving like an old lady can up that by 5-10mpg then that's even better for a daily/weekend all in one car.
 
PMKeates said:
Why is 35 MPG minimum appealing? I'd imagine any old 2.0 litre hatchback isn't exactly going to be ruinously uneconomical, and in terms of miles covered (which is quite important for translating MPG in to £, obviously) those when "being pushed" are going to be a tiny portion. It's just not possible to drive very far pushing a car.
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When the EP3/FN2 is pushed it's more like 11-12, Honda say the same scenario it's 35. Both 197bhp and 'about a ton', so the same performance. With Oil going one way and the Pound going the other this kind of statistic is going to be very appealing. Still a long way to go before that really becomes a reality but with us peasants it's always appealing. I'm actually glad my car manges mid-thirties crusing about, I'd still have it if it was 20mpg but I just wouldn't have as much money to spend on other bits. Like Mugen oil caps and steaks.
 
My 172 returns 38mpg easily through normal driving. I could get it down to 30 with some spirited driving on my old commute, but anything less on public roads took some real effort.
 
Will be interesting to see how the supercharger effects the engine efficiency. You only have to look at the R53 Mini against a Cooper for a big drop in cruising efficiency, ie people doing motorway trips where peak bhp output wont effect it much.

In normal commuter road use with the usual limitations getting below 40mpg in a CRZ would probably be quite a challenge. I saw 44mpg avg for my test drive of one but of course didnt have chance to verify that figure and it was only 20mins or so around the outskirts of Coventry and a few miles of the A46.
 
MUGEN said:
Just to let you know what the deal is with our new CR-Z with (what we call) iCF.
The initial batch of upgrades will only be available at the 8 Honda UK dealers who are also Mugen retailer, who are (as correctly posted by Shanei):

Avonvale Honda, Northampton
Bristol Honda, Bristol
Donnelly & Taggart, County Antrim
Ewens of Cornhill, Banff
Hendy Performance, Southampton
Phoenix Honda, Paisley
Springfield Honda, Newcastle Upon Tyne
Two Mills Honda, South Wirral

A few of them (currently Ewens, Phoenix, Springfield) will have pre-production demonstrators in December. Orders can be taken at any time for delivery in March on a first come first served basis.

The iCF will only be available as an option with new car sales (sorry no post-fit kits at this time) and the price, including installation at Mugen Euro, will be £4985 + VAT.
This includes the compressor, intercooler, airbox and Mugen front grille. To get a final price simply choose your model of CR-Z, add any other options you want (plus of course the iCF).
Hopefully that answers the bulk of the questions and clears up a bit of speculation.
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Below was an answer as to what is available as an option from the concept.

Mugen monoblock 4-pot calipers - possibly later
Mugen suspension - available
Custom exhaust system - not the one-off custom one (way too loud and too much drone) but there is a Mugen exhaust
Mugen Forged wheels - Yes, forged and cast in the catalogue
Recaros - Standard Recaro
Carbon bonnet and carbon doors - No plans for these at this time
Skirts and spoiler - available
Assist gauges - available
 
I don't think the UK market does the buy car then buy stick on parts like Japan and the USA. People want a car they can just jump in and drive away. Reading my 'Idiots guide to the UK car market' I'd say they'd be better off getting a whole product that's fantastic (Demo car) at a price that people can afford (23k) and tax implications (hybrid, y0) that any young salesman can easily get on his business lease. Mugen isn't an established name in the UK, the only press it's had is Eddie Jordans F1 team, a 40K Civic and now this.
 
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