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How's the acceleration

21K views 31 replies 20 participants last post by  dahon 
#1 ·
New to the forums, referred here by Redflag deals. Have test driven a few cars, including an HR-V. Just wondering about the pickup for merging into traffic. Had a 2000 Civic, which was great but underpowered with the 1.6L, especially with the AC on. Wondering if the 1.8 in the HR-V would be the same issue. Not speed demons by any means, but like to get to Highway speed in decent time and pass quickly when needed. Thanks.
 
#4 ·
Completely agree with the heart of Fearturtle's post. I consider my new HRV-EX AWD a big step up from my 1997 RAV4 with a 1.4L 128hp. I admit I mostly drive alone or occasionally with one passenger, so I'm rolling light, but I step on it entering a hiway or changing lanes and it is responsive and quick enough to slide into even a short opening in speedy traffic. Not loaded with a full car of people and gear may give me the speed and pickup I find perfectly adequate, so I'm willing to qualify my satisfaction and recommendation.

Street speed in NYC is limited to 25 mph. I struggle to behave and comply as the HRV is quite peppy and will get up past 35 in the street faster than I realize.

All around, if you think you will drive with 3-4 adults and cargo/luggage or need steady speeds above 65, this is not the ideal car. If that's not your circumstances, then the HRV is a terrific little car with many charms, quiet comfort, and particularly nice dashboard electronics.

I should add that the 4 wheel disc ABS brakes are instantaneous, yet smartly soft and not grabby, just the best brakes on any car I tried out before buying my Honda. I'd have to say that the emphasis on Go power is important, but once you're up to speed, you'll like knowing that strong straight, reliable Stop power is right there with you. I don't take the really good brakes on the HRV for granted.
 
#5 ·
I have the FWD with a manual, so it's a little faster. If I have 2 or more passengers, or running the ac, I need to slam it in some situations. By planning ahead though I can usually pass people on ramps and have no problem moving around on the freeway when I drive by myself.

Not unsafe, but not a big passer if loaded down

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
 
#6 ·
Definitely test drive to make sure it meets your expectations, if 4WD is not needed the 2wd is a little better
If you want push you back in your seat acceleration go test drive the civic hatch with the 1.5 turbo, it's another great option
Hopefully the 2018 HR-V will include the 1.5 turbo, I love mine in my civic
 
#7 ·
I agree with all the comments of this post.

I've had the experience driving alone (which I normally do) and with 4 passengers (a 5-hour road trip). I have an LX 2WD.

This is a great single-person's car. On the freeway, the acceleration is suitable. Put your car in sports mode for a bit more umph. Though that grace of speed becomes less and less with more people in the car. During my road trip with four other passengers, passing up big rigs took a bit longer than I'd like, even in sports mode. Wasn't horrible, though.

Otherwise, if you're not doing a lot of highway driving, the HRV acceleration is more than what you need for basic traffic and highway driving. It's short length comes in handy during those quick merges.

And consider your price range, too. The HRV goes 0-60 in just about 9 seconds. The Civ turbo can do the same in 6.8 seconds. So, it depends on how much 2.2 seconds really means to you and how often you'll need that extra time, too. The real difference in speed comes with a lot more money.
 
#9 ·
Here's my observation after all of 3 whole days driving around town in my HR-V LX AWD. I used to own a small turbo AWD CVT, and that thing can "zoom".

The HR-V acceleration is acceptable for a non-turbo CVT vehicle. The CVT is another factor too. It can't "hop" to a lower gear like regular A/T when you hit the gas. It can only "walk" or "run" there. So, I think that makes a difference too in my non-technical opinion.

I would not attempt those quick pass-and-hide tactics when you are stuck behind a long caravan of winnebagos/ silverstreams on a two lane curvy rural or mountain highway. I just pray it will be their nap time soon :D
 
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#10 ·
I really think it varies depending on other cars you have driven. If you are coming from a 2000 civic with the 1.6, I suspect this is the 160HP Si model. The HRV is heavier and slower so, yes you will definitely notice it being even slower. For lower HP vehicles, you need to adjust your driving. You need to make sure you are giving yourself and other vehicle enough space when you try and get up to speed. My other vehicle is an 09 Jetta with 170HP and 177 TQ and there is a significant difference in performance. Now, as others have said, if you are coming from a 2000 Civic DX, LX, or EX which I believe is only 127 HP, I believe you won't notice any difference because the added HP has been offset by the additional weight.
 
#17 ·
Dead stop to 60 mph not a drag racer. If your at 40 mph+ and put it to the floor it flies. I can easily blow by cars traveling the speed limit. The CVT does not jerk like traditional auto transmissions. I love how it works. My wife says you can hammer it without spilling her coffee. I bought this awesome vehicle because of fuel economy, how exceptional it handles in the snow *AWD*. I average 36-37 mpg Highway in summer in eco mode even at 70 mph. This is Honda’s little secret and I’m ok with it as 10 gazillion CRVs pass me by.
 
#20 · (Edited)
Weight for the touring is unavailable in AWD but these are the models FWD and AWD

what 50 lbs is a lot of weight hmmm but increases per model its not a LX to a touring that will be a few hundred Lol

Curb Weight (2WD/AWD)
2906 lbs / 3066 lbs

2928 lbs / 3096 lbs

2959 lbs / 3124 lbs X

2974 lbs / 3142 lbs

NA / 3150 lbs

Weight Distribution (front/rear, 2WD)
61.8% / 38.2%

61.9% / 38.1%

61.4% / 38.6%

61.5% / 38.5%
 
#21 ·
FWIW, I took my HR-V LX 6-speed to a scale house out of curiosity. With nothing in it except some Husky Liners front and rear and a full tank of gas, it comes out to 2920lbs.

Agree with the consensus on acceleration. With just me, myself, and I in the car, the acceleration is adequate. It's definitely not a go-fast car, but it was never meant to be. With one passenger it's not bad. With two passengers I'll redline shift 2nd, 3rd, and 4th to get on the freeway. With four passengers, I had to do that just to accelerate at a normal cadence on city streets.
 
#24 ·
I've been looking for an HRV to replace my VW GTI in a year or so. When my son picked up his Honda Fit I took the opportunity to take an 2016 HRV awd CVT out for a test drive. For me the acceleration was barely adequate. I think I'd acclimate to the slowness eventually, but I can't imagine what it would be like for mountain driving or passing on a 2 lane road.

My hope is when the redesign comes they drop in the 1.5 turbo. No need to change oil every 3K, every 5K works fine for my GTI & I'm sure it would for a Honda too.

In the meantime I'll wait for Honda to update the HRV.
 
#26 ·
I can't imagine what it would be like for mountain driving or passing on a 2 lane road.
In the meantime I'll wait for Honda to update the HRV.
Living in Colorado I can attest to the challenges of driving this car up mountain passes and 2 lane roads. Going up I70 to 12,000 feet, as long as I keep the pace up, the car has no challenges. Get in the left lane and stay there. But, this is no different than it was with my previous car, a 2004 Accord EX V6 with 240bhp. With 100 less bhp, I can still get up and down the mountain passes, and get greater gas mileage and the sureness of AWD.



For me my driving style adapted to the car. Yeah, it's not going to blow the doors off of anything other than maybe a Smart car. On the advice of counsel I can neither confirm nor deny that my car saw 100mph going south on I-25 towards Albuquerque. The car is fine if you accept the limitations and revel in the utility of the packaging.



Would I take the torque and a turbo to make the engine strain less in those situations? Sure, but at what price? For now, it works.
 
#28 · (Edited)
While these cars aren’t very torquey, I think the acceleration is adequate in my opinion. I’ve owned slower cars.

I have a 2019 hrv sport FWD, Anyways Straight line acceleration on flat ground isnt anything special by any means. Just enough to get you by.

Although I must say that the cvt works decently well on winding roads with lots of hills. It holds great torque at higher rpms with the ratios it has. I keep it in sport mode and It gets going pretty well.
It just needs to be treated like a small naturally aspired 4cyl motor, rev it high don’t let the Rpms get low.

While it’s not the fastest In class, I still prefer my hrv over the competition
 
#29 ·
Just use Sports mode + ECO off + paddle shifters on highways and you're good. It's still fast even with 3 people. Maintain high revs if you want to zoom zoom lol. It's not as bad as a lot of reviews say. Maybe they forget to turn eco off. Honda's CVT is butter smooth!
 
#31 ·
For the last month I have deactivated the ECON* function and pick up, smoothness and general driving has improved immensely.

I also filled up yesterday for the first time siince deactivating ECON and it was the best mpg (41.9 Imperial) I have had since purchasing the vehicle in March 2020 - roughly a 5mpg improvement. I think the biggest issue with the VTEC/iVTEC engines is that you have to rewire your driving brain to take into account that power does not really come into play until you rag the arse out of it at around 6600rpm. Yesterday I got caught out when coming out of a T-junction, I was still set up for cruising (6th) instead of being prepped for giving it the beans out of the junction - 3rd. Once I had dropped to 3rd the engine sang and all was good. The fault lay with me, not the car.

I read a complaint on another forum reference the slow pick up when setting a higher set speed on cruise control. I have found when using a reguluar road near me that since dropping ECON the pick up from 30mph to 40 is noticeably improved.

I am going to monitor my fuel consumptio via Fuelly, but unless my vehicle starts drinking like Olly Reed, ECON will remain permanently off.

*Once you deactivate the ECON button it stays off until you reactivate it.

** Note that I drive a 6 Speed Manual petrol 1.5na 128bhp iVTEC
 
#32 ·
Tried different ways to pedal on D. I'm on the CVT.

Light pedal - early shifting in between 1k and 2k rpm. dash color is mostly green.
Medium pedal - shifts after 2k rpm. dash color a bit orange then red.
Heavy pedal - you slowly floor it gives good acceleration. medium burst then heavy pedal depending on your rpms and speed gives a good boost. lol i can't explain it well but you need to feel your car to know how heavy or light you step on the pedal.
 
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