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Honda is planning to launch a new hybrid car (name not known yet) early next year in 2009.

It will be first sold in U.S., Japan and Europe and then later more destinations may be added. Honda has made efforts to make this car affordable as well as efficient in terms of gas and electric use.

This new gas-electric hybrid car is a key part of Honda Motor Co.’s strategy for the next three years. It will be a five-door sedan seating five passengers, and feature new technology that reduced the size and weight of the hybrid system to increase fuel efficiency.

A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is a vehicle which combines a conventional propulsion system with an on-board rechargeable energy storage system (RESS) to achieve better fuel economy than a conventional vehicle without being hampered by range from a charging unit like a battery electric vehicle (BEV), which uses batteries charged by an external source.

According to Honda President Takeo Fukui:

Hybrids have drawn attention for their image, but time has come to go to the next. Honda is serious about selling hybrids in numbers.

They are also planning production innovations and expansion in Japan to cut costs so Honda can stay competitive amid soaring material and energy costs.

No price has been given for this new hybrid car but Fukui said the difference between hybrids and their comparable standard models will be kept within US$1,900 (200,000 yen; euro1,200). Sometimes these price gaps can reach as much as US$4,800 (500,000 yen; euro3,000).

Honda is still behind Toyota when it comes to selling hybrids as Toyota has sold more than a million Prius gas-electric hybrid cars worldwide while Honda managed to sell 262,000.

Last year, Honda discontinued the gas-and-electric version of its Accord sedan due to slow sales.