The hybrid version of Honda’s next generation Fit (Jazz in some markets) will be the world’s most fuel-efficient car, beating current leader Toyota’s Prius c (Aqua in Japan).
According to the Nikkei, the hybrid Fit achieves 36km per litre (102mpg) in Japan’s Transport Ministry test cycle known as JC08.
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This betters the Toyota Aqua’s 35.4km per litre and the Prius at 30km.
Until now, Honda’s most fuel efficient car has been the Accord Hybrid, also achieving 30km per litre, which went on sale last month.
The current Fit Hybrid achieves 26.4km per litre. The new Fit goes on sale in Japan in September before being rolled out in the US and then Europe, the Nikkei notes, adding Honda plans to almost double Fit production from around 800,000 cars a year to some 1.5m as it lifts global sales 50% to 6m by 2017.
Current models for Europe are built at Honda’s English plant in Swindon but the company has said the new line will be sourced from abroad. Honda has built a new Yorii plant in Saitama, Japan, specially for the new car which starts operations this month and features cost-saving ‘state of the art’ painting facilities.
A Honda UK spokesman said local launch was likely by the end of 2014 and the source plant had not yet been confirmed.
The outgoing model – now about six years old – is also assembled in China and built in Brazil.
Additional reporting: Graeme Roberts
