Honda CEO: We will build affordable and green sports cars, not like the Lexus LF-A
by Sam Abuelsamid on Oct 22nd 2009 at 6:59PM 
Following our time visiting this week's Tokyo Motor Show, we had the opportunity to sit down for a small group interview at Honda's world headquarters with freshly-minted CEO Takanobu Ito, who took over the reigns at Honda from Takeo Fukui just this past June. Among the questions posed to Ito-san was "When will Americans see another performance car from Honda?" Honda has a tradition of performance vehicles and motorsports participation that goes back to the earliest days of the company. Ito himself was the chief body engineer on the original NSX and was pivotal in the development of its lightweight aluminum structure and body.Given his role in one of the more unique aspects of the NSX, it was interesting that Ito acknowledged that he personally made the decision to pull the plug last year on the new car that was being developed as a successor to the NSX. Ito actually sounded as though he was channeling Colin Chapman in explaining the philosophy of using low mass to achieve a good power to weight ratio on the NSX. That approach allowed Honda to create a car that was "easy to drive, good performance and at the same time it enjoyed very good fuel economy."
However, reaching those goals required a significant investment in new manufacturing technology.
Ito went on to say that there were two challenges that must be overcome in order for a new sports car from Honda to become a reality. Read on after the jump.
"It remains our commitment that is exactly the direction that Honda sports car should be going," continued Ito, referring to low mass and efficiency. In addition to being president and CEO of Honda Motor Co, Ito is also president of the wholly-owned Honda R&D and as such understands the importance of research and the effort that goes into developing new technology. Creating technology that can be built affordably, especially moving forward in the 21st century, requires a significant investment.
That means an economic recovery must begin.
"Because the economy is so-so bad, the management is faced with a very tight constraint, we are barely managing to generate profit. Therefore we are hoping that people's purchasing power and desire will increase so as to generate more profit for Honda and let us have the cash to have a greater degree of freedom in our management."
"When it comes cars these days, there is a great demand to have green cars and we are working on environmental technologies. Right now we are in the midst of developing new green technologies." That includes fuel cells and hybrids for larger vehicles. "Once we come up with these new, innovative technologies that we are in the midst of researching, Once we have an abundance of cash, I definitely would like to see Honda build a sports car which would symbolize these technologies."
Ito then when on to take a bit of a jab at its bigger rival, "Once that day comes our sports car will not be something like what Toyota announced yesterday (referring to the nearly $400K Lexus LF-A) but instead will be something that is environmentally friendly and at the same time enjoy outstanding performance. I'd love to do that"
Honda FC Sport concept - Click above for high res image gallery
Later on Ito re-emphasized that Honda is not interested in making a mega-dollar sports car like the LF-A. Ito also said that Honda/Acura will not be going down the direction of engines with more than six cylinders. He did refer to last year's fuel cell-powered FC Sport concept as one long term direction he would like to pursue, but even in the nearer term blending hybrid technologies with smaller engines and low weight will be the Honda direction.
We can only hope that the economy rebounds soon so that we can see what the wizards at Honda can cook up next. Perhaps we'll get a preview in LA in December where Honda spokesman Chuck Schifsky told us to "look for a surprise."
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
vespid82 7:13PM (10/22/2009)
It is physically impossible to outperform the internal combustion engine in terms of "sporty" performance, and STILL have the vehicle be affordable. Period. At least for now... :)
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ken_aisin 8:54AM (10/23/2009)
I agree about the cost. But if both cost the same, electric motors delivers max torque on startup. This is something combustion engines can never match.
naggs 5:46PM (10/23/2009)
but they dont cost the same or weigh the same, battery tech is nowhere near competing with gasoline for power density
for the time being, only pure ICE cars will actually perform
Hike15 7:14PM (10/22/2009)
can they build a new sports car on a gt-r level anyways? maybe make it seem green somehow?
The new CRX does look quite enticing. Hopefully it will compete with the new ft-86 because that could be the best comparison in a long time, between toyota and honda.
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vespid82 7:46PM (10/22/2009)
In usual Honda fashion, it's NOT rear-wheel-drive and if the 1.5L powerplant in the CR-Z stays through to production, it's down on displacement by 25%... I think that gives you a pretty good idea how THAT comparison would go.
Honda has officially become a hippie brand.
JDM Life 7:51PM (10/22/2009)
The Toyota is RWD?
Toyota for me.
naggs 5:49PM (10/23/2009)
people will only cross shop the crz and the toyubaru if the honda comes with a normal powertrain
as is, its an insight 2.0 with all the performance that that entails, what a joke honda
Arthur 7:15PM (10/22/2009)
In that picture, he'll be asking you to cough twice please.
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J-Rhyme 2:35AM (10/23/2009)
Honda better rebound soon! I've owned 2 Honda's in the last 2 years; since then they have almost no performance vehicles left now that the S2k is gone. Accord Coupe 6mt, and Civis Si?? Sweet! I currently drive a 4dr Si. It's sporty but not fast. The new CRZ with a 6spd better be at least 6sec. 0-60mph. with 35mpg's hwy! Come on Honda, where'd the ballz go? At least teeny tiny balls like we're used to.
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Soichiro 7:50PM (10/22/2009)
I'm a huge fan of small, light weight sports cars. Previous offering from Honda including the S2000, Integra Type-R's (DC2/DC5) and Civic Type-R's and SiR's (FD2, EP3, EK4/9, EG6) were stellar. Those cars have fun, high revving, low displacement engines (Honda's specialty) and beautifully balanced handling. As a fan, it would be great to see a new model NSX, but financially I can see and accept how it isn't at all viable. I'm really not interested in hybrid sports cars (and I think a lot of other enthusiasts feel this way as well), I hope Honda hasn't misread the market here...
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Ben 9:42PM (10/22/2009)
More sports cars like the S2000 wouldn't be a bad thing at all.
ugg.tryptophan 2:32AM (10/23/2009)
I think there approach could change the industry if well executed. Honda is smart to become a trend-setter rather than a trend-follower.
ken_aisin 9:01AM (10/23/2009)
"Honda is smart to become a trend-setter rather than a trend-follower. "
Technological wise, yes. Design wise, NO!!!
Mr. Ito, when you have abundance of cash, can you please also hire better designers.
To the autoblog staff who interviewed him: Did you ask him why North American Honda and Acura models have become more and more hideous?!?!?!
AlittleCarLover 7:35PM (10/22/2009)
Something he mentioned was that there was a high demand for green cars. The fact that car enthusiasts were following the NSX v2's development so closely means there must be a pretty big demand for cars like the NSX, too. Go ahead with it!
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J 11:03PM (10/22/2009)
There's a difference: the demand for green cars comes not from the enthusiasts, but from the general populace.
As much as Honda would surely love to please the enthusiasts, they are smart to realize that only a small portion of the world can be considered 'enthusiasts'.
AlittleCarLover 7:21AM (10/23/2009)
Good point.
Dan 7:26PM (10/22/2009)
Relived to see that Honda recognizes the climate threat of half million dollar zero volume track toys.
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Quan 9:04PM (10/22/2009)
Zero volume means the climate threat would be negligible.
feeboo 10:15PM (10/22/2009)
Impact isn't simply output of CO2. As much as I love Clarkson and gang, his antics only fuel my desire for exotics. I want to drive an awesome car so f*cking bad and that impulse is driven by seeing them and knowing they exist. The overall impact of guys(predominantly) just seeing insane cars powers the industry. It's contagious. So the impact of a car can be felt beyond what comes out of the tailpipes. Which I'm not saying is bad thing. Just saying.
WilliamInPDX 11:16PM (10/22/2009)
I had to re-read the article to be sure- but nowhere in the article (OR the quotes contained in the article) does it suggest that anyone at Honda considers the LFA an environmental threat of any kind. You are absolutely CORRECT in asserting that the tiny volume of LFA's will have no real global impact, but you may be missing the real "meat" of what the article.
The NSX was a supercar, but it was also VERY much a Honda. It showcased the technology and philosophy of the brand. The LFA is incredibly cool, but has nothing that makes you say "there's a little bit of LFA philosophy in my Corolla." Not only does Toyota not make sports cars, they rarely produce any model that is known as the enthusiast's choice in it's class.
Takanobu Ito obviously believes that it makes more sense for Honda to stick with their core philosophies- efficiency, reliability, driving dynamics, value. The headline say it all- "We will build affordable and green sports cars, not like the Lexus LF-A". Saying the kind of car your company will NOT be building is far from saying they are claiming "the climate threat of half million dollar zero volume track toys."
What a lazy, odd comment man.