2023 Honda HR-V Review: Homey Meets Homely

design , rest , technology , performance , Security , ability , worth , questions to ask

As the oldest automobile in Honda’s lineup, the outgoing HR-V was overdue for substitute, however that did not make it a nasty automobile. With the modern, flip-up rear magic seat and sufficient room for 4 passengers, its snug cabin and teeny exterior rivaled Mary Poppins’ Carpetbags for packaging effectivity.

Still, with rivals like Stylish Mazda CX-30turbocharged Kia Seltosand wiser Toyota Corolla Cross Over the years, Honda’s entry-level crossover has wanted to evolve. has gone SuitableThe platform (and with it the Magic Seat) was changed by 2023 HR-V With the extra conventional bones of the Civic. Citizen additionally donated a very good chunk of its inside design particulars, which helped HR V Feel rather more mature and classy than most of its rivals. But the delicate exterior design and upsized dimensions conceal a cabin that is not rather more spacious than it was earlier than, and the HR-V is a bit dear.

A automobile’s score is just relative to its personal section and never the brand new automobile market as an entire. To study extra about how Motor1.com charges automobiles, click here,

33 photographs

• Exterior Colour: Nordic Forest Pearl
• inside colour: grey
• Wheel Size: 17 Inch

While nobody would name the outgoing HR-V fairly, it was at the least in fairly a particular fashion. However, the 2023 mannequin is simply plain uninteresting. a drooping front end And the trapezoidal grille opening remembers the Ford Escape, which is hardly a high-water mark for magnificence, and the stubby tail can also be featureless and bland. The Nordic Forest Pearl Paint is a worthy use of $395, offering refined sophistication to simply ample sheetmetal shapes.

Inside, it is a utterly totally different story. The Civic dons its dashboard mesh to the HR-V, hiding the air-con vents behind some Kennedy-era fashion. However, the crossover The general design theme is rounded compared to the rectilinear Civic, with a raised shift binnacle that invokes Honda’s well-known sportbikes. very quiet. A half-digital instrument cluster is the one large design misstep – why not simply make your complete gauge show powered by pixels?

• Seating Capacity: 5
• Seating Configuration: 2/3
• Cargo Capacity: 24.4 / 55.1 Cubic Feet

In the transition from the Fit platform to the Civic, the HR-V has misplaced a few of its packaging magic. The Civic’s gasoline tank is beneath the rear seat, whereas the Fit’s is beneath the entrance passenger. With much less rear head and legroom than its predecessor, it is onerous to ask “where’s the beef” given the brand new HR-V’s lengthy, broad exterior footprint. It has much less headroom up entrance, in addition to much less shoulder room entrance and rear and fewer cargo house with fewer seats.

But Honda’s entry into the subcompact class is actually a median numerical measure, making it snug – if no more so – than each its predecessor and its main rivals. The driver and entrance passenger get glorious bucket seats, whereas the 60/40 split-folding rear bench options higher thigh assist and a extra pure seating place than the outgoing HR-V and present Toyota Corolla Cross. Honda The Corolla feels airier and fewer cramped than the Cross and Mazda CX-30, due to the massive home windows and good exterior imaginative and prescient.

And along with the ample-sized cargo space — with a very flat-folding rear seat — the passenger cabin has loads of room to stash your gear. The middle console has an open storage space simply behind the shift binkle (appears a bit like a seat in our bike metaphor) whereas a big armrest cubby supplies loads of house and a big lid that makes it simple to maneuver round.

• Center Display: 9.0-inch Touchscreen
• Instrument cluster show: 7.0 inches
• Wireless Apple CarPlay / Android Auto: Yes / Yes

Each Honda HR-V comes commonplace with {a partially} digital instrument cluster, which consists of an on-board laptop with a 7.0-inch display screen for the tachometer and a traditional, analog speedometer. The HR-V LX and Sport get a 7.0-inch middle touchscreen with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, whereas my EX-L tester’s 9.0-inch show will get wi-fi integration.

Unusually, the infotainment system does not embrace embedded navigation of any sort—most homeowners will use Google Maps or Waze, however in instances the place you are misplaced and away from cell service, your cellphone shall be of no use . That’s the one grievance I can attribute to the Tech Suite, which has crisp graphics, good tactile suggestions, and easy operation.

• Engine: 2.0-litre I4
• Output: 158 horsepower / 138 pound-feet
• Transmission: Continuously Variable Transmission

First, the unhealthy information. The 2023 Honda HR-V is not notably athletic when it is time to put down the hammer. The largest wrongdoer is the low torque score of simply 138 pound-feet, although there’s additionally a slight discount of 158 horsepower. The Toyota Corolla Cross has 169 pony and 151 torque, whereas the optionally turbocharged Kia Seltos has the dyno capped at 195 for each the items of measurement. Meanwhile, the HR-V needs to be crammed right into a mountain grade, its uninspired CVT and thick engine word making it look like the automotive is working even tougher. If solely Honda had given the HR-V the identical 1.5-liter turbo because the Civic, as a result of it wanted extra grunt.

But apart from the sluggish powertrain, the HR-V is definitely fairly enjoyable to drive. a multilink rear Suspension comes commonplace throughout the board—few automobiles on this class do with twist-beam rears—giving Honda the type of restraint you’d anticipate from a dearer automobile. Limited physique roll and exact steering make it simple to keep up pace by corners, and the brakes are confidently pushed, too.

• Driver Assistance Level: SAE Level 2 (Hands-on)
• NHTSA Rating: Not Rated
• IIHS Rating: Not Rated

Honda Sensing comes commonplace on each HR-V, bundling ahead collision monitoring, excessive and low pace computerized emergency braking, lane-keep help, and adaptive cruise Controls in a single easy-to-use bundle. The mid-level Sport and flagship EX-L fashions additionally come commonplace with blind spot monitoring. Neither the federal government nor the IIHS have examined the brand new Honda HR-V, however the older mannequin has principally acquired good crashworthiness rankings, and it’s cheap to anticipate even higher from the brand new one.

• City: 25 mpg
• Highway: 30 mpg
• Combined: 27 mpg

• Base Price: $23,650 + $1,245 Destination
• Trim Base Price: $30,195
• Price as trial: $30,590

Starting at $24,895 with Destination, the bottom Honda HR-V LX front-driver looks like a very good worth, particularly because it has the identical sharp inside design and mature suspension format as its sibling. My top-spec, all-wheel-drive EX-L tester made its technique to a worth of $30,590, its solely choice being a $395 coat of paint. However, I believe the candy spot within the lineup is admittedly the HR-V EX-L with front-wheel drive, which will get higher gasoline economic system (as much as 32 miles per gallon on the freeway) and saves the proprietor $1,500.

Equipped as it’s, although, the HR-V is a fairly good worth, costing lower than the Corolla Cross just a few months again, whereas boasting a greater driving expertise and extra inside house. The HR-V additionally feels higher constructed than the plasticky Volkswagen Taos, which clocks in at over $35,000 with all-wheel drive, leather-based upholstery, and a full suite of driver help. As at all times, the Koreans characterize worth play, with the fun-to-drive Kia Seltos SX AWD priced at $30,335 equally geared up – although the cabin has extra inexpensive supplies than the Honda.

Against that numerous competitors, the Honda HR-V stands out for its well-designed inside, loads of cabin storage and complex ride-handling stability. And it is a good worth, although I’m nonetheless getting used to the concept that most small CUVs as of late demand 30 grand. If it had extra energy and higher gasoline economic system, the 2023 HR-V could be good. So Honda, about that 1.5T…