Looks familiar? It should. This is Honda’s latest creation, the all-new WR-V. It’s a subcompact crossover that slots under the CR-V, HR-V, and BR-V in their SUV family tree and is practically a jacked-up Jazz.
While the HR-V only shares its platform with the 5-door hatchback, the WR-V is literally a Jazz only with higher ground clearance, plasticky bits, a roof rack, and a nose job. Honda didn’t even bother reworking the Jazz’s distinctive beltline. Heck, we bet the windows, doors, and tail lights are all interchangeable. Although we still haven’t gotten our hands on the official specs, it’s highly likely to adopt the same 1.5L i-VTEC 4-cylinder engine.
The name WR-V stands for Winsome Runabout Vehicle says Honda. It’s not exactly as catchy as ‘Comfortable’, ‘Hip and Smart’, or ‘Bold’ which the first letters of CR-V, HR-V, and BR-V stand for, but you can always just call it the ‘WR-V’.
This idea of turning subcompacts into smalls SUVs isn’t exactly new or groundbreaking. Other brands have done it too in the past and Honda simply jumped on the bandwagon. One such example is the Fiesta which Ford turned into an EcoSport.
It’s quick to build, keeps development costs low, while maintaining the donor car’s best selling points.
Honda plans to the sell the all-new WR-V in South America starting next year. Once they’re convinced that this subcompact crossover is a cash cow that it obviously is, expect to see it in other parts of the world which we hope includes the Philippines.
