Honda offers seven-year warranty – for a limited time

Honda Australia has announced it will offer a seven-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty for select vehicles until March 31.

All HR-V, ZR-V and all-new MY24 CR-V SUV models purchased from January 16, 2024, will be covered by the promotional warranty, which is up from the brand’s standard five-year/unlimited-kilometre offering.

The Japanese marque is also offering seven years of complimentary roadside assistance, up from five years.

Civic and Accord models are not included in the promotion. MY23 CR-V run-out models have been covered by a seven-year warranty since August 1, 2023, while stocks last.

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The extended warranty and roadside assistance coverage were already being offered for the HR-V E:HEV model from November 1, 2023, to January 31, 2024.

Honda is also offering discounts for the slow-selling HR-V small SUV, with the base Vi X available for $34,900 drive-away – down from $36,700 drive-away – until January 31.

The HR-V E:HEV is available for $45,200 drive-away – down from $47,000 drive-away – until March 31.

While Mitsubishi Australia offers an industry-leading 10-year/200,000-kilometre warranty, this is dependent on the vehicle being serviced within the Mitsubishi dealer network.

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Mitsubishi vehicles serviced by independent workshops automatically fall to an industry-standard five-year coverage, with a 100,000km cap.

Chery, GWM-Haval, Kia, MG, Skoda and Ssangyong offer permanent seven-year/unlimited-kilometre coverage, while LDV has a seven-year/200,000-kilometre warranty for its non-EV models.

Honda’s warranty-matching seven-year roadside assistance without the need to service at the dealer joins Isuzu Ute, LDV and Ssangyong.

While other manufacturers have experimented with temporary warranty extensions before shifting to a permanent arrangement, Honda says it has no plans to switch to a seven-year warranty across its range after March 31.

"Honda Australia does not have any plans to extend this offer past the cut-off date of 31st March, and our standard 5-year warranty, 5-year [roadside assist] and 5 low-price services will continue as a great value add as part of our standard offer," said a spokesperson.

The latest promotions offered by Honda follow the brand’s sharp sales decline since 2018. It posted its lowest sales on record in 2023 after a shift to a controversial fixed-price ‘agency’ sales model in July 2021.

In 2023, Honda sold 13,734 vehicles in Australia, down from 14,215 in 2022, 17,562 in 2021, and 29,040 in 2020.

However, local executives have defended the agency model switch – and reaffirmed Honda’s commitment to Australia “for the next 50 years”.

“That was a strategic move, for us to be here for the next 50 years… And I hope it demonstrates to you that we’re not going anywhere. We’re here to stay,” said Honda Australia director Carolyn McMahon in May 2023.

McMahon added that Honda is “happy” with how the agency sales model has been rolled out and blamed poor supply – not a lack of demand for Honda product – as the key reason behind the low sales figures.

Honda sales in Australia