TOKYO — Almost as an afterthought to the flurry of news today about a Honda Fit Hybrid and details about its 2010 Toyota Prius fighter, Honda confirmed on Wednesday that it will roll out its all-new Freed minivan on May 29.
The news about the Freed, a "mini" minivan that is expected to be powered by a 118-horsepower 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine linked to a continuously variable transmission, was buried in the last paragraph of Takeo Fukui's midyear CEO speech here. Fukui is president and CEO of Honda Motor.
Honda has released a teaser shot of the Freed interior on its Japanese Web site, and some Japanese magazines and Web sites have been showing artists' renderings. Official exterior images will be revealed later this month by Honda.
Fukui indicated that the Freed will first roll out "to the Japanese market....With this vehicle Honda plans to accelerate its sales in Japan, following the all-new Fit, and strives to revitalize the domestic automobile market in Japan," he said.
The Freed will be built on the same compact platform as the Honda Fit and will likely replace the home-market Mobilio. It can fit five, seven or eight people, depending on the seating configuration.
Prices in Japan are expected to range from about $15,000-$19,000, according to press reports.
What this means to you: Don't expect to see this new Honda mini-minivan anytime soon in North America. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
The news about the Freed, a "mini" minivan that is expected to be powered by a 118-horsepower 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine linked to a continuously variable transmission, was buried in the last paragraph of Takeo Fukui's midyear CEO speech here. Fukui is president and CEO of Honda Motor.
Honda has released a teaser shot of the Freed interior on its Japanese Web site, and some Japanese magazines and Web sites have been showing artists' renderings. Official exterior images will be revealed later this month by Honda.
Fukui indicated that the Freed will first roll out "to the Japanese market....With this vehicle Honda plans to accelerate its sales in Japan, following the all-new Fit, and strives to revitalize the domestic automobile market in Japan," he said.
The Freed will be built on the same compact platform as the Honda Fit and will likely replace the home-market Mobilio. It can fit five, seven or eight people, depending on the seating configuration.
Prices in Japan are expected to range from about $15,000-$19,000, according to press reports.
What this means to you: Don't expect to see this new Honda mini-minivan anytime soon in North America. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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