Honda’s HR-V serves-up the style

Rakish A-pillars and a relatively long bonnet combine with a design simplicity that lend the brand’s Nissan Juke, Volkswagen T-Roc and Toyota C-HR rival a coupe-like silhouette.

Prices from £30,390, align with its more expensive rival from Toyota.

In the range-topping Advance Style Plus trim tested here, the recently-updated HR-V is £37,995.

A self-charging hybrid is standard, powering its front wheel with a 1.5-litre petrol engine and two electric motors.

Electric propulsion is the order of the day in many urban situations, while 131PS and 253Nm of torque make 62mph possible in 10.6 seconds.

Honda claims combined fuel economy of 52.3mpg and 122g/km CO2 emissions.

During our heavily snow affected road test, the indicated miles per gallon settled in the mid-40s.

With heated front seats standard across the range – and a heated steering wheel only missing from the entry-level trim – I sacrificed some battery power to keep warm.

Among the HR-V’s other trim treats were a fixed panoramic glass roof; a multi-camera parking system; electric boot; adaptive cruise control; a ten speaker sound system; and wireless phone charging.

Optional flashes of electric blue trim looked a little cheap in an otherwise stylish, well-appointed cabin. The light-coloured seats – with their subtle blue stitching – look great.

Honda has improved the HR-V’s refinement, the petrol engine now notably less intrusive under hard acceleration.

It’s sharp handling, too, with Honda’s Agile Handling Assist (AHA) subtly braking the inside wheels to tuck it into corners.

Our main disappointment centred on the HR-V’s packaging.

Honda’s excellent ‘Magic Seats’ are present in the rear, with bases which can folded vertically to liberate load space. However, the boot is a modest 320 litres.

The combination of 188mm of ground clearance and that low roofline also restricts headroom, while the rear quarters are best suited to two, despite plentiful legroom.

Honda’s HR-V is stylish, dynamic and economical, therefore, but it lacks some of the outright practicality of some rivals.