Honda confirms Elevate as name for its upcoming Creta, Seltos rival SUV
Honda Cars has confirmed the name of its upcoming SUV in India. As reported earlier by HT Auto, the name of Honda's Creta, Seltos rival will be Elevate. The Japanese auto giant teased the badging of the Elevate SUV for the first time today. This will be the first compact SUV from the carmaker since CR-V was pulled out of the markets. The Honda Elevate SUV will be formally introduced in India next month. It will be aimed to challenge the dominance of Korean SUVs such as Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos besides other Japanese rivals like Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara or Toyota Urban Cruiser HyRyder.
Honda will pin a lot of hope on the Elevate SUV's success for its future plans for India. The carmaker currently sells only sedans in the country. WR-V, the last SUV Honda used to sell in India went off the production line after stricter emission norms kicked in. Honda has been a late entrant in the SUV game, but aims to turn it around with new models planned for India later.
The upcoming Honda SUV has already been seen a number of times testing on the roads leading up to its official unveiling. The SUV will be based on the same platform as the new generation City sedan.
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The design of the Honda Elevate SUV is likely to be based on the CR-V model. It is likely to get a slim and sharp LED headlight units at the front along with a large grille. Expect the Honda Elevate SUV to come with a muscular face and prominent road presence. The SUV will sit on a set of multi-spoke alloy wheels measuring no less than 16 inches.
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Under the hood, the Honda Elevate SUV is likely to come powered with the 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that also powers the new generation Honda City. The engine produces nearly 120 bhp of power in the City. Honda may also offer the SUV with hybrid powertrains using the same technology used in City e:HEV. The higher variants may also be offered with ADAS features which as introduced for the first time in the City sedan. These features will help Honda to take on rivals like Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara or Toyota Urban Cruiser HyRyder. Both these SUVs are the first models in the compact segment to offer strong hybrid powertrain.
