The Indian car market has moved over the conventional large-sized SUVs for the general city driving purpose and adopted much more modest-sized, yet powerful compact SUVs and crossovers. And ever since, the market for these new breed of cars has been growing into a regular automobile segment.
One such example of a compact crossover is the new Honda WR-V Born out of the outline of the Jazz hatchback, the WR-V is powerful and equally competent on the road. The WR-V stands being an aggressive and rebellious compact crossover with its ever so muscular appearance. Moreover, the WR-V is not just a complete package as a family car, it is quite affordable too. The car packs in features that you wouldn’t be getting in any other car at that price range.
Yes, I am talking about the electrically adjustable sunroof that you get with the WR-V, a feature that you normally don’t find in the passenger car segment in India. And even if you do find one, they are on the top end variants of elite models, like the Chevrolet Cruze or the Honda City.
Yet, WR-V is generously featured, getting an electrically adjustable sunroof even for the mid-spec variants. In fact, it is the only car to be priced below Rs. 10 lakhs and still get this feature. Quite amazing!
Key features
Exteriors
The Honda WR-V seems big on the exteriors and you won’t believe that it is a sub-4 meter car. The body is very sculptous with bold character lines all around. There is a lot of chrome inserts every here and there along with black-coloured wheel arches. The designing is flanked by cuts and curves all around.
The rear section of the car is no less attractive with a chunk of chrome on the boot lid handle. Moreover, boomerang shaped split tail lights looks classy.
Interiors
The inside of the Honda WR-V is spacious with five passenger seating arrangement on its two row layout. On the dashboard, there is a big 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system which misses on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity. However, the car gets Honda’s ‘DigiPad’ and view for the reverse parking camera. Comfort-wise, you get automatic climate control and heater with no AC vents for the rear row.
The 363 liter boot capacity is not the biggest in the segment but is enough for family outings and the likes. Apart from this, the car also features safety features like dual airbags and ABS with EBD (electronic brakeforce distribution) as standard across all variants.
Engine and transmission
The Honda WR-V is available with both i-VTEC (petrol) as well as i-DTEC (diesel) engine options. The 1.2-litre i-VTEC motor makes a highest power of 88 bhp at 6,000 revs per minute and a maximum torque of 110 Nm at 4,800 revs per minute. This engine is mated to a 5-speed manual transmission gearbox.
On the other hand, the diesel engine is a more powerful option to choose. The 1.5-litre i-DTEC motor is capable of making a peak power of 99 bhp and a peak torque of 200 Nm. Being mated to a 6-speed manual transmission gearbox, the diesel variant is more fun to drive while the petrol engine is much more sane and city road-based.
Other cars with sunroof (in competition)
As mentioned earlier, keeping the addition of a sunroof in mind, there are no rivals anywhere close by. However, there are quite a few cars around that are given this feature, but are very pricey. Few of them are mentioned below.
Honda City
One of the closest rival of Honda WR-V with a sunroof is its sibling, the Honda City. However, the premium sedan, though offered in many trim levels, features an electrically adjustably sunroof starting from the VX Petrol variant, which is priced at Rs. 11.87 lakhs exclusive showroom in Delhi.
Mahindra XUV500
Mahindra XUV500 is an example of a quality 7-seater SUV that is pretty much affordable as well. But when it comes to adding a sunroof, M&M does it on the higher W10 trim, which is quite pricey at Rs. 16.55 lakhs.
Honda CR-V
Everyone might be knowing that the Honda CR-V is a very powerful SUV at a premium range. But even with its premium features, Honda does not add an electrically adjustable sunroof for the base variant and does it only on the top end AWD AVN variant, which can burn a hole in your pocket. It is priced at Rs. 27.22 lakhs that is more than 2.5 times higher than the WR-V.
