Why does the US-exclusive Honda HR-V look so much like a Ford Kuga?



The US will be getting their own version of the Honda HR-V this year, and the carmaker’s American arm has just published the first teaser images for it. But upon seeing it, one thing just stood out to us immediately – doesn’t this look just a little too much like the Ford Kuga? I mean, just take a look at it:

It’s got the same slim-style headlights with the LED daytime running lights running below it (albeit flipped, to be fair), a similarly-shaped grille with short edges near the headlights, and they’ve even got the same bumper design with angular slats below the grille, and C-shaped air intakes at the corners.

It’s almost as if Ford told Honda: “Go ahead, but just change it a bit so it doesn’t look too blatant, OK?” We’re joking, obviously, but you can’t deny that there’s an uncanny resemblance between the two.

Fortunately, the resemblance doesn’t continue at the rear, with the Honda HR-V getting a more stylised tail lamp design with a squiggly light signature round the bottom. Although, the raked tailgate design trend is shared between the two.

From the looks of it, the US-exclusive Honda HR-V could also be larger than the global version, possibly to compete against the Toyota Corolla Cross that was launched in the region last year. The biggest giveaway is the additional rear quarter windows; the global model’s lighthouse ends at the C-pillars with a hidden door handle. Of course, we’ll have to wait until the launch to confirm that.

RELATED: All-new Honda HR-V unveiled in Thailand, only in e:HEV hybrid powertrain

The global-spec Honda HR-V e:HEV

As usual, No technical details have been revealed just yet, but we expect the US-only HR-V to share its powertrain with Honda Civic, including the 1.5-litre turbocharged VTEC mill that’s also found in the Malaysian-spec Civic launched just yesterday.

With Mazda offering all-wheel drive across the board for the CX-30 (and standard on the CX-5) over in the US, it’s also likely that Honda will at least offer it as an option, possibly together with the e:HEV hybrid powertrain.