Honda HR-V | Class: H | $51,995 | Auto Solutions
I’m no Mario Andretti. I feel no need for speed, no matter how many times I’ve seen every Fast and Furious movie in the franchise.
I am, however, a gadget person. When I like a car, mainly it’s because it has all the bells and whistles that my little geek heart can dream of. And I can dream up a lot of bells and whistles.
So when I was given the chance to test drive the Honda HR-V, I was more than excited. Firstly, I’m as
environmentally conscious as the next girl and this beauty is top notch. For a lesson on hybrids, the car takes gas but as you drive it stores up the kinetic energy in the battery. Gas lasts longer and you don’t need to plug it in. Big plus for me! My driveway is far enough away from my house that the concept of plugging anything in always seemed a bit unwieldy for me. But I still want to do my part for keeping Bermuda sustainable so … score!
When you turn the car on, it starts in battery mode, meaning that you have that moment of, wait, did I remember to actually turn it on, that you get with fully electric cars. Over a certain speed, the car can switch to gas usage but there is a button to keep it in battery mode.
One thing that I thought was quite funny: there’s no spare tyre! The battery takes up most of the back carriage, so they have this ingenious kit to fix flats. You know, that foam stuff. Honestly, there’s a part of me that wants to get a flat just so I can use it. Told you I’m a bit of a geek. This is some 23rd century type of car maintenance.
On to the gadgets. As a mom with three kids, grocery shopping takes up about most of my weekends and there’s nothing worse than having to put bags on the ground to open the truck. HR-V has the best solution. The trunk opens with a foot sensor. One little foot wave and alley-oop, the trunk opens on its own. No oranges rolling down the parking lot. Or hands full with kiddy bikes? Again, a ballet pirouette and ta-da! It can even close on its own. Yeah, I’m way too excited but, you get me, it’s a game changer. Oh, and the back seats come all the way up. Like a Transformer. Seriously, like if Optimus Prime was a car seat.
And to talk about no-touch convenience, the front doors open with a touch if you have the key on your person. No need to pull a handle. It’s like magic.
For the more standard features, there’s USB ports in the back and front so no longer do you have to do the plug-in tango with your passengers (read: kids with too many electronics). In the front, you have the added convenience of a wireless charger. Gotta have some perks for being the only one tall enough to reach the pedals.
There’s a rear-view camera which is kinda standard nowadays but, and get this, there are side cameras as well. Any Bermudian that hates parallel parking, now you can actually see exactly how much space you have (no more side scrapes). These cameras automatically turn on with the indicators which means that the bike tryna take the nip on the inside, I see you mate!
The car comes in dark grey (most popular), white, silver, black, red and the newest colour, opal white for the shimmer and sparkle lover in us all. It’s a Honda so driving is a bit of a dream. Smooth sailing people. Conveniences and gadgets mean this is a popular car and as you know from living in Bermuda, the good stuff tends to sell out quick!
