Japanese carmaker, Honda will finally have a locally developed SUV for the Indian market. The company has recently released a teaser of its upcoming midsize SUV, which will be positioned against the likes of the Hyundai Creta, Kia Seltos, Maruti Grand Vitara, VW Taigun and others. Honda has confirmed that the new SUV will make its debut by Summer 2023, that’s April to June.
New Honda SUV Launch & Expected Price
While the exact launch timeline is yet to be revealed, we expect the new Honda SUV will arrive in our market by the festive season 2023 that’s before Diwali. The public debut is scheduled in Q2, 2023 – around April-May, while bookings could begin in mid-2023. It will be offered with petrol and strong hybrid engine options. The SUV prices could start at Rs 10.5 lakh for the petrol variant, while the strong hybrid model is likely to be priced around Rs 18 lakh to Rs 22 lakh.
New Honda SUV – Key Details
Honda Car India has only shared a single teaser image of the SUV, which shows its silhouette. The teaser reveals that the new Honda SUV shares styling cues from the brand’s global SUVs including the new CR-V and the HR-V. It comes wit an upright front and a multi-slat grille accommodating a large Honda logo, along with wide wraparound headlamps. The LED daytime running lamps are placed above the headlamps. There could be a connected DRL theme or a silver finish bar connecting the LED DRLs.
Similar to the new HR-V, the upcoming Honda SUV will have a coupe-like profile with a tapering roof. The SUV has chunky cladding over the wheel arches and large diamond cut alloy wheels. The aggressive front bumper accommodates wider air-dam and cicular fog lamps. Also visible is a faux skid plate positioned below the bumper. The new Honda SUV will be based on the thoroughly revised Amaze platform and it will measure around 4.2-4.3 meters in length.
The new Honda SUV is reportedly to come with a completely different interiors when compared to the Amaze and City sedan on sale in India. It is likely to feature an all-electronic architecture and screen system that’s offered on the new Accord and CR-V on sale in global markets. It is likely to receive a new 10.2-inch digital driver display and a 12.3-ich touchscreen infotainment system.
The new Honda SUV is also likely to receive camera-based advanced driver assistance system or ADAS, which we have already seen on the new City hybrid. Called the ‘Honda Sensing’ the ADAS tech will offer features like collision mitigation braking, road departure mitigation, lane keep assist, adaptive cruise control and high-beam assist. The SUV is likely to get six airbags, ABS with EBD, ESC, VSM, hill launch assist, 360 degree surround view system, an electronic parking brake and others.
Engine Options
It is likely to be called the new Honda Elevate, as the name was registered by the Honda Car India in 2021. The standard version will be powered by a 1.5-litre i-VTEC petrol engine that produces 121bhp and 145Nm of torque. Transmission choices will include a 6-speed manual and CVT automatic unit.
The hybrid version will come fitted with a 1.5-litre Atkinson cycle engine with e:HEV hybrid tech with two electric motors. The gasoline unit produces a peak power of 98bhp and with electric assistance it makes 109bhp. The combined torque output stands at 253Nm. Similar to the City hybrid, the SUV will come with a single, fixed-gear ratio with three drive modes – Engine, EV and Hybrid.
