Honda Elevate Review

I believe the Elevate is a really good car overall, but if it had a panoramic sunroof, sales would have been far higher. The success of this car will primarily depend on its pricing.

Oh man, I'm really disappointed with that hump on the seat. A hump on the floor is fine, but why did they have to stick one between the passenger seats too? It's a total deal breaker for family buyers as it seems even kids may struggle to sit comfortably in the middle seat. It is unexpected from a brand that is known for its practical and thoughtful elements in their cars. Most family buyers in India look for 3 seaters at the rear and it's a bummer for sure.

Dear Honda, the key determinant now is pricing, don't shoot yourself in the foot with your stupid pricing.

The clean design with well-proportioned dimensions, adequate features, without the fuss of feature overload, spacious cabin with the most practical boot, sorted and reliable mechanicals, good structural integrity, and safety rating (assumption), combined with the Honda badge, make it a formidable contender in the segment. It can be a sleeper hit or, who knows, a blockbuster hit; the key determinant here is pricing, and this is where I believe Honda may shoot itself in the foot.

That said, as with any car in the segment, it has its share of cons, like missing the option for ventilated seats, limited powertrain, and engine options, etc. Given that every car in the segment has a unique set of pros and cons, it ultimately boils down to where the buyers' preferences lie. They must decide whether they prefer unsafe, unreliable, and feature-rich car or a safe, reliable, and adequately featured car.

Agreed on the features comparison. However, IMO, even though the features that Elevate ZX CVT offers over Seltos HTX IVT are only a handful, they are very important ones from a safety (ADAS) and convenience (Wireless charging and android auto/apple car play) standpoint and are expensive too. So I will not hesitate to choose Elevate over Seltos if the prices are comparable.

From the various reviews, Elevate seems to be the clear winner from a ride and handling standpoint. So, one cannot turn a blind eye to these aspects and compare these cars solely from a features standpoint when comparing the prices.

Nice review, thanks a ton. Though I'm not in need of a new car, been waiting for this review.

In my pov, only downsides i could see are:
1. Smaller fuel tank, come on Honda what are your savings here?
2. Competetion has started giving 6 airbags from base variant itself. We will have to wait for variants reveal to comment on this.
3. Possibly a premium price tag. Again, we should reserve our judgement till price reveal.

And the list of Pros are endless for me, may be because I'm not into features.
Driveability, reliability, no-nonsense engine, after sales service, clean interiors, larger boot, best in class ground clearance etc.

If priced correctly and manages to score NCAP 5 star, Elevate can easily take significant chunk of numbers from competetion (Creta, Seltos, Kushaq, Taigun, grand vitara, hyrider etc).

While the ADAS Level 1 is good (even though it's camera based), I am not too sure of the wireless charging. Wireless charging does not charge much, usually anyone will plug their phones. That said, only the high end phones support the wireless charging. Wireless android auto is good touch though. That said the useful feature list on Seltos is much more longer IMO, and deserves better credits.

It's not really all rosy apart from features for Elevate either. Few negatives apart from features-

• Engine isn't a relaxed cruiser. 100 KPH at 2600 rpm and 120 at 3200 rpm is too high! Even my Sonet 1.0 cruises at a much lower 2200 RPM at 100 kph.
• Claimed Fuel efficiency is much lower for both manual and CVTs than the respective Seltos variants.
• Interiors simply lack the vow factor. Those AC vents look like a car from 1990's! Leave illuminated buttons, the power window switches don't even have markings on them.
• The rear armrest is placed just too low IMO. A traditional problem with all Honda Cars. Atleast it doesn't fall down limply like in Amaze.
• Excessive lumbar support which makes it uncomfortable for taller drivers
• Low rear under thigh support
• Puny 40 litre fuel tank
• NVH insulation is just average

It would have been fine if Honda compromised on features, but provided a great package mechanically and from comfort and interior ambience POV. But this car will nearly cost 20 big one's in it's top end trim and there's just too many compromises on many front's to be put up with.

Excellent review there!

As many members have stated, this car would have been great 5 years ago. It would have been a good competitor to the previous gen Creta rather than the current one.

I for one, like the design which would age well. All hopes on the pricing now.

Had good impressions about the car. But the end result seems underwhelming. Honda still holds on to keeping things simple, but the market has moved on! I believe driving dynamics will be well sorted with this vehicle and will come out as a balanced car. Small things like one touch auto up down on all windows, cooled and illuminated glovebox, adjustable seat belts and armrests could've been added. Spoke to a SA with Capital Honda. He said launch price would be in the 12 - 16 lakhs range. That makes the the highest variant around 19 lakhs on road in Tamil Nadu.

Am I the only one who's bothered by the endless number of "placeholders" for buttons? I hope it's just the mid/low end trims, because otherwise it really feels super cheap for a Creta/Seltos rival.

Any 0-100 info on the Elevate?

Every review has mostly positives to say about the ride quality, in-cab quality levels, handling & drivability. Looks like a pretty sorted product from HONDA. Please price it at par with NA competition and this should see reasonable success

Yes hybrid/turbo fans will be disappointed but that a very tiny fraction of the segment as entire competition's major numbers comes from NA offerings.

This is a perfect car for a aficionado. Many would not like it for the lack of features, but then, many want smartphones out of their cars, what to do.

Safety is good, driving dynamics is good, comfort is good, boot space is good, music is good, reliability is good, feel is good. Would I reject this car over panoramic sunroof or ventilated seats or unpainted under bonnet?- I dont think so. It is a car, not sofa in my balcony.

At least for me, the pertinent questions are:

Can I rely on this car for a 1500 KM drive plan I made an hour ago? Would it has smooth ownership experience? Would I be confident overtaking a trailer behind the wheels? Am I getting the essentials out of this car? Would it be fun to drive? - Answer is yes. Added confidence is because of my City, which is ever ready for 1500 Kms drive without a shred of doubt. I expect similar confidence with this Car and Honda's seriousness with this car.

By the way, it has ADAS 2 - for those who have been mentioning ADAS 1.

I would not even mind buying it at the Seltos pricing for the reason of comfort, drive dynamics and being reliable.

In the above review at 10:40 Vivekji mentions that the top speed is limited to 160kph in the Elevate, unlike the City which goes beyond 185kph. The explanation he received from Honda was that they avoided any/all risks with the boxy design & high ground clearance.

Hi 07CR - Your posts on Elevate seems very harsh on Honda. Please consider this as a delayed launch by Honda, which means a product which should have been launched in 2018 is launching in 2023, that's it. There is nothing wrong in Elevate except that it is launched 5 years later. Feature & quality wise Elevate is at par with Grand Vitara & Hyryder so let's wait for the price reveal. Honda themselves seems not expecting more than 4k to 5k monthly sales from Elevate which eventually it will achieve initially and after 6 months with 50k to 75k discounts. It is unfortunate for Honda that their other products are not selling to keep their production line busy and they play with waiting period game like many others. In my view discount on Elevate will start much earlier than expected, may be within 6 months of launch.

Only if they included the automatic climate control and projector headlamps (even halogens) , the C3 Aircross will be a more desirable and practicable product than Honda Elevate.

I have slightly different perspective here .
Most of the reviews point out lack of advanced features and powerful engine options .
I am also looking for car around 15L , I have shortlisted Seltos HTK , which anyways won't have any advanced features or powerful engine which higher variants get . If priced right , given the reliability and better build of Honda , I would seriously consider Elevate .

I am sure quite a lot of buyers who are looking for base variant of Creta or Seltos , will switch to Elevate.