Thinking of changing my car this year

[Pine]

Over the past year or so my motoring habits have changed, I now rarely take the car into the city and I am doing more longer journeys.  I am currently driving a Fiesta which is fine but I do need something with more boot space, is reasonably comfortable and I prefer a car that is not too big. Given the size of other vehicles on the road I would also like a higher seating position and it has to be a four cylinder petrol automatic.  I will shortly be going around all the local dealers to see what is available; I am open to any suggestions.  Depending on price I will be buying new or nearly new.

One car that seems to meet my requirements is Honda’s H-RV.  So I welcome any comments from H-RV owners.  One thing I have been wondering is why do you see relatively few H-RVs on the road?

[VicW]

They are expensive and they are made in Mexico where quality control appears not to be up to normal Honda high standards, so maybe word has got around.

Vic.

[culzean]

They are expensive and they are made in Mexico where quality control appears not to be up to normal Honda high standards, so maybe word has got around.

Vic.

Nobody can expect high quality from Mexico,  I used to travel there to commission production machinery and their production facilities and infra-structure are not real good (considering how close they are geographically to USA).

[richardfrost]

My H-RV was the most unsatisfactory car I have had in a long time and I turned it round quite quickly for me. Lot of promise but some weird design choices, poor reliability, not a very good Honda I'm afraid. If you can afford a one year old H-RV then you can afford a two year old CR/V, a much better bet. I went for a Rav4 which is pretty impressive so far. Other than the high seating position though, the Jazz is still an impressive package that meets your specs.

[Jocko]

Other than the high seating position though, the Jazz is still an impressive package that meets your specs.

I am an old stiffy, and though no SUV, the Jazz has a much higher seating position than most of the cars I have driven recently.

[olduser1]

Best to go along to your dealer & ask for a test drive over a route familiar to yourself, at least 40 mins driving.
Try to CVT & man gbox versions
If you like it get it.
Avoid the diesel in a few years you will be fighting to unload it

[peteo48]

Other than the high seating position though, the Jazz is still an impressive package that meets your specs.

I am an old stiffy, and though no SUV, the Jazz has a much higher seating position than most of the cars I have driven recently.

You and me both. I find, for my unique set of dodgy and ageing joints, the Jazz driving position is almost perfect. My Civic, which I loved, became quite difficult because of the low driving position.

[Geoffers]

Well we're very happy with our diesel HR-V. Only had one annoying fault when the A/C compressor was faulty.
It drives well and has good economy. It's a little higher than the Jazz which is just what we need now that the knees and hips don't work so well!
At our ages it may well be the last car we buy, so having a diesel doesn't worry us. (we bought it just before the bubble burst)
There does appear to have been a few 'Friday afternoon' cars about though.

[John Ratsey]

My CVT HR-V isn't perfect. The auto idle stop is a bit temperamental but perhaps it (and myself) doesn't like winters. The touch panel control for the heating and ventilation should be illegal as it's difficult to adjust anything without taking eyes off the road (but many new vehicles have the same failing). These issues aside, it's an excellent vehicle which has the high driving position, generous space for people (but note that the EX has less headroom) and baggage and is relatively economical (50 mpg is feasible on longer trips - last summer it gave 53 mpg over 2000 miles to/from/around Scotland but I tried to avoid motorways).

Why so few? Until mid-2016 supply was rationed due, I think, the factory struggling to get to full speed and priority being given to north America. However, the situation has now improved and since mid-2017 hthe Honda factory staff in Swindon have been allowed to have the HR-V as a lease vehicle (so I've been seeing a lot more on the roads in Swindon).

I deliberately bought an ex-demonstrator on the basis that the dealer had 6 months to sort out any bugs (he admitted that there had been some). I also saved a few thousand £££s. You can find these vehicles listed in the used vehicle section of the Honda UK website. If thinking of older HR-Vs, I would avoid the first 6 months of production (ie 65 registration) as these seem to have been the most buggy. I reckon that the bugs are now pretty well sorted and, most likely, feedback from factory staff is more effective than complaining customers for addressing any residual issues. The current rumour is that when the HR-V gets a refresh then UK stock will start coming from Japan.

There's more HR-V discussion in the HR-V forum https://www.hrvforums.co.uk/index.php. Probably the longest (and ongoing) discussion is about the auto idle stop. Nonetheless, that forum is sufficiently quiet to suggest that most HR-V owners haven't got anything to complain about.

[Jocko]

At our ages it may well be the last car we buy, so having a diesel doesn't worry us. (we bought it just before the bubble burst)

What would concern me is that the government, after culling the herd with the current measures, will slap steep tax increases on diesel, to drive the last models off the road.

[peteo48]

On the other hand, apparently CO2 emissions from cars have edged up by 0.8% as people get out of diesel. Am I right in thinking that the very latest diesels - Euro 6 - are pretty clean even from the NOX point of view.

[John Ratsey]

On the other hand, apparently CO2 emissions from cars have edged up by 0.8% as people get out of diesel. Am I right in thinking that the very latest diesels - Euro 6 - are pretty clean even from the NOX point of view.

Some may be OK but some are not? See, for example https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/new-and-used-cars/article/air-pollution-and-car-emissions/from-nox-to-co-dirtiest-and-cleanest-carmakers-revealed.