Last week, Honda sent us to Hervey Bay to meet Harvey the talking car. Yes, you read that right. See, Harvey is an AI-powered, talking HR-V, created by Honda as an answer to our ever-growing desire to have a lovely lil chat with our tech. We have Siri and Alexa, so why not Harvey?
As for why Hervey Bay? Well, what better spot to meet Harvey than in Hervey? So off we went, on a fun road trip that served a dual purpose – not only were we going to meet the car of the future, but we would have our very own brand new Honda HR-V hybrid to try out.
After an entire weekend with the car, we have some thoughts. Number one being: how do we get away with never giving this back? It’s a dream to drive and is absolutely jam-packed full of little things that just make you say, “ahhh”. The car is built for modern comfort, with so many handy features that just make sense. Here are some of our faves.
Active cornering headlights
Most headlights only look straight ahead. Honda’s headlights, however, not only illuminate the road ahead, but also the direction your steering wheel is facing. Very handy indeed given we are generally looking in the direction we’re turning – such a common-sense feature its a wonder it’s not more common.
The hybrid engine
The engine at low speeds will stay in ultra-quiet electric mode, and then, when needed, the car will automatically switch over to petrol, seamlessly. When the car is in electric mode it’s so quiet that on multiple occasions I pressed the “power on” button, only to realise the car was already on. That Harvey, he’s a sneaky lad.
The demister on the windscreen and mirrors
That’s right, the windscreen, rear window, and side mirrors are equipped with their very own demister. Very handy for those frosty cold mornings where your wipers don’t even work because they’re stuck on the windscreen. A true game-changer, especially in colder climates. As a Melburnian, let me speak for all of us – honestly, where have you been all my life?
Reverse camera
The multi-angled system reverse camera is the best I’ve ever used. It works so well and is so simple to use that it will turn even the most tentative of reversers into the best reverse parkers this side of the galaxy.
And if you somehow don’t notice an obstacle on the high-quality camera – hey, it’s okay, no one is perfect – the handy parking sensors in the front and rear will activate to save the day for you.
Adaptive cruise control
All models come equipped with handy adaptive cruise control, which will keep you a safe distance from the car in front of you using the power of a wide view of the monocular camera. On top of this, there’s the autosteer feature which will help keep you in your lane if you start to drift away for any reason. Very handy for long, tiring road trips.
Magic seats
The seats are truly magic, they can be adjusted in a number of ways to make ultra-efficient use of the car’s interior. This is a super handy feature if you like to hike, camp, surf… essentially, if you like to live life, baby.
It’s hard to shove a surfboard or kayak or camping gear in regular normie cars, but with Honda’s magic seats, you have a world of possibilities – and by that I mean you can move the seats into 18 unique combinations, including putting every seat, besides the driver’s, fully flat. Very practical indeed.
Now for a little more on Harvey. Here he is in all his glory. He’s voiced by Aussie comedian Sam Taunton, and is actually powered by the Harvey chatbot, which can be accessed anywhere, in fact, you can talk to Harvey right here.
Harvey’s favourite subjects are talking up its fuel efficiency, its engine, and a bunch of other technical aspects, as well as handily being ready to give you the nearest Honda Centre locations. But it’s not all business with Harvey, he loves a dad joke, is partial to a bit of small talk, and can even help you make sense of crypto and NFTs. Thanks Harvey, very cool!
Wanna find out more about Honda’s schmick new HR-V? Check out Honda’s website for more information. And of course, you can always head into your local Honda Centre. Go on then, treat yourself.
Head on over to Pedestrian.TV to see more from our trip to sunny Hervey Bay.
All images by Sean Foster.