Hoping to challenge the likes of the Nissan Juke, Renault Captur and Vauxhall Mokka, the new Honda HR-V is nearing its release date.
Based on familiar crossover ingredients – a hatch/supermini platform with SUV styling – the new HR-V was revealed in concept form at the Paris Motor Show last year, later revealed in its production guise at this year’s Geneva Motor Show.
Aimed at combining the “virtues of an SUV and a lighter, more nimble conventional car”, the HR-V appears like a more chiselled version of the larger CR-V SUV, with a sloping coupe-like roof to boot.
Commenting on the HR-V’s design, Project Leader Masaki Kobayashi, said: “We didn’t want to just create a downsized SUV. Honda already has the CR-V, which combines the virtues of an SUV and a lighter, more nimble conventional car, so the HR-V needed to offer something different. The development team set a goal to create a new value or theme from the very start of the project.”
Under the bonnet, there’s the choice of one diesel – a 118bhp 1.6-litre i-DTEC – and one petrol, a 128bhp 1.5-litre unit. Both the diesel and petrol are mated to a six-speed automatic transmission, however, the petrol also offers a CVT automatic option. The most efficient option is the 1.6-litre diesel, emitting as low as 104g/km of CO2 and returning a claimed average fuel economy of 71mpg.
Like the rest of the Honda family, the HR-V offers an impressive boot capacity of 453 litres, which extends to 1,026 litres with the seats folded down. The HR-V will also incorporate the brand’s now renowned ‘magic seats’, allowing for a flatter loading surface and ease of storage.
Honda’s new Connect system will also feature in the HR-V, which brings everything from sat-nav to smartphone integrated features like Wi-Fi tethering.
The New Honda HR-V will go on sale in the summer. Pricing has not yet been announced.
