Louth Motors; The Honda ZR-V - Nice car, shame about the price

I'm at a loss to understand what's happening at Honda Ireland. Back in 2007 they sold over 4,000 cars and were the 14th best selling brand out of the 50 selling cars back then.

Last year they sold 237 cars in total which is less than Polestar, a relatively new kid on the block. BYD, who were not even selling cars for the full year, also sold more.

When I say I’m at a loss I believe the single biggest factor is price. Honda cars on sale in Ireland come at a hefty premium.

The Civic for instance was a car that had widespread appeal and lots of people ended up or started out driving in them.

The price of a Civic, there is only one model on sale, is €48,995. That's an eye watering amount for a car that used to be a competitor for a Ford Focus which incidentally starts at €32,294 rising to €36,009 for a car with the same power output. Even the Honda Jazz, which is a Fiesta sized car, costs €31,495 which is Focus money territory.

The name stands for Z (as in Generation Z), Runabout Vehicle. It fits in the Honda range above the HR-V but below the CR-V with it being just 138 mm shorter than the CR-V and 228mm longer than the HR-V. Isn't it mad Ted how such small dimensions separate cars these days with them all getting bigger and bigger?

And maybe it should have been called the D,E or G-RV to fit between the C and H? It looks like a Toyota Corolla Estate/Suzuki Swace or Audi Q5 at the back and the front definitely looks like the Ford Mondeo we used to own with a bit of Kuga thrown in.

There really isn't a single distinctive feature when you look at the car from the side and in a blind test I doubt if anyone could say what car it was.

What it does look like is a typical mid range SUV or Crossover. In white it's even harder to see the design creases and it all seems to blend into anonymous, SUV homogeny. You won’t be stirred to rush into a Honda dealer to buy it based on the looks it's safe to say.

The mechanicals are identical, in the three trim levels offered, being a 184PS 2.0l petrol hybrid model. The Hybrid system is one where the engine acts like a generator feeding batteries to power the electric motors at the front that drive the car.

This delivers a near all-electric car experience with no noticeable change when the engine kicks in after travelling, albeit sedately, on electric power only. Trims are Elegance, Sport and Advance with the Elegance starting at €54,995; €3,000 more for the Sport and €2,000 more again for the Advance.

So for 10% extra you get a whole host of additional desirable features like a powered tailgate, wireless charging, digital driver’s display, panoramic roof, Bose sound system, front and rear heated leather seats and a heated steering wheel. In the current Honda world that represents tremendous value.

The interior can safely be described as expected Honda. There are some soft leather materials mixed with what I call robust plastics.

It may not be all that pleasant to the touch but boy will it last.

ABOVE: Interior of the Honda ZR-V

You thankfully get separate climate controls that are not buried in a menu and a volume knob in the centrally mounted infotainment screen that reminds me of one from a Ford Fiesta.

Drive selection is via pushbuttons in the centre console and the way you select D differs from the way you select R which caught me out a few times - I’m of the opinion now that a selector lever/stick is the way to go.

There are paddles either side of the steering wheel to set the amount of energy recovery but the absence of one-pedal driving is a bit of an omission considering its price.

You do however get hill descent being a bit true to the SUV moniker it has, but all wheel drive is not available being just a two wheel drive vehicle. Reassuringly the full complement of Honda Sensing safety technology which delivers supreme peace of mind that the car is looking out for all sorts of dangers and ready to respond, comes as standard.

Honda draws your attention to the 1,322 litres of space but that’s with the seats folded, albeit completely flat. Seats up there is just 380 litres which is small for a car in this category and only 19% more than the HR-V.

The drive in the Honda is that hard to describe the “easy to drive” feeling you get in Hondas and Toyotas. Everything feels simple and easy and the car makes no quibbles doing what you ask it to do. The ride over our road imperfections is a bit harder than you'd expect from Honda and there is also a bit more road noise than expected from Honda.

Performance is fine in that it's adequate for the type of use you’d be using the car for. It’s not a hot hatch or aims to be and the 0-100km/h time of 7.8s is quite respectable.

When you do select Sport mode the car feels more sporty & responsive, handles quite well in the corners and is quite enjoyable on the R roads. How the rear passengers would feel is another story especially if you were in the middle seat with nothing to hang on to. Best to do this with you and a front passenger only.

I also noted that rear passengers have not as much headroom as a car of these dimensions would suggest so check that out for your intended occupants.

Would I buy a Honda ZR-V? Well here’s the deal. Previously, I would have always said yes before because the Honda name and reputation always justified the additional money required to purchase it. Now I’m not so sure.

The price seems way above the competitors. For example, the nearest comparable model, an e-Power Nissan Qashqai, starts at €44,000 a full €15,000 less than the Honda and it has a much bigger boot.

That's a lot for a reputation and name. Some will pay but most probably won't and this seems to be what has happened to Honda over the last number of years with more and more people baulking at the asking price for Honda cars.

Unless there is some change in pricing policy we shall be seeing less and less new Hondas on Irish roads. Sharpen your pencil Honda.