The 2017 Honda Avancier was only one of the models presented at the Beijing Auto Show and this attractive SUV drew the attention of many. The new vehicle will be launched for the crowded Chinese market and its name is pronounced “Guandao”. The name rings a bell since the name Avancier was reserved for a crossover which was popular and on sale in Japan for four years, until 2003.
However, the new model is going to stay in the market for a longer period of time. The Avancier will come with a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine. The interior will be luxurious and people will feel comfortable since the cabin will be spacious. The Honda Motors Representative Director, CEO and President Takahiro Hachigo declared: “We are so grateful that our sales in China reached the one million-unit milestone in 2015. We view 2016 as a year for us to make another leap forward. We will begin local production of our hybrid vehicle and turbo engines and further accelerate the localization of our business. Honda will continue taking on new challenges in China.”
The 2017 Honda Avancier will go on sale by the end of 2016.
Exterior
Grille and headlights shape is almost the same as the shape on the ongoing CR-V which is sold in the US. The grille looks like a net on top of which we can see the gray insert. The emblem of the company is inserted in it, whereas the car features LED headlights. In the cutouts below, instead of vents, the LED fog lights together with a trim insert are located. There is an air dam between the fog lamps and, just like the grille, it contains rectangular net with an insert underneath.
Let’s move to the sides of the Avancier. The interesting feature is visible on the side of the hood and it is a triple vent setup. Also, note that compared to the upper portion of the car, the side skirts and wheel arches are wider together with the lower portion of the doors. In addition, a gray body cladding is positioned on the side center.
The rear end comes with highly-mounted brake light which is supported by a slight overhang. The company decided to use chrome for the stripe which stretches from one taillight to another and where the Honda emblem is inserted. The C-shape of the taillights is prominent and reverse lights are also located here. Furthermore, the rectangular red reflector is on each corner of the rear, whereas the exhaust outlets are also four-sided. Just like on the front end, the bottom of the rear contains a big gray insert. The roof rails will be standard on this Honda model.
The cabin
First of all, the interior is luxurious with high-quality leather upholstery on the center console, door trim panels, lower dash and, of course, seats. Secondly, in the instrument cluster, the central position belongs to a six-inch display, whereas on the sides a tachometer and a speedometer are located. The driver starts the car by pressing a push-button ignition switch.
A large touchscreen in the center is clearly visible, but there are a lot of buttons under it and some on the left side. The inductive phone charging is available underneath the screen, but this has yet to be confirmed. In addition, the car is equipped with electronic parking brake, push button gear selection and heating and cooling. The passengers will also enjoy heated and ventilated seats and a panoramic roof.
If the center seat in the rear is lowered, the other passenger could use cupholders and touchscreen display which are integrated into the back of the seat. Moreover, in order to improve the sound quality, the company engineers put the speakers in the corners above the rear seats.
Safety
The new Avancier model will contain Honda SENSING safety package. Some of the features are active cruise control and collision mitigation with steering assist. Furthermore, lane keep assist and rear park assist are also included, but there are many other features.
Engine
For the first time, we will see a 2.0-liter “Sport Turbo” V4 engine under the hood of a Honda car. On the other hand, according to some reports, a naturally aspirated 2.4-liter will be integrated into the base trim. The hybrid variant is also an option. As soon as the Japanese carmaker announces any performance figures we will let you know.
Rivalry Car
The one vehicle that will be the bitter rival to the Avancier is the BYD S6. The base trim contains a 2.0-liter petrol engine rated at 138 hp and 127 lb-ft of torque. The upper trim comes with a 1.5-liter turbocharged power plant good for 158 hp and 159 lb-ft of torque whereas a naturally aspirated 2.4-liter V4 unit produces 158 hp and 234 lb-ft of torque and is located in the top-shelf model. The engines will be paired with five-speed manual transmission and the starting price of the BYD S6 is $14,700.
In the recent years, Honda has been struggling in the Chinese market. Producing an SUV like the Avancier will help the company overcome some of the issues. The 2017 Avancier is expected to be popular in China and record high sales.
