Another vehicle that has gone past its lifespan in Pakistan is the Honda BR-V. Introduced here in April 2017, the 7-seat MPV has just completed 7 years in the market and has formally entered its 8th year of production (assembling) in the country.
When launched, it was the only locally assembled 7-seat MPV other than the FAW Sirius which was struggling to make its presence felt. The other two options including the Toyota Avanza and Suzuki APV were both offered as CBU imports and catered to occasional buyers only. As a result, the BR-V saw strong sales in its first few years of release. However, after a few price adjustments that put the car’s sticker price in an extremely high range, sales began to decline sharply. Later, the entry of new & more capable options in the same price range significantly hurt sales of the BR-V.
| Period | Sales | Monthly Average |
| April 2017 – June 2017 | 2,159 | 720 |
| July 2017 – June 2018 | 8,684 | 724 |
| July 2018 – June 2019 | 5,045 | 420 |
| July 2019 – June 2020 | 2,296 | 191 |
| July 2020 – June 2021 | 4,015 | 335 |
| July 2021 – June 2022 | 4,255 | 355 |
| July 2022 – June 2023 | 1,514 | 126 |
| July 2023 – March 2024 | 419 | 47 |
As evident from the table above, till FY2018 the BR-V enjoyed a monthly sales average of over 700 units which was reduced to around 400 units in FY19. The pandemic in 2020 saw its sales dip to a below-200 monthly average. Then in the subsequent two years, sales dangled around a monthly average of around 300 units, which got slashed to just 125 units in the previous fiscal year. However, the situation in the current fiscal year is hopeless, to say the least, with the BR-V sales average hitting below the 50 units per month mark.
Throughout these years, Honda has managed to sell 28,387 units of BR-V which isn’t too impressive considering the utility segment the vehicle catered to. It is largely believed that the high price and lack of features & equipment along with an obsolete model are the major reasons that have drifted the buyers away. Initially, the BR-V was offered in two variants, the CVT for PKR 22.29 lac, and CVT-S for PKR 23.29 lac whereas a year later an MT (manual) variant priced at PKR 20.99 lac was also introduced. Today, however, only the lone CVT-S variant is available which is priced at a whopping PKR 62.99 lac.
Related: Will Honda Discontinue the BR-V and HR-V in Pakistan?
This renders that there has been a 170% increase in BR-V price or a PKR 39.0 lac increase compared to its launch price. Not to mention this generation model has long been discontinued in the rest of the world with Pakistan being the only market where it is still being dragged. But even with such poor sales performance, Honda seems least bothered to do anything to uplift the ailing sales. And although the company has introduced the latest generation Civic, and HR-V models in recent years, a new generation BR-V seems like a distant dream.
It seems pretty unrealistic to expect Honda to introduce the second-generation BR-V to Pakistan given the deteriorating economic situation. Still, based on the current sales trajectory, it could not be particularly profitable for the company to stick with the BR-V. With sales of less than 50 units per month on average, the BR-V is in desperate need of defibrillator treatment. If this doesn’t happen, Honda may have to say goodbye to the 7-seater in Pakistan very soon.
A computer animation professional with over 23 years of industry experience having served in leading organizations, TV channels & production facilities in Pakistan. An avid car enthusiast and petrolhead with an affection to deliver quality content to help shape opinions. Formerly written for PakWheels as well as major publications including Dawn. Founder of CarSpiritPK.com
