Honda BR-V Road Test Review

The Honda BR-V is powered by Honda's proven i-VTEC and i-DTEC technology. Both petrol and diesel engines have a cubic capacity of 1.5 litres. The petrol motor, however, produces 117.4bhp at 6600rpm and the diesel produces 98.6bhp at 3600rpm. The petrol motor is fast and the power delivery is quite linear. The diesel, however, takes a bit of time to get going but once it does the surge of power is enough to satisfy your soul. The turbo on the i-DTEC diesel kicks in anywhere north of 1800rpm and has been tuned with precision. The punch provided by the turbo is quite subtle and it does not hit you in the pit of your stomach like most of the other diesel mills. While many motoring journos may complain that there is a definite power lag and the engine is not punchy enough, I am rather satisfied with the engineering on the BR-V simply because Indian roads are not meant for speeds above 150kmph and going further than that would be quite risky. This vehicle can get you up to the 150kmph mark with ease and the acceleration on the way is quite smooth.

The diesel i-DTEC engine generates more torque at a lower rpm and hence is my weapon of choice. Being an SUV the vehicle needs to be capable of that tag, not just because it can seat 7 people. The BRV also comes with a ground clearance of 210mm which is quite good when compared to industry standards. The ground clearance on the BR-V rivals that of the Duster and is second to none in the segment. The diesel mill produces 200Nm of torque at 1750rpm while the petrol motor produces 145Nm at 4600rpm. We took the BR-V off-road as well to test out its capability and were quite amazed at the versatility of this vehicle. It is not an extreme off roader but definitely has the power and punch to take on some rough terrain. We put the vehicle through some steep inclines, angle tests and took it through loose gravel and sand. All the way through the BR-V smiled and happily drudged along. Both the diesel and petrol motors have a manual 6-speed transmission while the petrol version also gets a CVT automatic version. The vehicle has reasonably long legs on highways and the option of 6 gears with short throws gives one their fair share of fun. My personal favorite was the CVT which comes with paddle shifts. The power delivery is progressive and if you throw the lever into sports mode (S) the 1.5L petrol motor comes to life with all the flair it can muster. The paddle shifts make it easier to shift gears instantly and the racer inside you begins to emerge. But when you do have a lot of fun at this point, don’t complain of the fuel average. 

The suspension on the BR-V is facilitated by a McPherson Strut with coil spring in the front and a Torsion Beam with coil spring in the rear. The suspension has been tuned to be stiffer than what we see on traditional Honda vehicles. Riding over bumps and potholes is a breeze and the BR-V takes care of bad roads with ease. Even while off-roading one does not get tossed about too much in this vehicle and can sit comfortably in the cabin. The steering on the BR-V is well weighted and one does not need to put in too much effort behind the wheel. The petrol version of the BR-V has a shorter turning radius set at 5.3m and is more maneuverable than the diesel version which has a turning radius of 5.5m. The brakes on this compact SUV are facilitated by discs in the front and drums in the rear. The braking is progressive and quite efficient. We tested the BR-V on various terrains and performed a few panic braking tests as well. At the end we were quite satisfied by the vehicles performance on dirt, gravel and tarmac. The fuel efficiency mark on the diesel stands at 21.9kmpl while the petrol manual version delivers 15.4kmpl and the CVT automatic returns 16kms to the litre.

Being a compact SUV one can expect the vehicle to seat 5 people. However the BR-V is a 7 seater. It has been based on the Brio platform and has a lot of characteristics of the Mobilio. The cabin is quite large and roomy and 7 people can actually fit in with ease. The rear has a trunk volume of 223 litres with a 50:50 split for the 3rd row and a 60:40 split for the 2nd row. The 2nd row also comes with a sliding and folding option making the BR-V one of the most practical and well thought out compact SUVs. The BR-V features interiors which are quite contemporary and resemble the Honda Jazz. However we were not too happy with the quality of plastics used on the dash and the piano black finish which has been used around the audio unit looks good but does is prone to dust and fingerprints. The BR-V features an infotainment system which is USB, Bluetooth and AUX enabled with steering mounted controls, push button start/ stop, keyless entry, automatic air-conditioning, power adjustable and foldable ORVMs.  The BR-V has a multi-info display to show average and instant fuel economy, trip meter, ambient temperature, time, fuel level, etc. The BR-V also comes with safety features such as ABS and dual front airbags. What remains to be seen is the pricing of the vehicle which will be launched on May 05 this year, we estimate the starting price to be around the Rs. 7.6 lakh mark.