The HR-V excels in the city and, surprisingly, on the freeway. On tight back roads, the engine has to work hard to keep a nice pace, but on more open roads, it’s simply a pleasure to cruise in, considering it’s pretty small. On the freeway, the suspension eats up those high-frequency ridges, lumps, and bumps, and the engine enjoys just cruising along. The big upgrade is how Honda has improved its sound suppression for all its cars, and it’s most noticeable in the HR-V with the lack of road noise in the cabin.
Around town and on backroads, the steering is confident and quick, which is a by-product of being on the Civic’s platform. We didn’t get the urge to play in Sport mode much, but it certainly sharpens throttle response, and the HR-V puts in a good account of itself in its hatchback-like handling. Ride quality off the freeway is standard fare – not too soft and not too hard, meaning it deals with badly maintained road surfaces just fine, and there is minimal body lean in corners.