Tokyo: Honda CR-Z turns hybrids sexy

If we might for a second divert our attention from the Nissan GT-R - and the sight of grown men acting like four-year-olds when Father Christmas has brought the world's biggest Scalextric - my favourite car at the show may well have been the Honda CR-Z.

OK it's still a bit 'conceptized', what with its glass dashboard and all, but when the real one shows up at Honda dealer near you in 2010 it'll likely be the first sexy affordable hybrid.

There used to be loads of baby coupes, and the Honda's own 1990 VTEC Civic CR-X was one. Check the back end of the CR-Z, with its vertical glass panel, and you see the family resemblance.

At the front, the designers say the nostril is like on of their 60s GP cars. (Memo to Honda F1: forget that messy globe and paint your car pure white with a red circle on the side and gold wheels. It'll be worth two seconds a lap.)

Anyway, Honda hybrids aren't like a Prius. They can have manual transmissions for a start. They're fun if Honda chooses to tune them that way. And Honda knows how to make a small car handle: I give you the Civic Type-R.

Of course, with two years to production there's still plenty of time for Honda to mess it up, but right now the CR-Z is fine by me. It's sharp-looking, fun, cheap and green. What's not to like?

© Source: topgear
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