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Honda has shifted its focus onto hybrids of late, significantly for its SUV vary – so is it nonetheless price one among its petrol-only choices?
The 2026 Honda HR-V Vi X is the Japanese model’s most inexpensive SUV mannequin within the Australian market, and it is little question ignored within the now three-strong ‘e:HEV’ hybrid variant vary inside the HR-V lineup.
Priced from slightly below $33,000 drive-away, the petrol-powered HR-V is likely one of the least expensive new SUVs you should purchase in Australia from a non-Chinese model, undercutting its most inexpensive hybrid counterpart by a whopping $7000 – which buys you a whole lot of gasoline.
While its powertrain lacks electrical help – and due to this fact the gasoline effectivity advantages that include that – the bottom HR-V retains the nameplate’s purposeful inside and Honda Sensing driver help suite, in addition to Honda Connect infotainment and linked companies as commonplace.
If you need a small, low-cost SUV however aren’t satisfied by the likes of the ultra-cheap and equally sized Chery Tiggo 4 or Jaecoo J5, ought to the HR-V be on the high of your checklist?
How a lot does the Honda HR-V value?
The Vi X was initially priced at $34,900 drive-away, however has since been diminished to $32,900 drive-away.
|
Model |
Drive-away pricing |
|---|---|
|
2026 Honda HR-V Vi X |
$32,900 |
|
2026 Honda HR-V e:HEV X |
$39,900 |
|
2026 Honda HR-V e:HEV L |
$42,900 |
|
2026 Honda HR-V e:HEV RS |
$44,400 |
That drive-away pricing makes the HR-V one of the inexpensive entrants within the VFACTS small SUV phase, significantly amongst legacy automobile manufacturers. However, the Chery Tiggo 4 (from $23,990 drive-away) and Jaecoo J5 (from $25,990 drive-away) can nonetheless be had for a lot much less, if finances is your absolute high precedence.
Among rival manufacturers from Japan and Korea, the HR-V undercuts the Hyundai Kona (from $35,990 drive-away) and outgoing Kia Seltos ($33,990 drive-away), in addition to the Mazda CX-30 (from $33,990 drive-away). That mentioned, the HR-V is bodily smaller than these competing crossovers and in addition solely provides 4 seats relatively than 5.
Given the HR-V’s light-car underpinnings, maybe extra correct comparisons could be drawn between Honda’s smallest SUV and the likes of the Hyundai Venue (from $25,990 drive-away) and Kia Stonic (from $29,990 drive-away) mild SUVs, the latter that includes mild-hybrid help for its turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine, versus the HR-V’s naturally-aspirated and non-electrified petrol 4.
To see how the Honda HR-V lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What is the Honda HR-V like on the within?
Where a whole lot of smaller crossovers at this finish of the market can really feel fairly plain and cheaply made, the HR-V blends considerate design with a mixture of high quality materials finishes and textures to create a pleasant vibe.
The base Vi X spec consists of material seat trim that includes a cool sample and providing soft assist, whereas the dashboard and doorways have softer supplies across the mid-tier area the place you are more likely to press or relaxation a knee or elbow in opposition to, however the areas above and beneath are more durable surfaces.
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It’s very clear and minimalistic, creating a way of calm and spaciousness, and that extends to the consistency and cleanness of the typeface used throughout the switchgear, instrument cluster, and the infotainment system. It virtually feels European.
A traditional analogue speedometer is complemented by a 7.0-inch TFT show, which provides loads of completely different widgets inside a digital tachometer. Between the digital and analogue dials is a digital supervision show that has a digital speedo readout and varied symbols for the driver-assist programs, all coming collectively fairly properly to mix the analogue and digital worlds.
Sitting atop the sprint is an up to date 9.0-inch touchscreen, which provides Google Built-in in addition to Honda Connect companies, which suggests Google Maps and Google Assistant performance embedded within the system, and Honda’s on-line companies and options that embody SOS name and the like, in addition to distant capabilities by way of the appropriate smartphone app.
The new interface is straightforward and simple to make use of due to the tiled interface and minimal layers to the menu construction, and wi-fi Apple CarPlay labored seamlessly throughout our time with the car.
Furthermore, laborious buttons for ‘Home’ and ‘Back’ instructions inside the interface, in addition to a bodily quantity knob and laborious observe buttons are welcome in a world of ever-increasing digital controls.
Storage within the first row is likewise fairly good, with large toothed cupholders within the centre console, bottle holders within the doorways, and a few cabinets within the dashboard – that are fairly accommodating however lack any type of grippy lining to cease issues sliding round.
There’s additionally a cubby below the squishy front-centre armrest, whereas the clicky tactility of the local weather controls on the sprint add a very nice contact of sophistication, paying homage to previous-generation Audis.
Now, the rear of the cabin is just a little controversial, primarily as a result of four-seat configuration. As most international markets do not demand a top-tether youngster seat anchor throughout all rear seats like Australian Design Rules (ADRs) do, Honda opted to not put money into engineering one for this market and as an alternative eliminated the centre seatbelt, making the HR-V strictly a four-seater regionally.
That may very well be a deal-breaker for some, however as a compact four-seater it is really fairly good. The tall and boxy physique opens up a shocking quantity of rear passenger house, with good headroom, legroom and kneeroom for even taller passengers like 6’1″ me.
A fold-down rear armrest with cupholders and ‘Magic Seats’ come in handy, and make an already practical space even more configurable. Sadly there are no rear air vents, but there are some storage cubbies dotted about for cups, bottles and other odds and ends.
Further back, the HR-V offers a relatively average 304 litres of cargo capacity with the rear seats in use, opening up to a more usable 1274L with the rear seatbacks folded. The main point here is that in both configurations the load space is nicely wide and flat, and when the rear seats are dropped the floor is pretty much completely flat too.
No HR-V offers a spare wheel of any description, however. There’s just a tyre repair kit.
|
Dimension |
Honda HR-V Vi X |
|---|---|
|
Length |
4345mm |
|
Width |
1790mm |
|
Height |
1590mm |
|
Wheelbase |
2610mm |
|
Boot house |
304L-1274L |
To see how the Honda HR-V lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What’s under the bonnet?
The base HR-V is powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder ‘i-VTEC’ naturally aspirated petrol engine, minus the electric motors and battery pack of e:HEV hybrid versions – though while the bore and stroke of the Vi X’s motor is consistent with the e:HEV’s, the compression ratio of 10.6:1 is lower than that of the hybrid engine’s 13.5:1.
|
Specifications |
HR-V Vi X |
|---|---|
|
Engine |
1.5L 4cyl petrol |
|
System energy |
89kW at 6600rpm |
|
System torque |
145Nm at 4300rpm |
|
Transmission |
CVT |
|
Drive kind |
Front-wheel drive |
|
Weight |
1267kg – Kerb |
|
Fuel economic system (claimed) |
6.2L/100km |
|
Fuel economic system (as examined) |
6.3L/100km |
|
Fuel tank capability |
40L |
|
Fuel requirement |
91 octane common unleaded |
|
CO2 emissions |
142g/km |
|
Emissions commonplace |
Euro 6b |
On paper, the HR-V’s meagre outputs are lagging behind most in this segment, particularly the torque figure alongside turbocharged rivals.
However, despite the omission of idle stop-start technology in Australian models, we were able to finish our time with the Vi X with an indicated fuel consumption figure of 6.3L/100km following a mix of urban, city and freeway commuting, favouring the latter.
To see how the Honda HR-V lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
How does the Honda HR-V drive?
As long as you don’t intend on getting anywhere particularly quickly, the HR-V is quite a pleasant and charming little thing to drive every day.
Small, low-output naturally aspirated petrol engines are something of a rarity these days, but the HR-V Vi X’s i-VTEC motor has trademark traits of the Japanese brand’s petrol engines.
Honda has done a great job of minimising droning and rev flaring by stepping the CVT auto through ‘ratios’ to make it feel more like a conventional torque-converter automatic under harder acceleration, and at lower speeds it keeps the engine on the boil when you need it.
It’s also probably the correct pairing for such a small and low-output engine, given it can rev harder when you need it and settle at a cruise to minimise fuel consumption.
Even under load, there’s an acceptable level of engine noise that enters the cabin, and it’s far from an unpleasant note in the broader scheme of things. It does need to be worked often, though.
If you’re just driving mostly at urban and city speeds, you’ll rarely test the base HR-V’s limits. Even on the freeway at 100km/h, the Vi X hums away nicely. It just won’t get to the speed limit all that quickly.
But the urban focus does come to the fore in other areas, namely cabin insulation. While engine noise is kept to acceptable levels, road noise – particularly on rougher stretches of bitumen – gets quite prominent at higher speeds. It can all get a bit echoey and boomy after a while, which isn’t great for longer-distance comfort. And this is an HR-V thing, not just a Vi X thing.
At least the ride strikes a very nice balance between comfort and body control, while Honda’s excellent steering calibration offers lovely response and accuracy with a Goldilocks weighting, meaning it’s not so light it feels vague and not so heavy that it makes tighter manoeuvres a chore.
The HR-V’s overall handling character is quite keen and chuckable too, with keen front-end response and good roadholding, combined with playful body roll and a rev-happy powertrain. It’s fun, just not fast.
The Honda Sensing driver-assistance suite is also thankfully included from the base grade, and this latest iteration does everything rather well.
Adaptive cruise control and lane-centring functions do a good job at taking the load off on longer stints on the highway, and the way it accelerates, brakes and manages following distance is pretty intuitive.
There’s no blind-spot monitoring or rear cross-traffic alert in this spec, but thankfully the big side mirrors and tall glasshouse mean outward visibility is generally pretty good.
However, the lack of blind-spot monitoring in this base spec and the thick rear pillars make over-the-shoulder head checks important when changing lanes, though when parking the reversing camera with dynamic guidelines helps to pick up some of that slack.
To see how the Honda HR-V lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
What do you get?
The HR-V range now spans four separate variants across X, L and RS trim levels – though there are spec differences between the Vi X and e:HEV X.
2026 Honda HR-V Vi X equipment highlights:
- 18-inch alloy wheels
- Tyre repair kit
- LED headlights
-
- Auto dusk-sensing
- Auto high-beam
- LED daytime running lights
- LED tail-lights
- Rear privacy glass
- Power-adjustable side mirrors
- Matte black wheel-arch cladding, side skirts, front and rear bumper trim
- 9.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system
- Wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto
- DAB+ digital radio
- Satellite navigation
- 2 USB ports
- 7.0-inch LED driver information interface
- 4-speaker sound system
- Single-zone climate control
- Black cloth upholstery
- Leather-wrapped steering wheel
- Leather-wrapped gear selector
- Paddle shifters
- Manual front seat adjustment
- Rear Magic Seats
-
- 60/40 split, fold down and tip up
- Smart keyless entry
2026 Honda HR-V e:HEV X provides:
- Auto-levelling headlights
- LED front fog lights
- LED active cornering lights
- Gloss-black wheel-arch cladding, side skirts, front and rear bumper trim
- Acoustic windscreen
- 6-speaker sound system
- Heated front seats
- Black leatherette and material upholstery
2026 Honda HR-V e:HEV L provides:
- Rain-sensing wipers
- Heated, hydrophilic side mirrors with auto passenger side reverse tilt
- Auto-dimming rear-view mirror
- 4 USB ports
- Dual-zone climate control
- Dual rear-facing air vents
- Heated steering wheel
- Hands-free energy tailgate
2026 Honda HR-V e:HEV RS provides:
- 18-inch alloys in Bernina Black
- Bernina Black exterior accents
- RS grille
- RS badging
- Red RS interior styling
To see how the Honda HR-V lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
Is the Honda HR-V safe?
The Honda HR-V wears a four-star ANCAP safety rating, based on testing conducted in 2022.
|
Category |
Honda HR-V |
|---|---|
|
Adult occupant safety |
82 per cent |
|
Child occupant safety |
77 per cent |
|
Vulnerable street consumer safety |
72 per cent |
|
Safety help |
69 per cent |
“The HR-V fell in need of 5 stars in two of the 4 key areas of evaluation – Child Occupant Protection and Safety Assist,” mentioned ANCAP on the time.
“A Weak head safety rating was recorded for the 10-year-old youngster within the facet impression check, and each occupancy detection for rear seating positions and driver fatigue monitoring will not be accessible.
“Good scores were recorded for the HR-V’s lane-keeping and forward-travel autonomous emergency braking ability.”
Standard security options throughout the HR-V vary embody:
- 6 airbags
-
- Front
- Front facet
- Full-length facet curtain
- Autonomous emergency braking
-
- Oncoming bike collision detection
- Pedestrian and bicycle entrance cross-traffic collision
- Lane-keep help
- Lane departure warning
- Adaptive cruise management
- Traffic Jam Assist
- Traffic signal recognition
- Reversing digital camera
- Front, rear parking sensors
- Hill descent management
- Tyre stress monitoring
- Automatic walk-away door locking
HR-V e:HEV X provides:
- Blind-spot monitoring
- Intelligent velocity limiter
- Rear cross-traffic alert
To see how the Honda HR-V lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
How a lot does the Honda HR-V value to run?
As with the broader Honda lineup, the HR-V is roofed by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre guarantee with 5 years of roadside help, and the primary 5 scheduled companies are capped at $199 apiece.
|
Servicing and Warranty |
Honda HR-V |
|---|---|
|
Warranty |
5 years, limitless kilometres |
|
Roadside help |
5 years |
|
Service intervals |
12 months or 10,000km |
|
Capped-price servicing |
5 years |
|
Total capped-price service value |
$995 ($199 every) |
To see how the Honda HR-V lines up against the competition, check out our comparison tool
CarExpert’s Take on the Honda HR-V
It’s flawed in a number of methods, however I discover it fairly charming.
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For these not fussed concerning the leisurely efficiency or the shortage of a fifth seat, the bottom HR-V makes for a strong and inexpensive crossover runabout with a fun-to-drive really feel and a comparatively spacious inside in addition.
The naturally aspirated powertrain will not be all that fast, however it has an enthralling character and proved to be fairly environment friendly regardless of the shortage of electrified help or idle-stop tech, plus it can fortunately run on cheaper 91-octane unleaded.
But there is not any denying the shortage of urgency relative to turbocharged powertrains in cheaper Chinese competitors, nor the metal-for-your-money equation these rivals from Chery and Jaecoo provide, given they the Tiggo 4 and J5 are greater vehicles with five-seat interiors.
Family patrons might also be cautious of the HR-V’s four-star security efficiency, which lags behind the five-star Chery Tiggo 4, although the Jaecoo J5 just isn’t but ANCAP-rated and plenty of alternate options from different mainstream manufacturers are actually unrated in 2026.
Still, the HR-V is a strong providing from the Japanese model, significantly in case you’re after a compact crossover from a legacy automaker.
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