GAC Honda has revealed the first photos of the new Honda ZR-V, and if it looks familiar, that’s because it is essentially the US-market HR-V we saw last month but with a different name for China.
For a recap, the US-market HR-V is based on the 11th-generation Civic and is categorised as a C-segment SUV, making it a larger vehicle compared to the other, B-segment HR-V that arrived earlier. After the US and China, the HR-V will also be sold in Europe under a different nameplate and will slot in between the CR-V and HR-V that’s already on sale in the region.
Design-wise, the ZR-V is pretty much a carbon copy of the US-market HR-V, with standout cues being a large, octagonal-shaped grille, relatively slim LED headlamps with L-shaped DRLs and C-shaped mouldings in the lower apron. The rear also gets the same taillight design, although the dual exhausts have not been seen in press photos of the HR-V before. There are no interior shots just yet but expect the cabin to be nearly identical to the HR-V as well, save for some minor changes.
As for the powertrain, the “240 Turbo” emblem on the sculpted tailgate – also used for the Integra sold by GAC Honda – suggests the ZR-V will be powered by a 1.5 litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine mated to a CVT. The VTEC Turbo unit in the Integra serves up 182 PS (180 hp) and 240 Nm of torque – these figures are the same as the HR-V. It should be noted that said emblem is also used on other Honda models in China like the CR-V, Breeze, Avancier, UR-V and Civic.
Further detail like pricing will be revealed later, as GAC Honda is currently accepting registrations of interest before a formal launch takes place within this year. It wouldn’t be a surprise if Dongfeng Honda sells a sister model to the ZR-V, albeit tweaked to create some differentiation.
As a sidenote, while the ZR-V refers to a C-segment SUV in China, the name is also tipped to be used for a smaller, compact crossover previewed by the SUV RS Concept that appeared at the 2021 Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show (GIIAS). Developed for the Southeast Asian market, the ZR-V takes on Daihatsu Rocky and Toyota Raize (and our Perodua Ativa).
HRV did badly in the infamous Honda (HR-V) vs Geely (X-50) head to head crash test. Name change is inevitable.
This is a different HRV compared to the global HRV which is another car.
Still, X50 is more solid than HRV. Take a look video on how Jazz hit crash Tesla harder
If this comes here it could be a real challenge for Corolla Cross.
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