CarToq takes the Honda WR-V on a 1,000 KM road trip through South India

Honda WR-V was a surprise product from the Japanese brand for the Indian market. The most affordable R-V model in the country is quite popular and sales have stabilised for the feature-loaded crossover in the market. We have already been through the mighty Himalayas in the Honda WR-V, and this time we were looking to explore the Southern parts of the country.

Karnataka to Kerala in Honda WR-V

Incidentally, the Honda WR-V that we took through Kerala is the same unit that we took to the Himalayas. The journey started from Bengaluru airport after we handed over the new Civic post our test drive and this particular WR-V had already clocked more than 15,000 km as per the ODO meter. The road trip was not solely for the visual expedition; we mixed it to visit a few relatives in the region too, which is why our itinerary was quite haphazard.

The first stop was Giddenahalli, which is located near the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border and is about 80 km away from the Bangalore airport. In Bangalore, distance has no regards to time that can be taken to complete the journey. While fighting through the infamous traffic of the city, we met a lot of Honda WR-Vs on the way. The Honda WR-V is based on Jazz, which makes it a perfect city-hopper. It can go through tight spaces without creating much of a fuss, and the clutch is light enough to be merciful on your left leg.

From Giddenahalli, we left for Mysore on the same night. Even though the sun went down a few hours back, we were confident to reach Mysore by the middle of the night. Honda WR-V’s halogen lamps were good enough to light up the way, and the high ground clearance ensured that no pothole could touch the bottom of the vehicle all through the way.

Mysore is known as one of the most beautiful cities in the country, but due to time constraints, we moved towards Madikeri, which is one of the most popular hill stations in the state. The WR-V we were driving was powered by a diesel engine, which gets an ARAI certified fuel efficiency of 25.5 km/l.

The whole trip was done in a single full fuel tank, which is exceptional for a vehicle of WR-V’s size. As the trip meter kept on rolling on the plains, we soon met the beautiful Western Ghats. The Honda WR-V with two adults and a lot of luggage did not break a sweat through the hill climb, and as the temperature kept on dropping, we perfectly utilised the sunroof in the vehicle. Sunroofs are not very popular in India, but they can be very handy when the climate is favourable.

The fuel efficiency display was looking good even after climbing the Western Ghats, and it was showing more than 22 km/l on display. Our next destination was Kerala, which was an impromptu plan. We expected that sitting for long in the vehicle hours will cause fatigue, but the seats are very comfortable and well-padded in the WR-V, which is why we planned to go ahead with the Kannur, Kerala plan. In fact, the confidence came from the fact that I had spent 53 days back to back in the Amaze a few years back while doing a record run!

Anyway, why Kannur? Well, there lies the only driving beach in India, which we had visited during a record-drive event half-a-decade back, and nostalgia acted as a magnet to the whole thing. We left Madikeri very early in the morning to go through empty, mist-filled roads of the Western Ghats. The roads to Kerala go through Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, and 99% roads on this 120 km journey were two-lane undivided roads. Nonetheless, we did not complain, and the coastal climate of Kerala allowed us to keep the sunroof open for some more time.

The WR-V diesel gets powered by a 1.5-litre engine that generates a maximum of 100 PS and 200 Nm and is paired with a 6-speed transmission. On this whole trip, however, we seldom got a chance to shift to the sixth gear. It is for highway cruising and is overdrive gear to return maximum fuel efficiency.

We headed straight to the exquisite Muzhappilangad Beach, which is the only driving Beach in India. After reliving the moments that we enjoyed with the Honda Amaze a few years back, we headed to the night stay place. On the last day, we had a 350 km journey and a flight to catch from Bengaluru. Because of the two-lane roads of Kerala, we decided to leave much before sunrise. We enjoyed the WR-V’s sixth gear and the cruise control system of the WR-V the most while returning from Kannur.

The return journey also was through the Brahmagiri Wildlife Sanctuary, which we crossed before the sunrise this time and then got onto the open roads of Karnataka. The roads took us through the Rajiv Gandhi National Park too.

In the end, due to the crunch of time and the city traffic of Bangalore, we reached the airport just in time for the flight and could not take a picture of the odometer. In all, we did 1,067 km and the WR-V returned a maximum fuel efficiency of 23.76 km to a litre. There is no doubt that WR-V offers the ultimate comfort mixed with decent performance and great fuel efficiency. It sure is a winning recipe for Honda, which is why the WR-V is selling in four digital numbers even with stiff competition in the market.