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Honda’s top-selling CR-V to go exclusively hybrid next year
Move is designed to meet surging demand for more fuel-efficient vehicles due in part to high gas prices
Honda CR-V. (Honda)
Key Takeaways:
- Honda will offer its top-selling U.S. model, the CR-V crossover, solely as a gas-electric hybrid when the next generation debuts in 2027.
- Hybrids accounted for 53% of U.S. CR-V sales last month and nearly a third of Honda’s total sales volume.
- Honda also plans to spend $3 billion on a new Ohio factory that will produce vehicles with hybrid and other powertrains.
Honda Motor Co. plans to offer its top-selling model in the U.S., the CR-V crossover, solely as a gas-electric hybrid starting next year, expanding the company’s push into the increasingly popular category.
The Japanese carmaker on Nov. 12 announced its plan to drop the popular utility vehicle’s gas-only version when the next-generation model debuts in 2027. The move is designed to meet surging demand for more fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles due in part to elevated gasoline prices, echoing rival Toyota Motor Corp.’s broad hybrid-only shift on key models across its lineup.
READ MORE: Honda to spend $3B on new hybrid vehicle plant in Ohio
“The next-generation Honda CR-V will further expand the appeal of America’s most popular SUV as demand for hybrid-electric vehicles reaches record levels,” Luis Guerra, an assistant vice president at Honda’s US unit, said in an statement.
Automakers such as Toyota, Honda and South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co. have gained market share in the U.S. this year thanks in part to their broad lineups of gas-electric hybrids. U.S.-based rivals offer fewer by comparison, although General Motors Co. recently announced plans to expand its hybrid offerings in the coming years.
Hybrids accounted for 53% of CR-V sales in the US last month and made up nearly a third of the brand’s total sales volume. Earlier this month, Honda announced it will spend $3 billion on a new factory in Ohio which will manufacture as-yet-unspecified vehicles with hybrid and other powertrains.
