The redesigned HR-V subcompact SUV has been upgraded to the Civic's compact-car platform, and with that change it has become a larger and more pleasant and refined vehicle. We like the HR-V’s relatively roomy interior, user-friendly controls, and strong fuel economy. But it accelerates slowly, the cabin is noisy, and the ride is stiff. These shortcomings make it a far cry from the Subaru Crosstrek, a main rival.
The cabin has been significantly upgraded over its spartan predecessor, with more soft-touch pieces throughout. Simple but effective controls, including the admittedly-small 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, are easy to use, thanks to physical buttons and knobs. We love the solid “click-click” when we turn the climate knobs. The top-trim EX-L gets a larger infotainment screen, along with wireless Android Auto/Apple CarPlay connectivity, and a wireless phone charger.
The new HR-V is 11-inches-longer than its predecessor, and it feels roomier than before in most ways. There’s tons of headroom up front, and the elevated driving position gives a good view out over the hood. The front seats are initially comfortable, but the bottom cushion loses support after about 30 minutes in the saddle. The rear seat has lots of knee room and decent leg support; fold it down and there’s impressive cargo capacity for a subcompact SUV; there’s enough space to fit a full-suspension mountain bike without taking the wheels off—impressive. We were also able to fit two large suitcases and two overnight duffle bags behind the rear seat, and we measured a maximum volume of 28.5 cubic feet with the rear seat folded down—even though that’s slightly less than the outgoing HR-V, it’s still roomier than almost all of its direct competitors.
Unfortunately, that’s about where the good stuff ends. The biggest sticking point is the little SUV’s severe lack of oomph. The 158-horsepower, 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine and continuously variable transmission (CVT)—a powertrain which is shared with the Civic—work fine when you’re not in a hurry just ambling around town. But any attempt to move quickly results in extremely high (and loud) engine revs with minimal propulsion in return. Our HR-V equipped with optional all-wheel drive (front-wheel drive comes standard) needed 11.1 seconds to go from 0 to 60 mph. That’s really slow. Fuel economy is decent, at 27 mpg overall, but that’s actually down by 2 mpg vs. the previous HR-V with the smaller 1.8-liter engine. Both the Crosstrek (29 mpg overall) and the Toyota Corolla Cross (28 mpg) are more fuel-efficient.
Ride comfort and noise isolation have improved, but that’s faint praise considering how rough the old HR-V rode, and how loud the cabin could get. The new version does well over smaller bumps, but the suspension gets overwhelmed by larger hits and higher-speed impacts—especially with our tested mid-level Sport trim’s larger 18-inch tires. Both the base LX and top EX-L get 17-inch tires which yield a more absorbent ride. The HR-V is relatively responsive through corners, in part due to its small size. But vague, rather slow steering keeps the little Honda from being as engaging to drive as some compact SUVs, such as the Mazda CX-30. It still proved capable and secure when pushed to its limits on our track.
Standard active safety systems include forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection, lane departure warning, and lane keeping assistance. While both blind spot warning and rear cross traffic warning are standard on higher trims, neither are available on the base LX—a disappointment. Standard driver assistance features across all HR-V trims include lane centering assistance, adaptive cruise control, and automatic high beams.