Honda’s UK sales of the recently redesigned CR-V, already surging since the new line was launched late last year, will get another boost this coming autumn with the arrival of small-capacity diesel versions targeted at business users.
The UK-built model will also be sold across Europe and will even find its way later this year as far as Australia (where UK diesel Civic hatchbacks are also sold), supplementing petrol models from Thailand sold there.
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The new, 1.6-litre, i-DTEC engine shared with the Civic will be available here in the UK in Honda’s mid-sized crossover from October. With a six-speed manual gearbox and two-wheel drive – unlike with the larger 2.2-litre turbodiesel there are no automatic or all-wheel-drive options – the 1.6 CR-V oil burner emits only 119g/km of CO2. That puts it in the 18% band for company car tax while annual road tax will be only GBP30 a year.
A number of UK fleets now ban 4WD models and those with a CO2 output higher than 130g/km so the 1.6 i-DTEC neatly side steps both barriers. Six out of 10 UK buyers are expected to be business drivers.
Honda expects the new model to account for a quarter of all CR-V sales in the UK next year, boosting the total to around 17,000. In the first half of this year, sales of the 2.2-litre diesel versions were up 148% year on year with petrol variants up 111%.
The new 1.6 engine is claimed to be the lightest in its class, weighing 47kg less than the 2.2. Overall, the 1.6 CR-V is 116kg lighter than the 2.2, mainly due to the absence of four wheel drive.
This has allowed the suspension to be retuned to improve agility and comfortwhile the size of the brakes has been reduced without impairing stopping power.
UK 1.6 diesel models will come with three trim levels with prices expected to start around GBP22,500 – GBP2,000 less than the equivalent 2.2.
