2009 Tokyo Auto Show: Honda CR-Z Hybrid Concept is Close to Reality

Honda Motor Co. offered a glimpse of the very near future in Tokyo late Tuesday as it unwrapped a sporty four-seat version of the CR-Z hybrid that will hit the market late next year as a 2-seat coupe.

Although they're calling it a concept, the "CR-Z Concept 2009" is pretty much what we'll see - sans the tiny rear jump seats - when the real thing hits U.S. showrooms in the second half of next year.

Actually, we'll see the real thing a little sooner, the production version of the CR-Z hybrid sport coupe will debut as a production car in January at the 2010 North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Like the "Concept 2009," the production CR-Z will offer a 1.5-liter four-banger boosted by  Honda's electric Integrated Motor Assist system and mated to a six-speed manual transmission.

As you can see from the photos above (Concept 2009) and below (the original 2007 concept CR-Z), The new model is shorter and has a taller roof, shorter rear deck, larger headlamp housings and a longer snout than the original.

The new concept also loses the neat black glass-and-plastic rear fascia but retains most of the interior appointments of the 2007 concept:

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John O'Dell October 21, 2009, 3:00 AM

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Auto Shows, Honda, Hybrid, Japan

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2009 Tokyo AutoShow, Honda CR-Z Concept 2009, Hybrids