The Honda HR-V, redesigned for 2023 specifically for North America buyers, is growing in size while taking on three key roles — attracting younger, entry-level and minority buyers to the brand.
The new HR-V was revealed Monday, with styling aiming to be more youthful and modern, with a low horizontal beltline, longer hood, bigger grille and wide-set LED headlights and taillights.
The latest HR-V, which goes on sale this summer, will have even more importance as a “gateway to the Honda brand.”
“This new HR-V will advance its position as the segment leader with young buyers, first-time buyers and multicultural customers,” said Michael Kistemaker, American Honda assistant vice president of auto sales.
The second-generation HR-V moves to a platform shared with the Civic and features a new independent rear suspension. Smoother handling and the larger dimensions align better with American consumers’ continuing demand for more space and utility, Honda said.
The automaker did not say what will power the HR-V but hinted in a statement that the engine will be “more responsive.”
The HR-V was the top-selling subcompact crossover in the U.S. last year with 137,090 deliveries. It is Honda’s third-bestselling crossover after the CR-V and Pilot and has become a core light-truck model for the brand in the wake of supply disruptions and spiking gasoline prices. March marked the 14th consecutive month of growth for the nameplate and it posted its best-ever month with 15,341 sales, a 32 percent increase.
The subcompact crossover segment topped 1 million vehicles last year, becoming one of the industry’s most competitive, especially as fuel prices rise. The Toyota Corolla Cross, a more traditional-styled crossover, is the latest entrant in the segment, which now has more than 20 nameplates.
Honda is calling 2022 “the year of the Honda SUV,” with light trucks now representing 60 percent of the company’s sales mix. Honda also said it will be putting more emphasis on hybrid variants by equipping them with the most coveted features.
As the industry moves toward electrification, hybrid customers are more likely to convert to plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles, said Jay Joseph, who oversees Honda’s connected, automated, shared and electrified business unit. Honda plans to have a fully electrified lineup globally by 2040.
It’s unclear whether the HR-V will fall under this strategy, but demand for the HR-V would suggest it’s a good candidate for a hybrid variant.