Why are Honda UK withholding their petrol hybrid Vezel?

I've just returned from a holiday in delightful Sri Lanka - not a rich country. Why are there thousands of right-hand drive Honda Vezel (CR-V) petrol hybrids there and none in the U.K? Honda says "there's no demand" but could it be that they have thousands of diesel engine CR-Vs that they're desperate to shift?

Asked on 30 January 2017 by Paul Braithwaite

Answered by Honest John
The Vezel is the HR-V, not the CR-V. Honda works to its own plans selling only the models it can sell in the highest volumes in individual markets and the best HR-V in the UK is the 1.6 i-DTEC that does 58mpg. Further examples, Honda used to make a Jazz Mk II with 1.5 120PS engine and 5-speed torque converter auto in Swindon and exported it to South Africa. We were not allowed to have it because the fuel economy and CO2 emissions are comparatively poor (about 35mpg). Similarly, Honda has been making the new Civic since October 2016 at Swindon but we can't have it in the UK until stocks of the old model are sold off.
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