Honda Cars : 2010 Honda Accord CrossTour Micro Site | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Here's a link to the CrossTours Micro Site with lots of info....
http://www.crosstour.ca/home.php?lang=en

Honda Cars : Honda arrives fashionably late | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

With the Accord Crosstour, Honda finally has a five-passenger mid-size crossover in this important market segment. The car maker may have taken its time – but it’s got it right

Ford has the Edge. Subaru has the Outback. Toyota has the Venza. Nissan the Murano. Mazda the CX-7. Hyundai the Santa Fe. And now, coming later this month, Honda has the 2010 Accord Crosstour.

Yes, Honda is late to this game. Very late. And even at that, Honda really is only dipping its big toe into a segment where so many others have found success and won fans.

In fact, Honda has exceedingly modest expectations for the Crosstour: annual sales of about 3,000 for a car that amounts to a tall station wagon with a long list of standard upscale features.

Toyota has been selling more than 1,000 Venzas a month lately and Subaru's sales have exploded with the introduction of the newly updated Outback.

Officially, the Crosstour – with an estimated price of about $35,000 – is a crossover, which means it's a car sort of pretending to be an SUV. Pretending, indeed. In standard trim, the Crosstour is a front-driver, just like the Accord sedan on which it is based.

In reality, though, the Crosstour is a Honda Accord with a big hatchback at the rear and optional all-wheel-drive, leather seats, power everything, an excellent sound system, a lovely carpeted cargo area with nifty little hatches and cubbies all over, all powered by a strong and fuel efficient 3.5-litre V-6 (271 horsepower).

You read that right. Honda is only offering the Crosstour with a V-6. That's not entirely unusual. The Edge is a V-6-only ride, as is the Murano and the Santa Fe. On the other hand, Subaru has a four-cylinder Outback and Toyota can barely meet demand for its four-banger Venza.

Caution, thy name is Honda. But that's been the whole story of Honda for this past year.

More than a year ago, Honda began making radical moves to cut costs and align production with the falling demand of a global recession. To save money, Honda jettisoned its Formula One racing effort, offered buyouts to scores of workers, negotiated pay cuts with others, carefully revisited its new model development program and moved quickly to do its best at aligning production to falling demand. Honda's problems have been compounded by a strong yen that makes exports from Japan expensive in Canada and the United States.

The result of all Honda's diligence: a profit last year and Honda is predicting a profit for the fiscal year that ends next March 31.

“This was a really tough year,” Honda Motor president Takanobu Ito recently told trade journal Automotive News. “We are barely making a profit. This is something we had anticipated from the very beginning, and our projection turned out to be true.

“Especially in the United States, our biggest market, the recovery, for us at least, is slow. And Europe's recovery is even slower. This is having a major negative impact on our corporate performance.”

But not as bad as Ito might lead you to believe. Honda is predicting an annual profit of $2.1-billion (U.S.) for the current fiscal year. Jerry Chenkin, Honda Canada executive vice-president, says Honda is obsessive about earnings; without profits, there is no money for new-model development. And without new models and new technologies, Honda will fall behind the competition.

Yet while Honda does have leadership in many areas, including having Canada's best-selling car for nine straight years in the Civic, the Crosstour is an example of Honda chasing the competition.

This may be because Honda has been reluctant to tamper with its current lineup. In Honda's world, the Crosstour fits in between the Honda CR-V compact crossover and the Honda Pilot SUV. Honda apparently did not feel it needed something to fill that gap – until now.

It's possible Honda is not offering the Crosstour with a four-banger in order to avoid competing against the CR-V and hurting sales of the latter. Honda isn't saying. But the body language of company types suggests Honda Canada would rather have a four-cylinder Crosstour and let the CR-V – given a facelift for 2010, by the way – fend for itself.

The Crosstour, in fact, is a perfectly sensible Honda Accord hatchback. Moreover, it looks much better in person than any of the pictures might suggest. The newest Honda isn't quite as large and heavy as the Pilot or the Odyssey minivan. Yet it has roomier passenger quarters than the CR-V.

In terms of dimensions, well, the Crosstour is similar in width and height to the likes of the Venza, Murano and Outback, though the Honda has less ground clearance than these three rivals. Nonetheless, the Honda sits higher off the ground than a normal Accord sedan.

The whole point of the ride height here is twofold: It makes entry and exit easier for the targeted baby boomer buyers; and when equipped with the Real Time four-wheel-drive system from the CR-V, the tall-ish Crosstour gives you a shot at escaping your driveway after a snowstorm.

As a family ride – or an empty-nester baby boomer utility wagon – the Crosstour is just excellent. With 2,871 litres of cargo space when the 60/40-split rear seats are folded, the Crosstour has more space than a Venza and Outback. The rear seats fold completely flat, too – with an easy pull of handles that are an easy reach in the cargo hold.

On the other hand, with the rears up, the Crosstour‘s cargo hold is 728 litres, versus 869 and 972 respectively in the Toyota and Subaru. That means if you load up four sets of golf clubs, you'll need to pull out the drivers and tuck them here and there, creatively. Honda has included tie-down hooks, which are useful, indeed.

Moreover, Honda put the spare tire under the car and it has a plastic cover down there to keep it clean. With the spare out of the way, there is additional storage space below the rear floor in the cargo hold. A deep and hidden removable utility box provides storage, while on each side there are two recessed areas providing some hidden space, also.

Up front, ahead of the back seats, everything is essentially an Accord. That's good. The design here is clean and completely sensible, the materials durable looking and nicely put together. You will not find yourself looking for a knob or a control.

The cabin's soft-touch plastic material looks and feels fairly expensive and the steering wheel is meaty, fitting nicely into your hands. The dials are big and thoroughly legible. The dash has a simple flow across it. With Honda, function trumps art.

Not only is the Crosstour functional, it is a fine car to drive. Ride quality is almost identical to the Accord, which should not be a surprise; these Hondas share basic suspension components. Honda says minor revisions to the chassis have yielded a 20-per-cent increase in bending rigidity, along with a 3-per-cent increase in torsional or twisting rigidity.

The V-6 is plenty powerful and has Honda's fuel-saving cylinder-deactivation feature (Honda's Variable Cylinder Management). Mated to a standard five-speed automatic transmission – the only downside to this tranny is a hesitance to downshift – the Crosstour boasts pretty decent fuel economy using regular fuel: 11.5 litres per 100 km city/7.2 highway for the front-driver and 12.3 city/8.0 highway for the AWD version. The Honda is slightly more efficient than the six-cylinder Venza and Outback.

Honda expects the Crosstour to have all the best scores in crash tests and it certainly comes with the full range of active and passive safety features – from airbags all over to an anti-skid system. So it really is the full package.

Honda is late with the Crosstour and still lacking a four-banger, too. Nonetheless, the competition should be taking notice. In its niche, this new crossover is a standout.
2010 Accord Crosstour

Type: Five-door, mid-size cross-over wagon
Price: $35,000 (estimated)
Engine: 3.5-litre V-6, SOHC
Horsepower/torque: 271 hp/254 lb-ft
Transmission: Five-speed auto
Drive: Front-wheel-drive
Fuel economy (litres/100 km):
11.5 city/7.2 highway for FWD;
12.3 city/8.0 highway for AWD; regular gas
Alternatives: Ford Edge, Subaru Outback, Toyota Venza, Nissan Murano, Mazda CX-7, Hyundai Santa Fe

Like
Good fuel economy for this class
Functional hatchback design with a clean and useful interior
Creative storage space
Honda’s history for high quality and excellent safety scores

Don’t like
Sloping roof compromises rear-seat headroom
Cargo area design means you’ll need to be creative when loading four sets of golf clubs
Transmission is a bit reluctant to downshift

Source;

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-drive/new-cars/auto-news/honda-arrives-fashionably-late/article1368531/

Honda Cars : More 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour Pic's | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Honda says....What about now?!? I stand by my previous statement, this is a nice looking car, I can't wait to demo one. That facebook marketing strategy though....not such a good idea.
Source;
Honda

Honda Cars : It's Official! The 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Well here it is, I gotta say it looks nicer than the camo'd spyshots that I'd seen earlier.

2010 Accord Crosstour Styling Conceals Surprising Versatility

Next evolution of the crossover offers CUV attributes while maintaining a premium sedan feel and a sporty, bold appearance

09/01/2009 - TORRANCE, Calif. -
The all-new 2010 Honda Accord Crosstour evolves the Crossover Utility Vehicle (CUV) concept by integrating a sleek and aerodynamic shape that blends sporty, low-profile contours with versatile CUV functionality, American Honda Motor Co., Inc., announced today.

"Our concept is to broaden the appeal of the Accord line-up by leveraging traditional Accord strengths of fun-to-drive performance and handling while also adapting to dramatic shifts in the light truck marketplace," said Erik Berkman, vice president of American Honda Motor Co., Inc. "The Accord Crosstour accomplishes that by offering a modern interpretation of a CUV while integrating the refinement and efficiency of a premium sedan."

Derived from the Accord Sedan, the Accord Crosstour maximizes car-like ride and refinement, yet maintains capabilities consistent with a CUV's increased ride height and all-weather potential. The Accord Crosstour's styling builds on the Accord's familiar character lines and adds a bolder front grille complemented by a durable lower-body appearance, wedge-shaped C-pillars and an aggressive rear stance. The flowing roofline narrows smoothly into the rear of the vehicle to create an aggressive-looking design, which conceals a unique cargo area that can adapt to large objects that exceed the capacity of a sedan.

"We know SUV buyers like the commanding view of the road that comes with a high eye-point and like the comforts of living with an SUV," said Berkman. "This vehicle meets the needs of buyers looking for those attributes yet at the same time want an image that is different from a conventional SUV."

The Accord Crosstour will be positioned at the top of the Accord family when it goes on sale in fall 2009. Additional details will be announced later in the year. Consumer information is available at http://automobiles.honda.com/future-cars. An Accord Crosstour Facebook page is available at www.facebook.com/accordcrosstour. Additional media information regarding all Honda products is available at www.hondanews.com.

Source;
http://www.hondanews.com/categories/1097/releases/5165

Move aside Toyota Venza, Honda has unveiled its latest offering: the Honda Accord Crosstour. And this time it’s official. The Accord CUV - not station wagon - will go on sale this fall as a 2010 model.

While the press release is brief to say the least, the Accord Crosstour will probably be based off the Acura ZDX and current Honda Accord. Honda’s official website now lists the Accord Crosstour as a future model and features a timer counting down to September 1. At which point Honda will tell us what exactly it is that they’ve put together.

It is yet to be seen if my previous prediction about the Crosstour deriving power from the Acura RDX’s 2.3-Liter turbo fourbanger is true. It was also predicted that an AWD setup might be in the works. Conveniently enough, the press release confirms/debunks absolutely nothing:

HONDA PRESS RELEASE
An all-new crossover vehicle based on the award-winning Honda Accord will go on-sale in the fall of 2009 as the “Accord Crosstour,” American Honda Motor Co., Inc., announced today. This new addition to the Honda lineup will be sold as a 2010 model. Additional information will be announced later in the year.

Personally, I’d much rather have Honda of America skip this whole CUV bullshit. The European Accord Tourer (pictured below) is a very fine car and it’s absolutely stunning to look at. Skip the drama and just give us the Accord Tourer.
(I agree)

Source; http://japancarblog.com/honda-confirms-accord-crosstour-coming-fall-2009/

Honda Cars : Introducing....2010 Honda Accord Wagon, Spyshots | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Wow, those temple of vtec people have been busy....
VWVortex Member Michael J Balisky was vacationing in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park when he spotted this posse of Crosstours getting their test on. I guess this sighting lends a lot of credence to the October 26, 2009 onsale date rumors that were just posted. Mr Balisky does not list an e-mail address in his profile so we were unable to contact him. Here is a lnk to the thread at VWVortex: name the car (spy pics)

Source;
http://www.vtec.net/news/news-item?news_item_id=834186

Honda Cars : TOV: Honda confirms crossover is coming this fall, also confirms it's NOT ZDX-based | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Straight from Temple of Vtec;
With all the rumors that have been flying around lately, there has been some confusion surrounding the "CrossTour". I now have some information that I can share, and it came directly from Honda PR.

First of all, Honda has confirmed with us that a new "Crossover" vehicle will be going on sale this fall. The delay that was rumored earlier is false. That said, Honda has not confirmed nor even acknowledged that the name will be "Crosstour". They are simply referring to it as the 2010 Honda “Crossover Vehicle”. I asked whether or not this would be based upon the same platform as the ZDX, and surprisingly they confirmed what we had heard earlier, and that is that it will NOT be based on the ZDX. Beyond that we were told that no further official information would be released until later this year, so we were unable to confirm anything regarding the powetrain, seating layout. While you're here, why don't you vote in the poll we just crafted: 2010 CrossTour Spy Shot Styling Poll

Source;
http://www.vtec.net/news/news-item?news_item_id=834301

Honda Cars : 2010 Honda Accord CUV (Wagon) Information | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Below are spy pic's taken by Brenda Priddy and Co. of the upcoming Honda Accord Wagon to be introduced to North America for fall 2009.
Below is a pic of a 2006 Honda Accord Wagon's Blueprints, just to help speculation of the the upcoming Accord Wagon to North America, below that is the blueprint of a Honda Airwave wagon-van.

Here's what we know so far....

-will have the North American Honda Accord front end.

-will be a little longer than the European Honda Accord Wagon.

-will sit higher of the ground than the existing North American Accord Sedan.

-will be built on the current Honda Accord platform.

-is to be situated between the Honda CRV and the Honda Pilot.

-will be a direct competitor to the Toyota Venza.

-speculation of the 4 wheel drive system to be the VTM-4 (Pilot and Ridgeline) and not the Realtime 4WD system (CRV).

-expect the 2.4l 4cyl and the 3.5l V6 to be carried over.

-expected to arrive into showrooms in September 2009.

Honda Cars : Temple of VTEC; New Spy Shots of the Accord-based CUV | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Nice find from www.vtec.net ....
For the second time in several months, we've caught a development vehicle for an ALL-NEW Honda Accord-based crossover! This vehicle program has been rumored for quite a while now and these pics are the first proof the project has finally been green-lighted.

At first glance, this vehicle may look like nothing more than the European Honda Accord Tourer. Closer inspection reveals that is not the case. For starters, the U.S. market Honda Accord front end has been grafted onto the body. While most of the body on this mule is non-production, this front end may actually be close to the final design of the nose we see on the production CUV.

We can also see fender flares that have been tacked onto the body and covered with tape that matches the color of the paint. These flares indicate that the wheel track has been widened slightly. Looking directly behind the rear doors, it quickly becomes apparent that a few extra inches of sheet metal and glass have been added to the body, suggesting the final product will be a few inches longer than the current European Accord Tourer. This development vehicle is also riding higher than a standard Accord Tourer and actually resembles and Audi allroad in person.

Based on the Honda Accord chassis, this all-new crossover vehicle will start production in the 4th quarter of 2009 at the Marysville or East Liberty factory. The Accord CUV will slot in-between CR-V and Pilot and will look to do battle with Toyota's new Venza CUV.

For more on the Priddy article, follow the link;
http://www.vtec.net/news/news-item?news_item_id=810703

Here is a link to my previous posts on the subject;
http://bestscoops.blogspot.com/2009/01/hondas-next-crossover-vehicle-expected.html

http://bestscoops.blogspot.com/2008/11/car-driver-2010-accord-cuv-pics-from.html

Honda Cars : Honda's Next Crossover Vehicle Expected to Land in Showrooms of North America Late September 2009 | 2013 New Honda Car Reviews 0

Just a short while ago Brenda Priddy & Co. caught the above car being tested in the 'wild' with some enough camo (see tape over the fenders and what not) to disguise the cosmetic appearance but not enough camo to disguise the fact that Honda is working on a new crossover, this one looking a lot like a station wagon.

I can confirm that as of now Honda Canada is brining this vehicle to Canada's (and I would imagine USA's) showrooms for purchase.

Not much else is known about the vehicle, although there is heavy speculation that the CUV would come with either Honda's Realtime 4WD or VTM-4X4. I imagine that there could be 2X engine choices as well, 4 and 6 cylinders.

This vehicle does make sense in the fact that Toyota has brought about their own 'wagon' to be released in the North American market called the Venza, pictured below.

Here are a couple of links from previous posts on the matter;

http://bestscoops.blogspot.com/2008/11/car-driver-2010-accord-cuv-pics-from.html

http://bestscoops.blogspot.com/2008/11/tov-brenda-priddy-new-honda-accord.html

Source;

Honda Canada