This Is How Honda Performance Development Fixed The CRZ
Back in 2010, Honda wanted to capitalize on the nostalgia of its CR-X sports coupe, which was built from 1983 to 1991. That car was technically succeeded by the del Sol, which lasted from 1992 to 1998, but it was too different from its predecessor to be considered a faithful followup. So when the Honda CR-Z arrived over a decade later, CR-X enthusiasts should have been thrilled to finally have a car that was a true spiritual successor. There was just one major problem: the CR-Z was kind of a flop.
In its best year (2011), the CR-Z only sold 11,330 units. Compare that to the CR-X – which sold 66,629 units in 1986 – and it’s easy to see how the CR-Z failed to live up to the hype. There’s a very obvious explanation why the CR-Z didn’t cater to the same crowd as the CR-X: it was simply too slow. Honda wanted to showcase the sporty potential of its Integrated Motor Assist Hybrid, which is fine as a concept, but the CR-Z only produced 121 horsepower (later 130 hp), about 30 less than the JDM market second-generation CR-X SiR delivered 30 years earlier.
The CR-Z felt like a better replacement for the original Insight than it did for the CR-X, and enthusiasts could sense it. Then, everything changed in 2014 when Honda Performance Development announced a supercharger kit, which would boost the CR-Z’s output by nearly 50%. Honda even built limited HPD Edition cars, kitted out with handling and performance parts to match the added power. CarBuzz had a chance to drive car #001 from Honda’s classic museum in California, and we think more people need to be talking about it.
Honda handed us the keys to a museum-kept CR-Z HPD Edition #001 with only 7,389 miles on the odometer to drive around and perform a review. All maintenance is done in-house by Honda at its facility in Torrance, California.
What Is A CR-Z HPD Edition?
HPD took the 1.5-liter i-VTEC engine and bolted a centrifugal supercharger to it, taking the output from 130 hp to 197 hp, and the torque from 140 lb-ft to 170 lb-ft. That’s the same power (and more torque) found in the Civic Si at the time, but the CR-Z was a smaller car with a shorter wheelbase.
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Original 2016 Honda CR-Z |
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Transmission |
6-Speed Manual |
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Horsepower |
130 hp |
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Torque |
140 lb-ft @ 1,000 rpm |
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0-60 mph |
8.3 secs |
Honda would only install the supercharger to a CRZ equipped with the six-speed manual transmission, and it required dealerships to send the ECU into HPD for reprogramming. The supercharger kit also came with an HPD air-to-air intercooler, high-flow fuel injectors, and an air filter system. An HPD sport clutch could be installed optionally. With the increased output, 0-60 mph time fell from 8.3 seconds in the standard car to around 6.7 seconds.
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Honda CR-Z HPD Edition |
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Transmission |
6-Speed Manual |
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Horsepower |
197 hp |
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Torque |
170 lb-ft @ 1,000 rpm |
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0-60 mph |
6.7 secs |
To match the serious bump in performance, the HPD cars were equipped with a limited-slip differential, stiffer suspension, and larger brakes. HPD also added a cat-back exhaust, which sounds fantastic. As a cherry on top, the HPD cars were visually upgraded with unique 18-inch wheels, side decals, a rear spoiler, and badging. Inside, there is even a plaque numbering the car out of 300 units. Honda originally charged $5,495 for the kit, not including installation, and it kept the five-year/60,000-mile warranty.
What It’s Like To Drive?
It’s been a long time since we last drove a CR-Z, but we remember it being “neat” but not exciting. The HPD car is a different beast. With a 67-hp bump, the CR-Z gets a much-needed wake-up call. Dump the clutch and floor it, and the front wheels chirp like angry birds as they fight to hook up with the road. It may be a hybrid, but there’s nothing quiet and eco-friendly about that cat-back exhaust, which sounds better than a modern Civic Type R.
This is a VTEC engine, but it doesn’t have the same torque band you expect from a Honda of this era on account of the supercharger and the hybrid assist. Peak torque appears to arrive earlier than a contemporary Civic Si, so you don’t need to exceed 6,000 rpm to wring the most out of it. There’s even an S+ button on the steering wheel that delivers extra power from the electric motor, but with the supercharger contributing so much power, we didn’t really notice it working. This may be a hybrid, but it doesn’t function like most modern ones. The engine does shut off at a stop, but it fires back up immediately when you depress the clutch.
The steering is lighter than we expected, which would be fine if it delivered a bit more feedback to the driver. Honda’s manual transmission is excellent, though the company has clearly made some strides since the mid-2010s, making the shifter more notchy. The biggest flaw is the HPD suspension, which feels both too stiff over bumps but also not tense enough in hard cornering.
We could see the CR-Z HPD being great as an autocross car, but it would still be too soft for serious track work. There are Eco, Normal, and Sport mode buttons to the left of the steering wheel, and they drastically change the throttle response of the car. In Eco, it feels like a sluggish commuter, and in Sport, it turns into a proper hot hatchback.
Same CR-Z Drawbacks
The HPD Edition fixes the power problem, but you still have to love the CR-Z. The styling is controversial to this day, but we appreciate that Honda tried to modernize the CR-X’s distinctive two-piece glass hatchback. Like the CR-X, the US-market CR-Z was not offered with back seats.
Instead, it just has a storage shelf that looks like seats. That limits the car’s usefulness as a people carrier, but it does have up to 25.1 cubic feet of space in the trunk with the divider folded, which is more than a new Civic Hatchback (seats not folded).
Honda was also limited by the technology of the era, so you won’t find modern amenities like Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, though they could be added fairly easily. There is a radio with a CD player and auxiliary jack, plus Bluetooth on later models and even a rearview camera in the mirror.
Is This A Honda Collector’s Dream?
There are several cars that should live in a Honda lover’s dream collection: S500, Integra Type R, NSX-R, S2000 CR, CR-X Mugen, and Civic Type R Limited Edition to name a few. We believe the CR-Z HPD Edition should be considered in that pantheon. According to HPD, there are only a record of 52 cars with the complete package, making this CR-Z rarer than any of the cars we just mentioned. $5,495 was a lot to spend at the time, and it wasn’t worth the hassle to send your ECU to HPD for tuning.
Honda’s miscalculation could turn into your gain if you are able to find one of these cars with low mileage in good condition. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find any HPD Editions listed for sale as of this writing, but we did find #002 listed for sale around one year ago for $16,000 with 56,000 miles on the CR-Z Forum, so these don’t cost an unreasonable amount of money. Buy the best one you can find, sit on it, and you may end up with a Honda collector’s holy grail.
Sources: Honda, HPD, CR-Z Forum