While Honda is on a roll in India, thanks to the splendid sales performance of the Mobilio and the new City, globally also the manufacturer’s activities have been anything but stagnant. It recently unveiled the new CR-V both for the US and UK markets with the latter getting a new diesel engine (when are WE getting that Honda?), and has now come to the Paris Motor show with quite a few interesting vehicles for the European market, some of which might come to the Indian shores as well. Let’s skim through and take a look at what would matter in the Indian scheme of things.
Honda HR-V
The HR-V also known as the XR-V and/or Vezel in Asia is Honda’s compact offering in the SUV segment and while it is already on sale in Asia and also in the US, it would be a new vehicle that Europe would be getting soon. Yes, this is just an unveil again and not a launch which will happen by mid-2015 across Europe. The front-wheel-drive vehicle will be powered by the CR-V’s 1.6-litre’s i-DTEC diesel (in 120 PS tune) or by the 1.5-litre i-VTEC petrol that also powers our very own City sedan. A six-speed manual transmission would be standard while a CVT tranny will be optional on the petrol. You may want to check the link at the bottom of this page to read more on this SUV.
Honda Jazz
The new Jazz has already been launched in Malaysia but Europe won’t be getting it before we do, which would happen by March next year. But while the Asian Jazz gets our City’s 1.5-litre petrol engine, the European Jazz will get a 1.3-litre petrol, and we would get the Brio’s 1.2-litre petrol engine in all probability. Honda says that the overall length of the Jazz has increased by 15 mm but the wheelbase has been extended by a full 30 mm! Like the HR-V, a six-speed manual or a CVT transmission could be specified in the new Jazz. Again, we’ll get the Brio’s 5-speed manual but the hatchback’s 5-speed auto option is highly possible too.
Though Honda is tight-lipped on the launch of HR-V in India, we know its positioning would be the easiest for the company – just a notch above the Dusters and Terranos of this world. However, it would be quite interesting to see how Honda prices the new Jazz with the entry-level Mobilio already sounding like a better proposition… Still, the concern might be unfounded actually as Honda would certainly not be making the same mistake twice!
Related: Honda now eyeing the compact SUV segment – Vezel?
