TOV: Mag-X brings some 2012 Civic and 2011 CR-Z info to light

This is straight from Temple of Vtec....
TOV Reader Frank Oppermann sent in this scan from the pages of the June.09 issue of Mag-X. I bounced them back across the Atlantic to danielgr, our resident multilingual specialist and he provided a quick rundown on the contents of these pages. He will provide more details (if there are any) after he has had more time to review what's said. Following is the e-mail response from Daniel:

Hi Jeff, Right now I don't have the time, nor the required dictionary to really go through it, but I can tell you what they are talking about in short.

Top-left is the CR-Z picture (the 21st century CR-X), from which they say: - 1.5L engine with both CVT and 6MT available.
- Monthly target sales : 850 JP, 2500 Europe, 1500 North America.
- Expect to see a production prototype in this year's Tokyo Motor Show.
- Expect an introduction in early 2010

The rest, the main article, is about the next-generation Civic.
- (warning) Not 100% sure, but it seems that there will be a "Japanese version" with a body in between a 3box (sedan) and 2 box (hatch).

The internationally sold Hybrid will have that "unique" (outside Japan) body. Otherwise, Europe will keep on having hatches developed within the Fit platform, and NA their traditional sedan and coupe.

- The hybrid will be THE Honda going head to head with the Prius, and use a 1.5L engine + motor ( I guess they are guessing it will be pretty close to the CR-Z unit...).

- Expect new Civics to arrive in 2011.

The old picture of the 72 Civic echoes their comments on the supposed "unique" styling of the "new JDM Civic". They say that at the time Honda surprised Japan with a 2 box FF car when Corollas and Sunny's were 3box FR sedans. So basically it's something like : "Honda did it again" (i.e. find their own original way).

I won't be able to tell you accurately about the part marked with with "warning" until tonight. They also say something about the TypeR, but I understand it sooooo roughly that I won't say anything about it.

Source;
http://www.vtec.net/news/news-item?news_item_id=831062

Honda: Would Mull Counter Measures Vs Cheaper Toyota Prius

SUZUKA, Japan (Dow Jones)--Honda Motor Co. (7267.TO) would have to consider counter measures if Toyota Motor Corp. (7203.TO) sets competitive prices for its Prius hybrid as recently reported, a company executive said Wednesday.

Honda launched its new Insight hybrid in February in Japan and is rolling out the model in the U.S. and other overseas countries.

The company has received orders that were more than triple the hybrid's monthly sales target a month after its Feb. 6 launch in Japan as the prices, which are lower than those of the current Prius, attracted customers looking for cheaper gas-sipping car amid the economic slump.

Yasuhiro Wada, a Honda general manager, said the company continues to receive solid orders for the Insight. As of Monday, orders for the new hybrid totaled more than 21,000 in Japan, more than four times the model's monthly sales target of 5,000.

Honda set the lower limit on Insight's prices at Y1.89 million, about 20% cheaper than the bottom price of the current Prius.

The Nikkei recently reported that Toyota will set the prices of the new Prius at Y2.05 million-Y2.50 million, lower than the current Y2.33 million-Y3.34 million and when it launches the new model it will also continue to sell the current one by lowering the bottom price to Y1.89 million to compete with the Insight.

"If they could do that, it would be a threat," Norio Ano, the head of the Insight product project, said at a press conference.

"We would have to consider something" to stay competitive, he said.
He added that Honda executives would order Ano and his team members to further cut costs if the report is true.

Toyota has said nothing has been decided on the prices of the new Prius and whether to continue to sell the current Prius.

-By Yoshio Takahashi, Dow Jones Newswires; 813-5255-2929; yoshio.takahashi@dowjones.com

Source;
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20090325-704087.html

Honda says to raise Insight output as orders climb

TOKYO, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co plans to produce more of its new Insight hybrid cars from April, having received orders for almost three times its monthly sales target for the gasoline-electric model it launched on Feb. 6 in Japan, a top official said on Tuesday.

Honda plans to launch the Insight, its first attempt at a low-cost, high-volume hybrid, in Europe and the United States over the next two months.

Japan's No.2 automaker is targeting global sales of 200,000 Insights a year, with half of that in North America and 60,000 in Japan, hoping to rival Toyota Motor Corp as a leader in the hybrid segment.

"The response has been overwhelming," Hiroshi Kobayashi, deputy chief operating officer for Honda's domestic operations, told a small group of reporters at a test-drive event in Tokyo.

"We will have to increase production plans," he said. But he stopped short of saying how much it could expand output given possible supply limits for hybrid components.

Customers in Japan will have to wait at least one month for an Insight if they ordered one today, he said.
Honda is positioning the Insight as its fifth "global car" alongside the Civic, Accord, Fit and CR-V cars, which collectively make up about two-thirds of its car sales.

Kobayashi said half of the Insight sales so far were to customers switching from other brands, including premium import brands and Toyota's hybrid leader, the Prius. The Insight starts at 1.89 million yen ($19,980) in Japan.

"What's unique about the Insight is that we're attracting a broad range of drivers, from (660cc) minivehicles to sedans to minivans," Kobayashi said.

While cautioning that the Japanese car market remained tough -- total vehicle sales in January fell 20 percent from the year before -- Kobayashi said Honda aimed to sell as many cars in the business year from April as the 570,000 to 580,000 units he expected it to sell in the 12 months to March 31.

Toyota is due to launch its third-generation Prius in May, pricing it slightly higher than the current version, which starts at 2.3 million yen in Japan. Local media have reported widely that Toyota would take the unusual step of selling the current model at a discount alongside the new version to compete with Honda's Insight.

A Toyota spokeswoman said the company had made no such decision yet. ($1=94.59 Yen) (Reporting by Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by Hugh Lawson)

Source;
http://uk.reuters.com/article/rbssConsumerGoodsAndRetailNews/idUKT37087520090224?sp=true