Continuing with the slew of Honda news, the Japanese carmaker has announced it will offer the next CR-V in Europe in hybrid and plug-in hybrid variants. The sixth generation of the company’s stalwart family SUV will go on sale in the continent in 2023, with a global debut rumoured to be coming as early as the end of this year.No details accompanied the confirmation, but we do know quite a bit about the car already – even what it will look like. That’s because a patent 3D render surfaced on Facebook last month, showing a design heavily inspired by the latest HR-V.
Visible cues include the slim headlights,
a large hexagonal grille, L-shaped front bumper corners, a simple shoulder
crease, vertical taillights and a slightly less upswept window line. We also
know that the CR-V will likely retain the existing 1.5 litre VTEC Turbo engine
(possibly with even higher outputs than the current model‘s 193 PS and 243 Nm
of torque) mated to a CVT, plus a e:HEV hybrid model that should mirror the
Civic in terms of powertrain. If you remember, that car makes 184 PS and 315
Nm, juiced by a direct-injected version of the Accord Hybrid‘s 2.0 litre
Atkinson-cycle mill.
The plug-in hybrid is the bit that’s new
here, although an e:PHEV version of the current CR-V went on sale in China starting
in 2020. That car paired the Accord Hybrid’s powertrain with a much larger 17
kWh lithium-ion battery, providing an all-electric range of 85 km (65 km on the
WLTP cycle). This will allow the CR-V to compete directly with the Toyota RAV4
Plug-in Hybrid in Europe, although its rival has a much higher total system
output of 306 PS, enabling it to get from zero to 100 km/h in just six seconds.
