Honda Officially Announces Fit / Jazz Shuttle, Sales Start in Japan this March

Less than a month ago, we broke the story on the leaked brochure of the Honda Fit Shuttle. Today, the Japanese automaker came out with an official announcement revealing a cropped image of the car and stating that the larger and more practical version of the Fit (otherwise known as the Jazz) will go on sale in Japan this March.

The new Fit Shuttle will be available in Japan with a similar engine lineup to the hatchback version including a conventional 1.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine and a hybrid variant featuring a 1.3 liter gasoline unit and a 10 KW electric motor.

Honda did not say whether the Fit Shuttle will be offered exclusively in Japan or if it will make its way to other markets as well. Follow the break for more pictures.

Source: Honda via WFC

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Honda to Build More CR-Vs in the U.S., Plans to Increase the use of Parts from Low-Cost Countries

The strong yen is affecting all Japanese automakers that are exporting their locally produced cars to America. Honda is one of them, as of the 72,000 CR-Vs built last year in Japan, 35,000 made their way to North America. Japan’s third largest automaker wants to invest in its North American plants to increase the number of CR-V it builds here and reduce exports from Japan, thus minimizing losses due to exchange rates.

“Our profit structure has improved mainly thanks to robust overseas operations, and the toughest area remains exports from Japan”, Chief Financial Officer Yoichi Hojo told reporters at Honda's headquarters on Wednesday. “With a little investment, we would be able to increase production of the CR-V in the United States, so that's the most probable course of action (to reduce yen exposure)”, he said.

The company official said that Honda is currently examining various options to increase the crossover’s production. One of the factories that builds the CR-V, the East Liberty plant, in Ohio, is already operating at full capacity, but the neighboring Marysville plant is at 80%, while a factory in Indiana is working at half of its total capacity.

Should the need arise, Honda could also increase the output of its Mexican and Canadian plants.

In the future, the automaker also plans to use more components sourced from low-cost countries, such as China and India.

According to Yoichi Hojo, low-cost components will account for at least 10% of the upcoming 2012 Civic, a major improvement considering that the current generation uses very few if any low cost parts. The same ratio is at 17% in the case of the Fit subcompact, but Honda is aiming for about 30%.

By Csaba Daradics

Source: Reuters

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New Honda App Allows iPhone Users to Catch Characters from TV Spot as they Appear on the Commercial

In a ground-breaking campaign, Honda has merged the worlds of iPhone Apps and traditional commercials, be they on your TV, computer screen or mobile phone. Created to celebrate the launch of the revised Honda Jazz [Fit in the U.S.], the new interactive app allows iPhone users to virtually catch animated characters as they appear on screen in the firm's new TV advert 'This Unpredictable Life' and drop them into their phones, more or less in the same way you'd use a PS3 Move or Nintendo wii motion-controller.

The Japanese carmaker said it’s the first time the so-called screen-hopping technology has been used with a commercial.

The App is called "Honda Jazz – This Unpredictable Life" and can be downloaded for free from Apple's iTunes Store. Once installed, iPhone users can begin watching the spot from their TV, or on any other device, including a PC or even a second iPhone with the app installed, and collect up to four characters and three mystery objects. Honda said that users can then interact with each of the stars of the film, for example, the toy space monkey can be made to dance by singing into the phone.

The new advertising campaign was created by Wieden + Kennedy and Nexus, the team behind the Japanese automaker's 'Hate Something, Change Something' commercial for its cleaner diesel engines in 2004.

The TV spot will debut in the UK on 1 February at around 21.45 on ITV1 and Channel 4 but for those in a rush, it is already available on YouTube. Scroll down to watch the film, and if you happen to own an iPhone and try it out, share your experience in the comments section below.

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Honda Germany Celebrates 50th Anniversary with Special Edition Models

Honda has launched a new series of special edition models in Germany to celebrated the company's 50th anniversary in Europe. The first Honda store in Germany opened in 1961 in the city of Hamburg. The lineup of special edition models includes the CR-Z hybrid sport hatch, the Civic, the CR-V, the Accord and the Jazz, all of which feature additional standard equipment such as larger alloy wheels and upgraded audio systems (depending on the model) without a price increase. More details on the 50th Anniversary specials can be found on Honda's German website.

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New Honda Fit Shuttle: Leaked Brochure Reveals Station Wagon-Like Model

A bonanza of allegedly official brochure photos showing a new, station-wagon-like variant of the Japanese domestic market [JDM] Fit have leaked onto the internet. Named the Fit Shuttle, the car appears to be based on the recently refreshed Fit (Honda uses the Jazz nameplate in Europe, Australia and other international markets) featuring a longer body with taller roofline and a redesigned rear end.

As you can see in the brochure shots, the Fit Shuttle will be offered in two flavors, a Hybrid version powered by the same IMA system with a 1.3 liter i-VTEC engine featured on the five-door hatchback model, and a more powerful variant with a regular 1.5-liter gasoline unit.

According to the Japanese media, the Fit Shuttle will be introduced in its home market within the next few weeks with sales to start around March. We'll follow the story and keep you posted on any updates.

Kudos to J.F. for the tip!

Sources: Ryuji & Mincara

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Honda Rolls Out New Li Nian S1 Subcompact Sedan at China Auto Show

China's recently developed passion for cars is paving the way for an increasing number of new vehicles targeting value-conscious consumers. Along with Nissan, which took the wraps of the 2011 Sunny, Honda also debuted a new small sedan today at the 2010 China International Automobile Exhibition.

Called the S1, the four-door model will be marketed under the newly formed Li Nian brand, created by Guangqi Honda, a Chinese joint venture owned by Honda and the Guangzhou Automobile Group.

The Li Nian S1 is the far less exciting (from a design standpoint) production version of the Everus Concept, which made its world premiere at the Guangzhou Motor Show in April. Even though Honda is keeping most details about the car under wraps, it appears that the S1 is based off the previous generation Honda City (Fit / Jazz sedan), and not the newer model of the car, which was released in 2008.

According to Honda, the S1 targets the younger generation in China and "adopts a powerful, energetic and outstanding design form".

The Li Nian S1 will be available in the market from the spring of 2011 through the current Guangqi Honda sales channel, with engine options including 1.3-liter and 1.5-liter petrol units.

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Honda Launches Refreshed Fit and New Fit Hybrid in Japan, Receives 10,000 Orders for Gas-Electric Model

Honda on Friday introduced the Japanese domestic market version of its new Fit (Jazz in Europe) Hybrid alongside the regular Fit model, which benefits from a minor cosmetic refresh and equipment upgrades for the 2011 model year.

The company's head of domestic sales, Hiroshi Kobayashi said Honda has already received 10,000 orders for the Fit Hybrid, which was given its world premiere at last week's Paris Motor Show.

The newly-added Fit Hybrid will be offered locally at the starting price of 1.59 million yen (about US$19,300 at today's exchange rates), making it the most affordable gasoline-electric hybrid vehicle in Japan.

Honda said the JDM version of the hybrid model has a fuel economy of 30km/liter [equal to 3.3 lt/100km or 70.6 mpg US] under the Japanese highway test system.

The car, which makes use of the same IMA system with a 1.3 liter i-VTEC engine as the Insight Hybrid, will go on sale in certain European markets from early 2011 as the Jazz Hybrid. According to the Japanese automaker, the Jazz Hybrid's fuel economy is estimated at 4.4 lt/100km [53.5 mpg US] in the combined European cycle. Honda has not yet said if and when it will offer a Fit Hybrid for the North American market.

The new Fit Hybrid is joined in Japan by a subtly refreshed version of the regular gasoline-powered Fit with a 1.3-liter engine. The modest facelift is limited to new grille and bumper (front and rear) designs which are said to help improve the car's aerodynamic efficiency, plus revised tail lamps and updated interior trims.

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