Renault Captur vs Honda HR-V vs Ford Ecosport: B-Segment SUV battleground in percussion

Kuala Lumpur: A few years ago bigger SUVs were considered as a taboo to buy with their affluent price tags, lower pragmatism and higher running costs. But, as soon as the car manufacturers laid the genesis of B-segment smaller SUVs, it became an instant hit in the Malaysian auto markets. Now with the recent sales stats automotive makers are more optimistic towards compact and smaller SUVs, and as a matter of fact the lower fuel prices will gravitate more potential buyers.

With the recent launch of Renault Captur and the unprecedented performance of Honda HR-V and Ford Ecosport, this FWD crossover market has become a blooming battleground. Renault Captur's attractive prices and tantamount features only spoiled the party of the earlier loved Ecosport and HR-V.

Well, every car has its own appeal to the buyers but we decided to rate the high-end models on the basis of their vital stats to clear off the dubiety of Which is the best value for money among the three.

Engine and Performance

Renault Captur with its 1.2 litres TCe 120 turbocharged engine spurrs out 120 hp with a maximum torque of 190 Nm at 2000 rpm. With the latest engine technology and efficient ECO mode, the captur delivers a decent fuel economy of 18.5 Km/L which gives another great reason to buy this latest Renault offering.

Honda HR-V is powered up by a 1.8 litre 4 Cylinders, 16 Valve, SOHC i-VTEC engine churning out 140 Hp at 6500 rpm with a torque force of 172 at 4300 rpm. Although Honda couldn't help this elegant mini SUV in fuel efficiency as the car proffers only 13.5 Km/L which is nowhere close to the Captur.

Ford Ecosport features a 1.5 Litre Ti-VCT, DOHC 16 V engine under the power dome producing an 110 Hp at 6300 rpm and a torque force of 142 Nm at 4400 rpm. Ford Ecosport with its EcoBoost technology offers a considerable mileage of 16 Km/L but still lags behind the Renault Captur.

Exterior Design

The all-new Captur is a treat to watch on the road, sportiness is clearly injected in this French offering at every angle. Captur looks like a concept SUV with pillars, roof and door housing painted in a different colour. The 17-inch diamond cut alloys is another addition to the jaunty appearance of Captur.

Honda HR-V is no less when it comes to the looks as the car gives you delightful experience on every edge. With its stylish daylight running LED lamps headlamps, side curves and futuristic front, it looks dynamic from every angle. The aesthetics of this mini SUV are the reminiscence of its elder brother Honda CR-V. Apart from which the car features 16” inch multispoke alloys.

Ford Ecosport looks big with its dimensions and gives an authoritative look at the front. The car does not possess many taut lines or dynamic contours, although the Ecosport presents an ascetic look with a large bean shape matte black grille to the front and high sitting position with a 200 mm ground clearance and 16” alloys.

Interior Comfort and Features

Renault Captur is blessed with a funky looking cabin with capacious interiors and ergonomically arranged controls. Apart from this the car is loaded with a plethora of features to note such as fully integrated sat-nav, climate control, keyless entry and ignition, dusk-sensing headlamps rear camera, rear sensors and rain-sensing wipers making it a comfortable delight to ride in. Besides which it offers a generous boot space of 377-Litres.

The HR-V is most loaded among all being on the expensive side with features like lumber supported comfortable seats, automatic dual-zone climate control, glass sunroof, cruise control and power windows as standard. Apart from which it features a 7-inch touch screen but sadly it does not own a sat-nav. The interiors are highly spacious with measurable headroom and legroom. The car becomes a complete family car when the cargo volume appears to be 437 Litres.

Ford Ecosport features a very basic dashboard layout and comes with comfortable seats built with high-quality materials. The legroom and headroom provided is decent and the instrument panel is plain but it appears elegant. The car offers steering audio controls and basic central console with a small screen. It also offers a considerable boot space of 346 Litres.

Safety and Ride Quality

The Captur is a comfortable and safe ride with its firm suspension providing excellent cornering grip but it may prove stiff around town on corrugated roads.
The car provides excellent handling owing to its Mac-Phearson type with rectangular lower wishbone and anti-roll bar suspension. Apart from it the vented front disc brakes coupled with ABS and EBD proffers maximum brake application on high speeds. Captur is loaded with several other safety features like Air Bags, Electronic Stability Control, Hill-Start assist and Reverse parking cameras. It is to be noted that Captur has received a 5 star rating by Euro NCap in crash testing, making it a perfect safety choice.

Honda is all about comfort and it brings out an agile ride performing well on rough terrains with convenience. Its soft suspension easily soaks up the heavily potholed road owing to the MacPherson strut on the front and Torsion beam on the rear. The ventilated disc brakes at front and solid discs at the rear works in harmonics with Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) and Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD) to deliver a superior braking performance. The car has been embedded with all basic safety features such as Six Air-Bags, Electronic Parking Brake, Auto Brake Hold, Vehicle Stability Assist and ISO-FIX making it a moving bastion on roads.

Ford Ecosport is no less when it comes to safe and comfortable rides even though its suspensions are on a stiffer side, it proffers great handling on rough terrains. The MacPhearson strut suspension on the rear coupled with twist beam on the rear brings it close to the HR-V in comfort. It is further complemented with the ventilated front disc and drum brakes at the rear proffering maximum brake performance. Besides that the Ecosport is loaded with latest safety technologies such as ABS, EBD, Electronic Stability Control, ISO FIX, Traction control making it a close rival to other B-segment SUV's.

Pricing:

The Renault offers Captur at an attractive price with complete package estimated to be ranging from RM118,000 to RM123,000 which is comparatively higher than the other two, but still being the latest launch it is bestowed with newest technologies.

Honda's HR-V offers highly competitive pricing, as it provides nearly all features tantamount to the Captur, although its highest variant is priced below the Captur's base model. It comes at an attractive price range of RM95,000 to RM114,000 making it the best among three.

Ford Ecosport is is being on the miser side with its considerable lower pricing than the two, as the mini SUV boasts a price tag of RM90,000 to RM 100,00 with features and interior comfort almost equal to the rest of them.

Overall Verdict:

Captur is obviously a winning gamble by the Renault offering impeccable performance with leading features, although its overpriced tag might shift many of its potential buyers towards Ecosport or HR-V. Captur's winning edge is its high-powered engine with excellent fuel economy which can surpass the price factor, as its running cost is less than the other two.

HR-V is certainly the closest option for families fulfilling its role as more practical and roomy mini SUV than a hatch with versatile load space. It is a highly featured car at a very thrifty price winning on its pragmatism. Our recent news coverage on the sales figure of Honda in the first half of 2015 suggests that the company has sold nearly 7500 units of it. Well, it makes clearly evident that this car is a huge blockbuster in the Malaysian market.

Ford's Ecosport runs close in competition to both the mini SUV's being most frugal of all. Ecosport offers higher ground clearance adding more practicality as a sports excursion vehicle and a family car, although being a year old launch it lacks latest features. The car is truly flamboyant at RM100K but shelling out few more ringgits can get you a lot more. The Malaysians has yet widely appreciated this vehicle, let's see if it proves daunting to the other two.

Also read our earlier story about all New Renault Captur:

New Renault Captur to challenge the massive existence of Ford Ecosport in Malaysian markets