In our last edition of Buy/Drive/Burn, we took a look at three subcompact American CUVs competing at the $25,000 price point. Most of you seemed to agree they were all terrible, but the Trax edged out the Buy in the comments.
Let’s see how you feel about the Japanese competition.
Honda HR-V
On sale elsewhere since 2013, Honda’s HR-V made its way to North America in 2016. On the same platform as the Fit, the HR-V was refreshed in 2019 with a new grille and more LED goodness, most of it designed to make it look more familiar to Civic customers. The HR-V is available in LX, Sport, EX, and EX-L trims, and all-wheel drive is available at all levels. Today’s budget nets us a low-level Sport AWD. Priced at $24,470, the HR-V uses a 1.8-liter inline-four for 141 horsepower and wrangles those horses with a CVT.
Mazda CX-30
The CX-30 is the newest competitor of our trio. Introduced for 2020, CX-30 occupies a similar market space as Mazda’s other subcompact crossover, CX-3. CX-3 uses the old Mazda 2 platform, while the larger CX-30 is a Mazda 3 underneath. CX-30 is available in seven different trims, from Base to Turbo Premium Plus. Front- and all-wheel drive are available throughout the range. Today’s version is a lower-level Select Package AWD for $25,300. Power arrives via the 3’s 2.5-liter inline-four, which produces 186 horsepower. The transmission is a six-speed auto, also from the 3.
Toyota C-HR
The CH-R arrived for the 2017 model year as Toyota’s smallest crossover. Based on Corolla, the CH-R was initially intended to wear a Scion badge before that marque’s untimely demise. In a strange product planning decision, the CH-R is the only car here to forego an all-wheel-drive option. However, in other markets, the CH-R is available with all-wheel drive, which means Toyota would prefer you purchase the more expensive RAV4 if you’re in North America. There are four CH-R trims: LE, XLE, Nightshade, and Limited. Today’s budget mandates a Nightshade, which has lots of black trim and additional trim-specific paint options. CH-R is powered by a 2.0-liter engine from the Corolla, good for 144 horsepower, and all CH-Rs use a CVT in North America.
Three Japanese crossovers asking for your dollars, which one’s worth buying?
[Images: Honda, Mazda, Toyota]
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