Honda HR-V Spotted testing In India Ahead Of Its Expected Launch During The Festive Period

The Honda HR-V has been spotted testing in India. The Honda HR-V is a premium compact SUV that is due to be launched by the festive season in the Indian market. It has now been spotted while undergoing camouflaged testing.

QuickShift has snapped the Honda HR-V and the camouflage does its job well and conceals most of the little design details. However, the design is something we already know well as the SUV is already on sale in International markets. For the Indian market though, there will be a slightly different design.

The Honda HR-V looks like a smaller version of the Honda CR-V which is currently the flagship SUV for Honda cars India. It sports a similar front fascia with the LED headlamps and the chrome element on the grille with the large Honda symbol.

The bumper is rather meaty and muscular. The muscular lines continue on the side profile of the Honda HR-V. It boasts of flared wheel arches and there is a rather unique design line running from the front to the rear of the Honda HR-V.

This design line points upwards at the rear while the roof slopes down at a rather sharp angle. The 17-inch alloy wheels too have a unique design. The compact SUV looks rather sporty at the rear.

Though Honda hasn't confirmed the powertrain options for the Honda HR-V, it is safe to assume that the company would use the engines and gearboxes that power the Honda Civic in the Indian market.

This would keep costs in check for Honda Cars India. The 1.8-litre petrol engine that produces 140bhp and 174Nm will be available with a CVT transmission. The 1.6-litre diesel engine on the other hand produces 118bhp and 300Nm while a 6-speed manual gearbox drives the front wheels.

The interiors of the Honda HR-V will be similar to the Honda Civic, as this will work in favour of the economies of scale. The dashboard will be similar and it will feature the same 7-inch touchscreen infotainment unit with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

It will come with steering mounted controls, leather upholstery, a sunroof, and maybe even dual-zone climate control. Safety too is taken care of, as the Honda HR-V will come with dual front airbags, ABS with EBD, seatbelt reminder, etc as standard equipment. Top spec variants will come with more airbags, electronic stability control, hill start assist, etc.

In terms of size, the Honda HR-V will compete with the likes of the Hyundai Creta, Nissan Kicks, Renault Captur, etc. However, it might be priced a lot higher and therefore might end up competing with the lower variants of the likes of the Jeep Compass, MG Hector and Kia Seltos.

Thoughts On Honda HR-V Spotted Testing In India

Honda will position the HR-V between the BR-V and the CR-V and that is a huge gap that existed in Honda's portfolio. Though the Honda HR-V looks great, and it will come with a great set of engines and gearboxes, it does seem like Honda is a little too late to enter the compact SUV space in India.