The Most Fuel-Efficient Honda SUVs
Finding the right SUV can be tricky as there are so many factors to consider. How many seats does it have? What kind of towing power does it have? Is it off-road capable? However, one other important factor is fuel economy.
Sure, it could be the last factor that any SUV shopper might think about, but it’s still important. Believe it or not, Honda makes some of the most fuel-efficient SUVs on the market, but not all of them get stellar marks. Here are the three most fuel-efficient Honda SUVs in the automaker’s current lineup according to the EPA estimates published on fueleconomy.org.
Honda HR-V
The Honda HR-V is the smallest SUV in the lineup and has the ability to seat up to five people. Additionally, it’s powered by a 1.8-liter, four-cylinder engine that puts out 141 hp and 127 lb-ft of torque and is capable of achieving 28 mpg in the city and 34 mpg on the highway in front-wheel-drive form, according to the EPA. These numbers are on par with those of the Kia Seltos and better than the Hyundai Kona.
Honda CR-V
The CR-V is Honda’s best-selling SUV and it’s no wonder why. Considering it can easily fit up to five comfortably, has a host of tech-savvy features, and, best of all, is one of the most fuel-efficient models on the market. That’s mainly due to its hybrid variant, which gets 40 mpg in the city and 35 mpg on the highway according to EPA.
However, if you choose one of the gasoline-only trims, then you might want to opt for the front-drive configuration as it’s able to get up to 28 mpg in the city and 34 mpg on the highway according to the EPA. That’s more than what the Toyota RAV4 currently gets (27/35) and the all-new 2021 Nissan Rogue (27/35), both in front-wheel-drive form.
Honda Pilot
If you need something bigger, then the Honda Pilot can seat up to eight and has the size and capability to tread off-road. It’s powered by a 3.5-liter V6 engine across all of its trims, but if fuel efficiency is important to you, then choose the front-wheel-drive Pilot. According to the EPA, the front-drive Pilot is able to achieve up to 20 mpg in the city and 27 mpg on the highway, although, your results may vary.
Why not the Passport?
You might be wondering why we didn’t technically add the Passport to this list. After all, it’s powered by the same 3.5-liter V6 engine as the Pilot, but it’s smaller and lighter so it should be quite fuel-efficient, right? Not really.
What’s interesting is that the Passport actually gets 20 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway in front-drive form, according to the EPA, which is 2 mpg less than the Pilot. While that might not seem like much of a difference, we wouldn’t want to recommend an SUV that gets worse fuel-efficiency than its stablemates, much less its competitors.
