Small car blitz at LA Show: Too little too late?

The Chevy Cruze

Tomorrow I'll be attending press days at the LA Auto Show, and the big theme at this year's show is once again 'green'. This year, however, things are a bit different than past years. Instead of hybrid cars or clean diesel vehicles, the path to green is small cars, particularly a number of new offerings from the Big 3.

While this is great news, I cannot help but wonder, is this too little, too late?

Toyota and Honda have always done a pretty good job selling small cars in the US, and they will probably continue to do well. However, both automakers have hinted that smaller, cheaper hybrids will be critical to their future small car plans.

For now certainly the Chevy Cruze, for instance, will sell. Still, a semi-loaded automatic version of the Cruze will probably list for $18,000 - $20,000. But, what happens if Toyota can sell a slightly smaller Prius for around the same price, or if Honda can sell an even cheaper Honda Fit hybrid?

Without question, the Big 3 should proceed with their small car plans. Nonetheless, are the Big 3 avoiding small hybrids today much the same way they avoided small cars in general for the last few decades? Ultimately, aren't the Big 3 simply chasing the small car US segment when they instead should be showing some real leadership and vision in this segment?

Hybrid technology coming to all Honda vehicles

Still a best seller in Japan

Thanks to strong sales of the Honda Insight and other fuel efficient vehicles, such as the Fit, Honda has been able to stay in the black while other automakers have suffered during this economic crisis. Nonetheless, Honda envisions huge changes in the automotive landscape.

"Even without the economic shock, cars have to change dramatically with the rise in environmental consciousness," Honda President Takanobu Ito told the Japanese Times.

Thus, Honda expects to make "huge resource investments" into clean technologies, such as hybrid cars.

Next year, Honda will launch the Honda CRZ hybrid and a Fit hybrid as well and Ito claims, "I have no doubt that (some form of) a hybrid system will eventually be installed in all cars."

Honda CR-Z hybrid hits Japan in February

And in the US when?

Two new Honda hybrid cars are coming, well, at least to Japan according to AutoWeek.

Honda has confirmed that it will begin selling the Honda CR-Z hybrid in Japan in February. Additionally, before the end of 2010 Honda will also launch the Honda Fit hybrid in Japan. Unfortunately, however, Honda did not offer any updates on when these vehicles would make it to the US.

Regardless, it seems the CR-Z hybrid should be in the States by mid 2010. Unfortunately, it seems the Fit hybrid won't be in the states until late 2010 or even early 2011.

When will there be a cheap American hybrid?

From small cars to cheap hybrids

Decades ago, small cars were the dumbest idea ever, at least to those running US automakers. Honda and Toyota thought differently.

A decade ago, hybrid cars were the dumbest idea ever, at least to those running US automakers. Again, Honda and Toyota thought differently.

Today it seems cheap hybrid vehicles are the dumbest idea ever, as not one US automaker has confirmed plans for a cheap hybrid to compete with a vehicle like the Toyota Prius. And, the upcoming Honda Fit hybrid could take 'cheap hybrids' to a whole new level. Yet, US automakers don't even appear interested in entering this market.

Are US automakers again missing the boat? Will there ever be a cheap American hybrid?

Honda CRZ hybrid coming early next year

Can a sporty hybrid sell?

Honda Executive Vice President Koichi Kondo has confirmed that the Honda CR-Z hybrid will go on sale early next year and that the new hybrid will cost more than $20,000. Sometime thereafter, according to Kondo, the Honda Fit hybrid will follow.

Finally, in the next year or so, Honda believes it will be selling 500,000 hybrid vehicles per year.

20 percent hybrid by 2020?

Ford better get ready to increase its hybrid production

In just a few years, shoppers of Honda hybrid cars will face a tough decision.

Should they buy the cheapest and smallest Honda hybrid, the Fit or the larger Honda Insight? Or, for those not interested in hatchbacks and desiring a little more passenger space, the Civic hybrid might be better . Then again, maybe some Honda hybrid consumers won't care about size, but instead prefer something sporty like the CR-Z sports hybrid.

So, why is Honda going hybrid crazy? Well, perhaps they've seen JP Morgan's latest hybrid prediction. By 2020, according to JP, hybrid sales in the US will reach 19.4 percent of the new car market.

Shoot. If gas prices pull another 2008 in the next few years, I'd say that JP is underestimating the hybrid market. In fact, the way that Honda is ramping up its hybrid efforts, I wouldn't be surprised if Honda was hybrid-only by 2020.

Now, US automakers, that's a whole other story.

The $15,000 Honda Fit hybrid due next year?

The rumors continue to swirl

A while back Honda announced that it would convert its Fit into a hybrid version, but Honda has never been very clear about when exactly such a vehicle would be offered. Rumors have indicated it could go on sale as early as late 2009 or as late as 2015.

The latest rumors, however, indicate that the Honda Fit hybrid will go on sale sometime in 2010 at a cost of just $15,800, and that the automaker hopes to sell 50,000 Fit hybrids per year.

Not so many decades ago, most in America claimed small Honda and Toyota cars would never take off in America. And this American arrogance and ignorance helped pushed the US auto industry to the precipice of liquidity. Today, Honda and Toyota are preparing to roll out - combined - over half a million small hybrid cars per year, and yet Detroit has neither a product offering nor a plan to compete with such vehicles.

In this repeat of history, however, the Big 3 aren't sitting atop the automotive world. This time they are either in or near bankruptcy. Will America really be able to compete?