GAC Honda has revealed the first photos of the new Honda ZR-V, and if it looks familiar, that’s because it is essentially the US-market HR-V we saw last month but with a different name for China. The US-market HR-V is based on the 11th-generation Civic and is categorised as a C-segment SUV, making it a larger vehicle compared to the other, B-segment HR-V that arrived earlier. After the US and China, the HR-V will also be sold in Europe under a different nameplate and will slot in between the CR-V and HR-V that’s already on sale in the region.
Design-wise, the ZR-V is pretty much a
carbon copy of the US-market HR-V, with standout cues being a large,
octagonal-shaped grille, relatively slim LED headlamps with L-shaped DRLs and
C-shaped mouldings in the lower apron. The rear also gets the same taillight
design, although the dual exhausts have not been seen in press photos of the
HR-V before. There are no interior shots just yet but expect the cabin to be
nearly identical to the HR-V as well, save for some minor changes.
As for the powertrain, the “240 Turbo”
emblem on the sculpted tailgate – also used for the Integra sold by GAC Honda –
suggests the ZR-V will be powered by a 1.5 litre turbocharged four-cylinder
petrol engine mated to a CVT. The VTEC Turbo unit in the Integra serves up 182
PS and 240 Nm of torque – these figures are the same as the HR-V. It
should be noted that said emblem is also used on other Honda models in China
like the CR-V, Breeze, Avancier, UR-V and Civic.
Further detail like pricing will be
revealed later, as GAC Honda is currently accepting registrations of interest
before a formal launch takes place within this year. It wouldn’t be a surprise
if Dongfeng Honda sells a sister model to the ZR-V, albeit tweaked to create
some differentiation.
