This is somewhat relevant to the original post


In a roundtable with reporters at an event related to the Tokyo Motor Show, Tetsuo Iwamura, President and CEO of American Honda, told us that he's been surprised by the Crosstour crossover's slow sales:

"In the case of the Crosstour, I'm really disappointed because that's a nice car, [with] very beautiful styling, and it gives very good driving performance as well as packaging. But yet, we went a bit too far."

The five-door CUV has been struggling since it went on sale as a 2010 model. Through November, Honda has sold just 16,679 units this year – down nearly 36 percent from the 25,927 units tallied by this point in 2010. Honda had initially projected annual sales of 40,000 units.

Iwamura confided that, in retrospect, launching the CUV branded as the Accord Crosstour was probably a "misstep," so the company subsequently shortened its moniker to Crosstour in order to give the vehicle more of a standalone identity. In our 2009 First Drive article, we praised the Crosstour's solid driving dynamics, but criticized it for awkward styling, poor packaging and visibility, a short options list and premium pricing.

In our discussion with Iwamura, we noted that, while Honda continues to enjoy solid sales numbers for its longtime mainstream offerings like the Accord, CR-V and Odyssey, newer models – particularly niche offerings – have had a tougher time finding buyers (see: CR-Z, Insight, Ridgeline). Iwamura expressed that Honda is actually "quite satisfied" with sales of most of its vehicle lines, maintaining that he sees nothing systematic within Honda that has prevented the company from generating new hit models. Further, Iwamura vowed to continue development of its niche players.

In the case of the Crosstour, Iwamura pledged, "With further refinement of styling and performance, it will be a very good success, a leading model."

http://www.autoblog.com/2011/12/05/h...ws-to-make-it/

 

Making it successful.
How?
Complete redesign?

 

I'll respect your opinion on that, but, as I see it, you can't really compare it to the Corolla. The Corolla, even with its relatively entry-level interior only one step above the Yaris, uses more soft-touch and higher-quality materials inside than the new Civic interior. The only real Corolla problems inside I found are the big, black, cheap-looking climate-**** rings that also wobble a little when you use them. Some other Toyota-designed products also share those *****.

A number of auto-magazine reviewers (not just me) have also panned the overuse of cheap hard plastics in the new Civic.


Most of the people buying run-of-the-mill Civics (except maybe for the Si crowd) are not looking for space-ship styling.

 

Does he really believe that? The styling is atrocious, and it looks even worse in person. I saw one the other day (only the 2nd I've seen on the road) and I could only recoil in horror, it is that bad.

 

Some of you may remember my Crosstour and Acura TSX Sportwagon reviews, I said, back then, when they were first introduced in the American market, that the Crosstour simply used the wrong platform and styling. The TSX Sportwagon (which is based on the non-U.S. market Honda Accord wagon), was, IMO, a far-better-looking vehicle......and the Crosstour, IMO, should have shared the same body and platform instead of using that ugly droop-down rear-end. What's more, the TSX Sportwagon, itself, has two major marketing errors that Acura has not (yet) addressed......in addition to the four and FWD, it needs a V6, raised-suspension and AWD options. With them, it would be an EXCELLENT competitor to Subaru AWD wagons (which, unlike both the Crosstour and TSX Sportwagons, sell very well).

 

I wouldn't necessarily call it horrible, but, as I said above, Honda clearly should have used the TSX Sportwagon body for the Crosstour. It's a far better-looking vehicle. As I said aove, the main reason the TSX Sportwagon isn't selling is its four-cylinder /FWD-only combination.

 

I wonder if he's heard of something called car forums and if he's ever heard of the term "crossturd"?

Man, talk about blind, arrogant, or just plain clueless


oops, sorry, forgot the main topic was the civic. it's just me but I see the new civic as this 2010 ford focus

 

Old hondas > Newer. It seens newer ones are poorly made.

 

In terms of design and materials used yes, but assembly is still one of the best in the industry

 

Man, talk about blind, arrogant, or just plain clueless


Okay, we FINALLY have our answer as to why Honda has been screwing up. The CEO is delusional and not dealing with reality. Or, he could be living on another planet. Or, all of the above. To actually think and say the Crosstour is "beautiful" explains everything. As Sheriff Beaufort T. Justice roughly said years ago, "What we're dealing with here is a complete lack of respect for the law." In this case, Honda head hancho is not dealing with reality and is destroying his company (and will continue to do so). Truly a sad and out of control situation.

 

What parts of the Corolla's interior are soft touch materials? I sure haven't found any in the current one. The new Yaris has more soft touch materials and better build quality than the Corolla does now.

 

I love Honda but who in their right mind would approve that Civic interior? I usually check out the Hondas when I get the oil change on my Pilot. Sat in the Civic and couldn't for the life of me understand how this interior was approved. Hard plastics everywhere, the dash design is a mess. Someone somewhere in the organization gotta stand up and say "this interior is just *****".

If the CEO wants to take responsibility for this then he should resign. That's the first step in the right direction.

 

There is a Crosstour park in the parking lot at my office. The owner is a co-worker of course and I've only seen him driving Hondas in the last 7 years. Everytime I walk by the car I can't stop staring the Crosstour wonder how can a car be so ugly. It's just unbelivable Honda went way too far. The only way to make it successful is to redesign maybe hire a Kia designer.

 

You'd have to be crazy or a serious Honda fanboy to get a Civic when you get such a great product from the competition these days like the new Elantra, Cruze, or Focus.

 

Someone in my building owns a crosstour. i see it everyday. It is not a looker. Sorry Honda, please redesign the entire cuv...