Honda to Debut CR-Z TS-1X Concept at this week's Tokyo Auto Salon

With the conclusion of the press days of the 2011 Detroit Motor Show, the automotive world is now shifting its focus on the Tokyo Auto Salon 2011, which will be held from Friday, January 14, to Sunday, January 16, at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan.

At this year's event, Honda will be presenting several vehicles including the TS-1X concept study based on the CR-Z hybrid. The prototype model is the work of Honda Access Corporation, the Japanese carmaker's in-house aftermarket division.

Honda has not revealed any information on the concept model, but from the single photo it did release, we can see that the TS-1X is finished in a matt black paintjob and is fitted with a full body kit comprising of front and rear bumpers, beefy side skirts and a large rear wing that appears to extend on the CR-Z's sides.

Other Honda products to be displayed at Honda's stand include a variety of customized vehicles such as the Sports Modulo NSX, Freed Spike caravan car, the Acty Truck and the Enepo generator special coloring editions, plus several racing models like the HSV-010 GT, which won both the driver and team titles for the Super GT Series GT500-class races.

Our man Phil has already landed in Japan and will be covering the show live so stay tuned on Carscoop for more news on the Tokyo Auto Salon.

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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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Noblesse Wings Up Honda CR-Z Hybrid Sport Hatch

Japanese tuner Noblesse has been steadily releasing numerous aftermarket bits and pieces for the new CR-Z ever since Honda launched its hybrid sport hatch . Among other parts, the company has developed a ground aero-kit with front and rear bumper aprons, side skirts, a rear diffuser and a large roof wing. These can be complemented by a lightweight carbon fiber hood, underbody aero parts, larger alloy wheels and a sport exhaust system. You can check out photos of Noblesse's Honda CR-Z offerings along with a video of a test car doing a circuit round right after the jump.

Source: Noblesse , Via: Farm of minds

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New Honda CR-Z JCOTY Memorial Award Edition Shows off with Special Paint...and that's About it

To commemorate its "Japanese Car of the Year" award, Honda will release a limited edition of its CR-Z sport-hybrid hatch in Japan. Billed as a "Memorial Award Edition", the car will be coated in a hue called Pearl Deep Sapphire Blue and will roll on unique Dark Pewter Gray 16-inch rims.

Add a sticker/label on the driver's side quarter glass, and that's about it for external spruce-ups. Inside, the 1,000 Memorial CR-Zs get a Medium Gray interior, aluminum pedals, and a standard navigation system. Numbers still come in at 122 horsepower and 123-128 lb-ft of torque (CVT/6-speed) from Honda's IMA-backed 1.5-liter i-VTEC four-cylinder.

If you're over Japan way, the cars will be sold from the start of 2011. Price of admission will be a cool 2,794,000 Yen after the consumption tax (or approximately $34,200).

By Phil Alex

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That's More Like It: Tuner Powers up Honda CR-Z with K20 i-VTEC Engine Swap

If there's one major complaint to be had with the Honda CR-Z, it's the lack of power. Florida-based tuning firm LHT Performance decided to address this problem by replacing the CR-Z's standard hybrid powerplant with a far more potent 2.0-liter four-cylinder unit from Honda's own K20 series. This is not the first time that LHT Performance has made the switch on a Honda hybrid as the tuner previously pulled a similar stunt with the Insight. Unfortunately the company has not released any specific details on the K20 engine swap, but it did not that "everything works 100%". Watch a static video of the car after the break.

Source: LHT Performance , Via: Autoblog

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