The one-off WR-V gets a number of cosmetic changes, outside and in, including a number of dog-friendly accessories.
The new Honda WR-V, which is sold in India as the Elevate and is made here and exported to Japan, has a new pet-friendly special edition in the Asian market. At a fair in Tokyo meant to ‘enrich life for people and pets’, the Japanese company introduced the WR-V accessorised by Honda Dog, which has official accessories from the Honda Access brand.
- One-off Elevate-based WR-V gets a number of dog-themed accessories
- Gets new grille, stickers and decals
- Honda Dog accessories even used by Drift King Keiichi Tsuchiya
In order to turn the WR-V into an extremely capable doggy carrier, the front passenger seat gets a carrier that is said to accommodate two small dogs, and a grey pet door cover. The rear seats have a pet seat circle recommended for small and medium-sized dogs, along with anchorages for attaching leashes. One can choose to add additional stickers on the inside as well.
The exterior has a unique black plastic grille, which is somewhat reminiscent of the AMG ‘Panamericana’ grille, chrome additions around the light units and bottom of the grille, a WR-V badge above the front fender, and a ‘Honda Dog’ sticker on the doors. One can also opt to have dog paw-themed aluminum wheel caps, and dog-themed key covers.
Honda Dog merchandise gained fame in Japan as famed ‘Drift King’, Keiichi Tsuchiya, has these accessories installed on his Honda Odyssey. Honda has a history of coming out with dog-friendly models – the Japanese brand had showcased a Honda Element Concept that had been fitted with various canine-specific enhancements, in California, USA, back in 2009.
Made in India Honda Elevate
As mentioned above, the Elevate is made at Honda’s Tapukara plant in Rajasthan for domestic and export markets. The model made for Japan and called the WR-V looks more or less identical to the Elevate on sale in India, and even has the same 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol engine, though only the CVT automatic is available there. In March, Honda reported that it had exported 6,809 Elevate SUVs to Japan as the WR-V.
In the Indian market, the Elevate (Rs 11.69 lakh-15.41 lakh) competes with the likes of the Hyundai Creta (Rs 11 lakh-20.45 lakh), Kia Seltos (Rs 10.90 lakh-20.35 lakh), Maruti Grand Vitara (Rs 10.99 lakh-19.93 lakh), Toyota Hyryder (Rs 11.14 lakh-20.19 lakh) and MG Astor (Rs 9.98 lakh-17.90 lakh). An Elevate-based EV is due to launch in India by 2026; Honda calls this project ACE, which stands for ‘Asian Compact Electric’.
All prices, ex-showroom, Delhi
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