Details of Cars

Honda HR-V: three generations of Honda’s small crossover

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Honda HR-V e:HEV Advance third generation
A third-generation Honda HR-V e:HEV Advance. Photo by © M 93, CC BY-SA 3.0 de via Wikimedia Commons.

The Honda HR-V is a subcompact crossover SUV marketed over three generations. The first, based on the Honda Logo, was sold from 1999 to 2006 in Europe, Japan and parts of Asia-Pacific; after a seven-year gap the name returned on a car based on the third-generation Fit.

Honda HR-V at a glance

Honda HR-V key facts
Maker Honda
First generation 1999–2006
First-generation platform Honda Logo
First body styles three-door 1999–2003, five-door 1999–2006
Internal codes GH2 and GH4
Built in Suzuka, Japan
Second generation Vezel in Japan from late 2013
Second-generation platform third-generation Fit
North American sales from 2015
Third generation two cars, global HR-V and Civic-based ZR-V
Name meaning Hi-rider Revolutionary Vehicle

Based on one source, the English Wikipedia article on the HR-V.

History of the Honda HR-V

The first HR-V

Honda HR-V Hybrid
A Honda HR-V Hybrid in Stuttgart. Photo by Alexander Migl, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

The HR-V debuted as the J-WJ concept, one of four concepts in Honda’s J-Mover series shown at the 1997 Tokyo Motor Show and the 1998 Geneva Motor Show. With minimal changes from the concept, it was marketed in Japan exclusively through Honda Verno dealers and aimed at a young audience. In Europe it was sold with a 1.6-litre SOHC engine, front- or four-wheel drive, or a SOHC VTEC unit with four-wheel drive, and a CVT was optional. It shared its platform with the Honda Logo and was built in Suzuka. At first, in February 1999, only the three-door body was offered.

The Vezel

After a seven-year hiatus Honda brought the name back on a second-generation car based on the third-generation Fit. Production began in late 2013 for Japan as the Honda Vezel, with sales starting in 2015 in North America, Australia, Brazil and selected Asian markets as the HR-V. Outside Japan the model is also sold as the Vezel in China.

A split third generation

For the third generation the nameplate covers two different vehicles: one for the global market, sold as the Vezel in Japan, and a larger model based on the eleventh-generation Civic for North America and China, sold elsewhere as the Honda ZR-V. Honda says HR-V stands for Hi-rider Revolutionary Vehicle, while Vezel comes from bezel, the oblique faces of a cut gem, with V for vehicle.

Design and features

  • Small crossover package: raised body on a supermini platform.
  • Two names: HR-V in most markets, Vezel in Japan and China.
  • Platform progression: Logo first, then Fit, then Civic for the larger version.
  • Three-door origins: the first generation began as a three-door only.

Honda HR-V versions

  • HR-V GH2 (1999): three-door first generation.
  • HR-V GH4 (1999–2006): five-door first generation.
  • Vezel / HR-V (2013): second generation on the Fit platform.
  • ZR-V: the larger Civic-based third-generation model.

The HR-V shares its platform history with the Honda Fit and sits below the CR-V. More Hondas are in the Honda collection.

Sources

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