New Honda Beat On The Horizon

The original Honda Beat (May 1991 – February 1996) was one of the few “Kei” (lightweight) cars to offer rear wheel drive and a mid-engined layout. It made 64PS with its naturally aspirated 3 cylinder engine and quickly became a cult car among Kei car enthusiasts. Well Best Car Japan once again has the news and this time a new Honda Beat is on its way but, mechanically at least, will differ quite a lot from its predecessor.

We’re told the new Beat will use the same turbo 660cc engine and driveline from other Kei cars in Honda’s current line up, those being the Life, Zest and Zest Spark. Unfortunately for fans of the original Beat, this means the new version will have the engine in the front and driving the front wheels. Being based on the Life/Zest platform there is a possibility the new Beat could also have 4WD although at this stage all reports are saying drive will be limited to the front wheels. It’s interesting to note that Honda hasn’t set a concrete date to sell the new Beat even though development is well under way and likely to hit the market sometime  in 2011. Best Car says Honda is continually examining the market situation and wanting to introduce the new model at precisely the right time. In a market segment where the only local competition is the Daihatsu Copen, Honda’s new Beat could easily steal the show given a competitive price and an appealing design.

Price and date of release are yet to be decided.

Words: Justin Karow

Image: Best Car