It’s not difficult to understand why Filipinos have a certain inclination toward SUVs — the compact crossover kind, in particular. On top of having a more generous interior compact crossovers have impressed local car buyers with their can-do attitude.

They’re perfect, not only for daily city driving but also for weekend adventures outside the metro.

We will be pitting two of today’s most popular models against each other to see which of them is better. Join us as we put the Toyota Veloz and the Honda BR-V in a clash of compact crossover SUVs.

Exterior

	Toyota Veloz	Honda BR-V
Dimensions (L x W x H mm)	4,475 x 1,775 x 1,700	4,456 x 1,765 x 1,677
Wheelbase (mm)	2,750	2,662
Ground clearance (mm)	190	201

At a glance, the Toyota Veloz appears to be larger and wider than the Honda BR-V. Not only that, but it also boasts a longer wheelbase than its fellow Japanese by 88mm. What this means is that the Veloz will have a roomier interior and a smoother ride compared to the BR-V.

In terms of design, the Toyota Veloz follows the brand’s new angular styling with sharp and aggressive lines aplenty. Meanwhile, the BR-V looks very Honda-esque with a more balanced blend of corners and contours.

Thanks to its larger exterior dimensions, the Toyota Veloz gains a slight advantage over the BR-V.

Interior

The Toyota Veloz offers comfortable seats wrapped in a combination of fabric and leather. Similarly, the steering wheel gets a leather finish as well as the shift lever and the center armrest.

Taking center stage is either an eight-inch display audio or a nine-inch infotainment display depending on your chosen variant. These audio units are complemented by a seven-inch digital instrument cluster.

As for the Honda BR-V, it comes with full leather seats, a leather steering wheel, a leather shift knob, as well as a leather door panel and a leather armrest.

It does sport a smaller infotainment system at seven inches, as well as analog gauges in the instrument panel.

Thanks to its more modern design, the Toyota Veloz wins this round.

Engine

Under the hood of the Toyota Veloz is a 1.5-liter gasoline engine mated to a CVT. Now on paper, this setup is said to make around 104 horses with 138Nm of torque.

Honda’s BR-V does pack a similar 1.5-liter power plant and is also mated to a CVT. However, the company claims that it makes 118 horses and 145Nm of torque.

Because the Honda BR-V offers slightly more power than the upscale Avanza, the former wins this round.

Safety

Safety-wise, the Honda Veloz packs a suite of features including SRS airbags, ABS, vehicle stability control, and hill-start assist. Other standard features include Isofix tethers, an emergency brake signal, a rear camera, and parking sensors.

Opting for the higher variants gives would-be owners additional safety features such as a pre-collision system, automatic high beam, lane departure alert, blind spot monitoring, and rear cross-traffic alert.

Honda gave the BR-V a similar set of safety features like SRS airbags, ABS with EBD, vehicle stability assist, hill-start assist, speed-sensing door locks, ISOFIX tethers, a security alarm and an immobilizer, as well as a reverse camera. It does reserve the Smart Entry with Push Start System for the range-topping variant though.

Pricing and variants

Toyota Veloz

Veloz 1.5 G CVT – P1,185,000
Veloz 1.5 V CVT – P1,240,000

 

Honda BR-V

BR-V S CVT – P1,058,000
BR-V V CVT – P1,168,000

Verdict

The winner of this matchup is the Toyota Veloz. Thanks to its better exterior and interior features, Toyota’s newest SUV can attract more car buyers who are looking to own roomier and more modern-looking vehicles.

Photos from Toyota, Honda, Ruben Manahan, and Paulo Papa

Also read: 

Mini SUV melee: Toyota Raize vs. Kia Stonic