Honda Elevate Facelift To Borrow City's Tricks: Still A Wait
Honda has confirmed that the Elevate is next in line for a mid-cycle refresh, following the recently facelifted City. Speaking to Autocar India, Honda Cars India sales and marketing VP Kunal Behl said features currently sold as accessories could move into the main trim line-up, with launch expected in the second half of 2026.
What was announced
Honda Cars India has confirmed that the Elevate will receive a mid-lifecycle update, expected in the second half of 2026. The disclosure came from Kunal Behl, vice president of marketing and sales, in an interaction with Autocar India. Behl said the 360-degree camera and ventilated seats currently offered through the accessories catalogue could move into the main variant line-up with the facelift.
Honda is finally fixing the Elevate's spec sheet, but without a hybrid option the answer to the Grand Vitara question stays unanswered.
The updated SUV is expected to inherit hardware seen on the recently facelifted City. That includes the new 10.25-inch touchscreen, and a wider rollout of the Honda Sensing ADAS suite. On the City facelift, ADAS was made available beyond just the top trim, and the Elevate is expected to follow the same strategy. Mid and top variants are likely to bundle the 360-camera, ventilated front seats and ambient lighting as standard rather than dealer-fit options.
Visual changes are expected to be modest: revised bumpers, updated lighting signatures and new trim and upholstery options. Honda has not indicated any powertrain change, so the existing 1.5-litre naturally aspirated petrol with six-speed manual and CVT options is expected to carry over. There is no confirmation of the e:HEV hybrid powertrain, despite it being available in export markets. Pricing and a firm launch date have not been announced; the current Elevate is priced from around Rs 11.91 lakh to Rs 16.50 lakh, ex-showroom.
The Car Jury verdict
This is a catch-up exercise, not a reinvention. The Elevate has always been a sweetly engineered mid-size SUV undone by a thin feature sheet against the Creta, Seltos and Grand Vitara. Bundling the 360-camera, ventilated seats and the City's 10.25-inch screen into mid and top trims finally fixes the spec-sheet problem, and pushing ADAS below the top variant is overdue. But Faisal Khan of FasBeam asks the right question: where is the Elevate hybrid? Gagan Choudhary notes the 1.5 NA petrol remains the segment's most-wanted engine, so Honda isn't losing the powertrain argument, just the efficiency one against the Grand Vitara strong hybrid. Until the facelift is priced and a hybrid arrives, our Elevate verdict stays WAIT. If you want Honda polish today, the City is the BUY.
