Honda Cars PH to launch e:HEV model this year, BR-V is top-selling model in PH,
The Honda BR-V seems to have become a success story for Honda Cars Philippines. Around 7 months after the current 2nd generation of the 7-seater compact MPV was launched in the country, it has become the Japanese automaker’s best-selling model.
To date, HCPI has sold over 5,000 units of the BR-V, claiming the top spot in the company’s sales charts so far. For comparison, that’s roughly how many vehicles Kia Philippines sold in 2022.
HCPI attributes this sales success to the Honda BR-V’s styling which they say is classy, its practicality, its engine which is most powerful and efficient in the segment, safety features, and convenient ownership.
The 7-seater compact MPV segment is one of the most highly-contested vehicle categories in the Philippine market. The Honda BR-V deals with fierce competition from various brands like Toyota with the Avanza, Veloz and Rush; Mitsubishi with the Xpander and Xpander Cross; Hyundai with the Stargazer; and many more. If Honda Cars Philippines is able to sustain its sales, it might just top the segment too.
Do you own a 2nd generation Honda BR-V? Honda Cars Philippines surely nailed this one and it shows.
e:HEV coming to PH
In other news, Honda’s version of a hybrid powertrain, dubbed as e:HEV, will surely be coming to the Philippines before the year ends. This was announced once again by HCPI President Rie Miyake during the recent launch of the refreshed versions of the Honda Brio and City.
No details have been given as to what model will be the first to receive the e:HEV treatment but looking at the Japanese automaker’s current roster of vehicles, the CR-V would make a lot of sense, especially with the all-new generation expected to be launched this year.
The Honda CR-V e:HEV is currently already available in Thailand where HCPI sources local units of the compact crossover from. Also, it makes even more sense as it will be competing with the Toyota RAV4 which saw an increase of sales after its lineup was revamped last year with a hybrid powertrain as standard on all its variants. In addition, the turbodiesel powertrain which has proven to have become very popular on the current generation CR-V has already been discontinued in Thailand. A hybrid powertrain could offer similar performance and fuel economy, or maybe even better.
Another possible model would be the Honda Civic as an e:HEV version would be able to compete with the Toyota Corolla Altis. This may put the Civic at a bad price point though as the current top-of-the-line 1.5 RS Turbo is already priced at the top of the segment.
For now, we’ll have to wait for any developments over at Honda but we surely are excited to finally see a hybrid-powered Honda hit our shores once again. What model do you think will be Honda’s first e:HEV in the Philippines?
