Honda's all-new HR-V leaks online

Images published on Facebook have uncovered the new Honda HR-V a week out from its official debut on February 18.

The images, posted on the profile Vanhoe Rage and reported to be Honda patent filings, are basic and don’t offer much detail beyond 3D-generated grayscale models.

A comparison with teaser images Honda dropped earlier in 2021, however, checks out on things like the roof’s trailing edge, where a spoiler extends the roofline above a heavily raked rear window.

What the new images also reveal about the HR-V is it will wear a heavily redesigned face, sporting a smoothed-off frontal area around a ‘multi-diamond’ style grille and restyled headlights.

From behind, the rear taillights are bridged by what looks like a lighting strip and the rear bumper’s symmetrical design is devoid of exhaust tips.

Okay, but what about details?

Not much else is known yet. But this only builds anticipation for more details about the all-new HR-V that will debut a new generation in e:HEV form, as well as an “advanced” two-motor powertrain as standard, on February 18.

Promising high efficiency with refined “fun-to-drive performance”, it’s reported in Europe this also means the new HR-V range will be powered solely by a dual-motor hybrid powertrain.

Further details, however, on Honda's third-generation HR-V are being withheld.

The new pictures at least offer a glimpse in and outside the new HR-V. For instance, a blurry silhouette shot reveals a greater rake at the rear window, while another shows it will carry over handle-less rear doors.

We can also see inside will feature a heavily redesigned centre stack that looks much cleaner and better arranged – reminiscent of Mazda designs – which also stands a screen above the dash.

There are also metal HVAC dials. Placement of Apple CarPlay behind an iPhone in frame suggests the new HR-V’s infotainment will prioritise connectivity.

Broadly speaking, the HR-V e:HEV will further bolster an Electric Vision strategy to have all European mainstream models electrified by 2022, joining other e:HEV variants in the CR-V and recently re-launched Jazz ranges overseas.

Australia’s sole Honda with hybrid power became the Accord when the NSX was dropped from its range last year but the brand tells us it remains focused on introducing a hybrid model to each range Down Under.

"The all-new Accord released in late 2019 was the first opportunity for Honda Australia to introduce a hybrid version of a new model," a Honda spokesperson said, "and those plans will flow through to other vehicles in the line-up over time."

Currently, the Accord’s 158kW/315Nm dual-motor hybrid powertrain is attached solely to the range-topping VTi-LX model, pegged at $50,490.

The HR-V has been on sale in Australia since late 2014 and remains one of the brand’s best-selling models behind the ever-popular CR-V.

It begins at $25,990 before on roads.

Locally, the CR-V misses out on the 2.0-litre hybrid powertrain underpinning models in Europe, which was revealed to the public in late 2017 at the Shanghai motor show.

In 2020, Honda sold 8181 HR-Vs, making it the sixth most popular small SUV among 22 models.