Honda Vezel 2024 Review — The e:HEV Replaces the Sport Hybrid

The Honda Vezel — known as the HR-V in Europe and North America — has been the Sri Lankan diaspora-funded-family-SUV pick for a decade. The first-generation 2013 RU1 launched on the Fit platform with the Sport Hybrid i-DCD drivetrain and quickly became the default Honda choice for the buyer one tier above the Fit and Aqua. The second-generation 2021 RV launched with the e:HEV series-hybrid architecture that Honda has progressively rolled across its volume lineup.

The 2024 update — third-generation RV3# through RV6# depending on trim and drive — refines the e:HEV package with the heavier 1.5L L15Z direct-injection Atkinson engine, a higher-capacity lithium-ion traction battery, and a meaningfully more spacious cabin via the longer 2,610 mm wheelbase.

This review covers the 2024 Vezel e:HEV Z and PLaY grades — the two volume hybrid trims arriving from the Japan auction.

What you get

The 2024 Vezel in Sri Lankan import inventory is almost always one of three grades:

• e:HEV Z — the volume hybrid trim. Honda Sensing, leather-and-Prime-Smooth seat trim, 18-inch wheels, panoramic glass roof.
• e:HEV PLaY — the lifestyle-positioned top trim. Black-painted roof, beige interior accents, dedicated 18-inch wheels.
• RS (rare in current SL imports) — sport-flavoured trim with stiffer suspension and AWD on selected configurations.

Spec	2024 Vezel e:HEV Z/PLaY
Platform	Honda Global Small Car (RV3#–RV6#)
Powertrain	1.5L L15Z Atkinson + dual e-motor (78kW propulsion + 78kW generator)
Battery	Lithium-ion (60 cells, ~1.06 kWh)
Transmission	Single-speed direct drive
Real-world economy	22–26 km/L (urban Colombo cycle)
Length × width × height	4,330 × 1,790 × 1,580–1,590 mm
Wheelbase	2,610 mm
Boot capacity	404 L (319 L on 4WD variants)
Kerb weight	1,380–1,440 kg
Drive	FWD (4WD on selected e:HEV X and RS grades)

The e:HEV drivetrain is the engineering story worth understanding. Unlike Toyota’s THS-II (which sends drive both mechanically through the planetary gearset and electrically through the motor in parallel), Honda’s e:HEV is a series hybrid at most speeds — the petrol engine drives a generator, the generator feeds the propulsion motor, and the wheels are driven electrically. At high steady-state cruise speeds a clutch engages and the engine drives the wheels directly through a single-ratio gear. The driving consequence is an EV-like feel at urban speeds — instant torque from the propulsion motor, no engine RPM correlation with road speed, and a much quieter cabin under light-load acceleration than a comparable Toyota hybrid.

How it drives

Urban feel. The defining experience of an e:HEV Vezel is the absence of the CVT-engine-drone signature that defines a Toyota hybrid. Under light to moderate acceleration in urban traffic, the propulsion motor handles the wheels, the engine runs at its efficient sweet-spot to feed the generator, and the cabin is unusually quiet for a hybrid in this price tier. Owners coming from a first-generation Vezel i-DCD universally describe the new car as feeling like an EV — until the battery state-of-charge drops, the engine starts, and the driver remembers there is a petrol motor in the car.

Cabin space. The third-generation Vezel cabin is the most useful improvement over the previous car. The 2,610 mm wheelbase is 30 mm longer than the second-generation, the body width is 20 mm broader, and the higher-roof variant available on PLaY trim adds genuine headroom for rear-seat passengers. A 6-foot adult sits comfortably behind a 6-foot driver — something the original 2014 Vezel never quite managed.

The Magic Seat. Honda’s Ultra-Seat (the Vezel’s version of the Fit’s Magic Seat) folds the rear bench cushion vertically against the seatback, opening up a 1.27 m tall load bay behind the front seats. The use case is real — fitting a 26-inch road bike upright, transporting potted plants from the nursery, moving a flatpack TV — and Honda’s competitors do not have an equivalent. Toyota’s Yaris Cross has more boot capacity on paper but the Vezel has more useable internal volume because of the seat geometry.

Highway refinement. The e:HEV’s direct-drive cruise mode engages above approximately 80 km/h on flat ground. In this mode the cabin is quieter still — engine RPM tracks road speed directly without any electric whine in the background. The 2024 Vezel is a genuinely refined long-distance car for a hybrid at this price.

Honda Sensing 360°. The PLaY and Z grades get the full Sensing 360° package — front and rear radar, blind-spot monitoring, active cruise at all speeds including stop-and-go, lane-keep assist, and the front pre-collision system. The package functions cleanly on Sri Lankan roads in our limited testing; the lane-keep is appropriately subtle and does not over-correct.

Real-world economy in Sri Lanka

Across a typical Sri Lankan family-SUV duty cycle — half urban Colombo, half medium-distance suburban — current 2024 Vezel e:HEV owners report 22–25 km/L. A heavier highway-biased cycle (frequent Colombo-Galle or Colombo-Kandy runs) drops the figure to 20–23 km/L. The previous-generation 2020 Vezel Hybrid on the same cycles typically delivered 19–22 km/L and 18–20 km/L respectively.

At the LKR 380/L petrol price for a typical 18,000 km/year duty cycle, the 2024 Vezel returns approximately LKR 290,000/year in fuel — roughly LKR 24,000/month. The fuel saving over a comparable petrol-only crossover is meaningful; the saving over an Aqua is small (the Aqua is 4–6 km/L more efficient on the same cycle), but the Vezel is the larger and more capable car.

What this costs in Sri Lanka

A 2024 Vezel at the Japan auction hammers in the ¥3.0M to ¥3.8M range for grade 3.5–4.5 examples in the e:HEV Z or PLaY trim with 8,000–25,000 km. The CIF clears the LKR 5M luxury-tax threshold, so the landed-price math runs higher than a comparable Aqua:

Component	LKR (typical Z grade)
The car (Japan auction price + shipping + insurance)	7,180,000
Sri Lanka tax stack (CID + Surcharge + Excise + VAT + Luxury)	8,420,000
Business costs (port, customs agent, RMV, registration)	180,000
Service margin (sourcing, JAAI inspection, delivery)	320,000
Landed price	16,100,000

At the 60% LTV cap, a LKR 16M Vezel requires LKR 6.4M cash down and a LKR 9.6M financed amount — about LKR 178,000/month on a 7-year NBFI lease at 13.5% APR. This is genuinely a different buyer-income tier from the Aqua — the Vezel asks roughly LKR 320,000+ gross monthly income to clear DSR at typical bank or NBFI screens.

How it compares

The 2024 Vezel sits in the most contested segment in current Sri Lankan import inventory:

• Toyota Yaris Cross 2024 — smaller body, marginally more efficient, better resale curve. The detailed head-to-head with the previous Vezel generation is in the existing Yaris Cross 2024 vs Vezel 2020 comparison; a current-gen head-to-head against the 2024 Vezel reaches a similar verdict with the Vezel winning on cabin space and the Yaris Cross winning on running cost.
• Toyota Harrier Hybrid 2024 — one full tier up, LKR 14–18M premium, materially more refined and badge-positioned. Reviewed here.
• Nissan X-Trail Hybrid 2024 — same body class but with 7-seat option (in JDM e-Power 4WD trim), genuinely 4WD-capable. The head-to-head decision is laid out in our Vezel 2024 vs X-Trail Hybrid 2024 comparison.
• Lexus LBX 2024 — the badge-premium version of the Yaris Cross platform, LKR 5–7M premium over the Vezel. Reviewed here.

Who should buy this

The 2024 Vezel is the right car for the Sri Lankan family-of-four with a 6-year-old daughter, a working-from-home parent who values the cabin quiet, and a second parent who does the Colombo school run and the Galle weekend trip with equal frequency. It is the second-real-car the Kasun/Dilani persona buys when the first Aqua or Fit has reached 8 years and the cash position has improved.

It is the wrong car for the buyer who needs genuine 4WD for up-country roads (look at the X-Trail Hybrid 4WD or the Land Cruiser 250), for the buyer who needs three-row seating (the Voxy Hybrid is the answer), and for the buyer whose budget cannot stretch past the LKR 13M Aqua tier.

For the rest of the market between LKR 14M and LKR 18M, the 2024 Vezel is the most well-rounded car you can import.

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