Honda is finally waving the white flag at it’s Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) hybrid system. IMA is the current hybrid system featured in the CR-Z Coupe, Insight hybrid and hybrid Jazz. The new, and hopefully much better, hybrid system that Honda are going to produce will be called the ‘Sport Hybrid i-DCD’. The new system features an intelligent dual-clutch gearbox and a new 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol engine.
The new engine now runs on the more fuel-efficient Atkinson cycle, like you’ll find on all the best Toyota hybrids, as well as an electric motor with batteries. Most importantly, however, the package will be mated to a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. Now that is something we really do like the sound of, because it might mark the beginning-of-the-end for two-peddle CVTs that are currently the undisputed drivetrains in hybrids.
The system will allow propulsion in three modes, depending on conditions and requirements: petrol only, electricity only, or a combination of the two. Honda says the system will offer an electric-only driving range of 3 km at around 50 km/h, with a maximum electric-only speed of 70 km/h.
Combined with an engine stop/start system, Honda says the Sport Hybrid i-DCD will offer as much as a 30% improvement in fuel efficiency when compared to the current IMA system. Honda justifies the ‘Sport’ component of the new system’s name with the move from a CVT automatic transmission to a dual-clutch arrangement and the promise of 15% faster acceleration. Is this enough to get you excited about Honda hybrids?
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