5 things we love about the Honda HR-V
Building on the success of its outgoing model, the upgraded Honda HR-V arrived in South Africa in September (2018) to offer its customers refreshed styling, an improved interior with better comfort and convenience, as well as upgraded equipment levels.
We’ve just spent a week experiencing it in our day-to-day lives in Cape Town, to see what customers might love most about the new Honda HR-V…
5 things we love about the Honda HR-V
- The new HR-V’s distinctive cabin is unpretentious, but still gives you that ‘premium’ feel with its sleek styling and particularly comfortable ergonomics. When I first jumped in, it didn’t take long for me to adjust seating positions, mirrors etc or to get familiar with its infotainment system. Soft touch surfaces, piano-gloss black detailing and new fabric designs on the entry-level Comfort version all add to its refined interior. This is one of the most comfortable and practical small SUV cabins I’ve been in recently – and I quite looked forward to jumping back into it at the end of every work day.
- It’s great for family road trips! Although the HR-V looks wonderfully compact on the outside, which is great when you’re navigating around busy cities and parking lots, it feels extremely spacious inside. It’s more of a ‘BIG-small SUV’. There’s loads of leg and headroom (front and back) and space in the boot (393 litres) is a real highlight if you and your family generally travel with large items. If you need to transport large items (in my case I needed to move house!) there’s also plenty of storage compartments for things like phones, keys, water bottles and sunglasses. Passengers in the rear won’t have much to complain about either. Large side windows, comfort and a big sense of roominess is offered at the back, so any restless kids might settle rather quickly.
- The HR-V’s stylish exterior really stands out and looks great on the road. It resembles a unique combination of SUV, MPV and coupé characteristics, with striking styling elements that transform the front and rear appearance. The addition of new exterior colours underline the HR-V’s youthful appeal. We loved our test unit’s ‘Milano Red’ paint that really complements the vehicle’s striking features.
- The interior retains Honda’s unique Magic Seat System® which allows exceptional space utilisation so that you can fit things into your car that probably wouldn’t fit in most subcompact SUVs. In the new HR-V, you can fold the rear seats up to load even more items from the back doors.
5. Easy driving – What I really love about the HR-V is that although it might not be the most powerful of vehicles on the open road, it is an absolute breeze in the city! It’s light and agile and has no problem being thrown around corners to quickly re-route away from traffic. It is also all about driving comfort, rather than handling and although our CVT gearbox unit tended to be a bit noisy on hard acceleration, it responds well.
Also read: Car Review: 2018 Honda Amaze
The updated Honda HR-V is one of those cars that customers are likely to be surprised by when stepping into its cabin for a test drive. Perhaps for some, its striking exterior personality might grab your attention, but for most it is going to be its cabin comfort and practicality that really stands out.