written by on 26/04/2011
I bought my 3d HRV in Helsinki after a frightening winter trying to drive my volvo 740 on their Ice covered motorways. The Volvo handled like a boat!
Bought the honda second owner 90,000kms on tyhe clock.
The hydrolic 4wd box died in the dealers carpark when I collected the car, but was replaced on warranty.
The service to replace the cam-belts cost a fortune, but since, I have put another 120,000 on the clock without any issues.
Bought a small trailer, which I twice forgot about, resulting in bashed in rear wings. Broke the rear windscreen towing a tailer over rough ground (replacement window '500). So now looking for a replacement HRV :-)
written by dom37 on 01/03/2011
Like a fine wine - the appeal of this vehicle just gets better. Compact and light. Still looking "new". Nothing available these days to compare it to as far as I can tell. Come on Honda....start working on the HR-V 2...
written by nabilam on 18/03/2010
I don't know why such car is no more produced inspite its success in our countary
written by on 22/02/2010
We are on our second HR-V. Both have been pre registered with delivery mileage only. Our Green 2002(52) model was traded in for a black 2005(55) VTEC.
All later models have the VTEC engine and the extra power is a bonus although if ever a car could do with an 1800cc engine this is it. If you are thinking of buying a HR-V get one with a VTEC engine. They are great to drive, very practical, extremely reliable cars.
Downside:- The best mpg you'll get is around 34 for mixed conditions. Tyres are very expensive but do shop around. Paint tends to chip easily.
written by priyankahemachandra on 30/04/2009
Wow Honda HRV one of the most reliable objects you can have in your life,believe me I have one and its almost bullet proof..I have no complaints about Honda HRV manual transmission 2wd 5 door suv I'm brave enough to say that this is the best practical suv on earth.The only point against this magic machine is the comfort factor it's an suv though.I thank Honda for making it so simple & amazing while being so entertaining & reliable,wel done guys.
written by michaeljohndoyle on 10/01/2009
if you want reliability, the Honda HRV 1.6i 4WD is the car, i bought this HRV with 12,000 miles on it, now 8 years, and with 91,000 miles on the clock, it has never let me down, nothing has ever gone wrong.
just normal servicing. and it really is a unique looking car, and classless. I just love it. I wish i had the money too buy a new one, in black.
Written on: 06/05/2009
Priyanka Hemachandra...
<br/>I agree with this review because...it's all absolutely true.Honda HRV is a magic machine once again.It handles superbly,moves really wel and reliable than you could ever believe.Therefore I'm more than happy to agree with the mentioned comment
Written on: 22/10/2013
Hi
I'm about to buy an 06 105hp model,could you tell me at what mileage should the cam belt be changed?
Thanks
written by samantha red on 25/10/2008
Reliable. Eye catching looks. not many on the road. Responsive. Good cornering roll and grip. Good fuel economy. Good engineering and manufacturing standards. A car I would highly recommend. Like all cars it is not perfect. It has strenghs and limitations.
written by hondaman50 on 28/02/2008
I have had my Honda HR-V VTEC since 2003 from new, and have done nearly 114,000 miles, all over Europe. Outstanding vehicle, very reliable, and if kept serviced regularly needs no additional maintenace. Do not buy the Honda recommended (Yokohama) tyres, as they wander all over the place. Buy Kumho (from Korea). I got 66,000 miles out of the first set I used and have now done 40,00 on the current tyre, with little sign of ware!
written by on 01/01/2008
I have a 2003 Honda HRV with a CVT transmission. I love the vehicle. Even though there are a few points which could be criticized, over all the vehicle is more than satisfactory. I guess it is one of those love it or hate it deals.
By the way, Aykan has mentioned that his car doesn't climb hills with a 20% ascent. Well, I climb hills of any sort in Istanbul and so far haven't had a single problem as such.
written by on 10/12/2007
The Honda HRV 1.6i 4WD has great road handling, especially in wet conditions,easy to park,we found the manual gearbox very responsive, but my wife needed the automatic,extremely reliable, dealer service was also exceptional. Very happy with the car, we have the 3-door hatch, plenty of space for 2 people travelling, re-sale value very good, the front end could have had a sleeker upgrade on later models.
written by Donaoick on 10/11/2006
I have had mine for three years now, and so far the performance is very satisfactory. The 1.6iL engine made the car very practical in terms of fuel consumption, though it's less powerful, but that's where the Sports Mode comes in handy. It all depends on how you will handle your driving. The transmission is well designed, unlike other automatic transmission cars, wherein you can feel the changes of its gears "like a little kick at your back", but with the Honda HRV 1.6i 4WD you will not notice the shifting of its gears. You can even control the changes of the gears by lifting your foot off the gas, and by listening to the engine as you push it back, if you want to shift it to a higher gear like the way manual gear works. Its auto 4wheel engage system is an excellent concept, for the reason that the car is categorised as 4X4, but normally operates as 2x4 front wheel drive. The rear wheel will activate only if the front wheel loses its traction's. Logically, 4 wheel drives are actually used only by 10% of any 4x4 cars lifespan, according to some studies. So why spend so much fuel for an all the time, all wheel drive car, when you can have a 2x4 that gives the satisfaction of a 4x4 car?
written by HondaLover2006 on 25/08/2006
The Honda HRV 1.6i 4WD has a good design and looks good with the brake light spoiler on the back and it's good on country roads but doesn't have much power. I've had my Honda HRV for 2 years and I will never get rid of it for a better make because it's a practical car and has a lot of space.
written by pazantis on 21/04/2006
Honda HRV 1.6i 4WD - I am very happy with my car, if the engine was a bit more powerful in Torque would be perfect. I know its not an original off road, but if you happen to get stuck in Sand near the beach (which happens a lot in Cyprus) the car hasn't got the power to move the 4 wheel system out of it ( When the 4x4 system engages the car just wheens and nothing happens). Note that i have a CVT gearbox. Probably this is not normal, is it, maybe i have a slippery ayto gearbox
written by Jori on 30/12/2005
My Honda HR-V ES is a 2001. This car has experienced 99 000 km(for me only 17 000 km). So far so good. The best challenge for my Honda is the winter including slipperiness and a lot of snow, living in Finland. I am aware of the fact that this is not a off-road car and for that price I am very satisfied.
written by erichrv on 11/10/2005
I've bought my Honda HRV only about 5 months ago and has already driven (cruised) about 30.000 Km (18,000 miles ??) and just love every minute of it. Problem is I can't take much more long weekends as my boss get suspicious about all my long weekends away, although my wife just love it when we leaves early on a Friday and return Sunday or even Monday.
We can now visit places that we never could visit before because with the HRV one can go where no ordinary car can , but it handles just like (or better) than a "ordinary" car and boy , do we get stares from "ordinary" people in their "ordinary" cars because one can only but admire the looks of the HRV.
written by kana on 26/08/2005
I have a 2001 Honda HRV 1.6 4wd CVT 5d.
The car is easy and fun to drive at the first minute.
Its very economical to run (compared with other suvs).
In road runs like convetional hatchbacks and is very safe in all contitions.
The off road capabilites is reduced basicly from the tires and not from the RTFWD (real time four weel driving).
Minor convertions ( A/T tires and higer coils ) improve the off road capabilites but reduce the economy and smoothness. Its good to move itself offroad and is not for towing or geting out the fishboat in the sand. I beleive Honda has a very good balance in real contitions for that car and must not be changed.
The common Cvt "rubber or slip" feeling needs about one month to feel ok the driver.
After this period the car feels like a dream and the smoothnes is unbeatable.In general the cvt is great, specialy in off road contitions because the allways right transfering. Its help put all the (litle) engine torque to the road very smooth and the driver feels like driving a bigger engine. Also the cvt works like antispin with instantly increase the gearing ratio so stop any tire slipage but not hang the car cutting the engine or breakin like other systems do.
I want the car to have more power but is not realy slow, it pull very well in all times and only in highways need more power to safely overtaking.
In general the engine runs very good and reliable but it is little for the car. (Keep in mind for that reason the car has good mileage also).
The room inside the car is for a litle family and no more.
Finaly after 135.000km i love this car. I hope Honda make some improvements in next models and keep the good balance of the capabilities to such cars.
written by kaff113 on 06/06/2005
Bought the Honda HRV 10 days ago and love it. Reasonable cost to run, comfy would highly recommend one.
Would personally like a sun roof but guess with air con dont need one!
Electric fold in mirrors how cool, and good for car parks!!
written by mjdirect on 10/05/2005
Beware of the HRV Auto CVT 99 after 80,000Km It developed shuddering at start off which has been quoted at $3000 to repair. I love the car its great but I have heard its a lemon due to the problem I have. Not sure if I will fix it - it may happening again.
Written on: 26/08/2005
This is a new problem for HRV cvts.
<br>Honda has developed a new start clutch for cvts and extend waranty to 10 years for that car.
<br>In my case the problem start at 60.000km and the local dealer replace all the Cvt box without any cost to me. Today the car has 135.000km without any problem on cvt or other systems.
<br>In general i am very satisfied with the car.
<br>Maybe must took with local honda dealer.
Written on: 04/01/2007
Hi. I had a similar problem with my CVT on my HRV. Honda fixed the problem (poor quality control by supplier) with no charge to myself at all! This transmission system is guaranteed by Honda for 10 years or 100,000 miles, and not all HRV's have the problem. Depends on who sourced the out-of-tolerance components.
written by tomcas on 12/03/2005
Great unusual and different! Honda reliability and non 4x4 on road manners. The Honda HRV 1.6i 4WD 4x4 is great in snow! This car has been knocked by the critics for not knowing what it is! Thats the whole point! It's a personality with 4x4! It's less bulky better to drive than most 4x4's and costs alot less than most 4x4's. So stop with tradition, you dont have to pidgeon hole this car!
Its great fun and relatively cheap!
Only issue I have with honda is interior plastics and why oh why dont they give it a 2.0 vtec or a diesel. It would sell far far better!
Written on: 13/04/2005
I just bought one of these today, collect it tomorrow! I have spent the last 3 weeks looking at vehicles in Madeira (Portugal) where I live and cannot get over the extortionate prices for second hand vehicles on the island. We have to pay between 2-5000 euros more than Portugal book price for a used vehicle and it's overwhelming when you are a woman and in a male orientated island! However, having done my homework and for the job that I do which is run a small tourist newspaper I needed a motor that could cater for weight in delivering 7,000 papers a month and also something that would cart my kids around at the same time. After nearly buying an opel Fronteira, then changing my mind to a Suzuki Jimny and then backing out of a Peugeot 206 I saw the honda HRV today and did the deal. Why? It has a boot for my papers and when the seats are down it's as big as a van, with wheels and chassy to cope with the weight. It has a boot for shopping AND kids. And most of all it shouts luxery which is important when one is driving back and forth down the motorway everyday. OK, I pick it up tomorrow, but from having a stressful 3 weeks of searching for the right vehicle, I finally think I have found it and look forward to giving you all a review in a months time when it becomes a part of the family!
written by rgrear on 27/08/2004
I have driven my Honda HRV 1.6i 4x4 for two years through the Finnish summer (brief) and winter (long) in both city and countryside. The ABS and 4WD are great for driving on ice covered roads - Pulling away from lights in the city, the 4WD kicks in, breaking for the next set the ABS kicks in. In the countryside the 4WD coped well with snow up to about 12" deep, and on ice really quite steep hills were no problem at all. In the spring though it didn't seem to like mud at all (though I never actually ever got stuck), but perhaps this could be a combination of inexperienced driver and the very wide profile of the tyres.
So, yes it is my ideal car, a cool city car with reasonable fuel economy and just enough poke, which once taken into the countryside keeps you out of trouble, and has enough interior capacity to carry most loads, and if the load is too big to carry inside, then just hitch up a trailer and experience the joy of towing with the HR-V.
Criticism? Ground clearance is actually not as huge as it seems. I frequently got road grit lodged in the breaks (causing expensive sounding grinding sounds when braking). Oh, and the rear window wiper is useless.
Would I buy another? Yes, though I am currently casting flirtatious glances at a little Renault RX4 - she's not as pretty as the one at home, but that does not stop me wanting a test drive.
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Rabbithutch's Comment
Written on: 22/10/2013
I'm about to buy an 06 105hp model.Can you tell me at what mileage the cam belt needs changing?