If you find yourself on the Far East looking at the strange Honda compact minivan, that must be model called Freed. It is very popular in Japan, Malaysia, Singapore. However, the MPV is not available in other markets, although it is very versatile and functional. What’s more, the 2019 Honda Freed will bring the mid-cycle refresh of the current generation launched in 2016.
The minivan is pretty functional, although it belongs to a mini class. The 2019 Honda Freed will be available as a five, seven, and an eight seater. Changes on the current generation made the MPV pretty aggressive up front, and boxy at the rear end. The bad thing is the only one engine available for the Freed. However, an Earth Dreams four-pot is capable to deliver enough power.
2019 Honda Freed Configurations
The new 2019 Honda Freed will keep its five-seat version as the base model. Now it is called Freed+. Buyers can also opt for a minivan with more seating capacity. Upper trims are bringing eight spots. With captain chairs in the second row, the Freed turns into a seven-seater. Furthermore, the Japanese company worked on the accessibility for persons in wheelchairs. Sliding doors and lift-up seats are great additions.
Dimensions
The new minivan will still use the same platform as Honda Fit. That means the 2019 Honda Freed will be 168 inches long for the 5-seat model and 169 for 7-8 seater. Wheelbase is 108 inches. These sizes are very similar to HR-V subcompact crossover SUV. The curb weight depends on trim levels and options and can be between 2950 and 3150 pounds.
2019 Honda Freed Engine Specs
Under the hood of the 2019 Honda Freed is a 1.5-liter i-VTEC unit. It is the same engine we saw in the previous generation and the Japanese company is not going to change it any time soon. The compact minivan can count on 125 HP and 100 lb-ft of torque. A four-cylinder unit is also fuel friendly. It returns nearly 50 mpg combined (over 21 km per liter). We must add that this MiniVan is one of the most fuel efficient on the market. Front-wheel drive is standard and no AWD is in the offer for 2019 Freed. The automatic CVT transmission is a power router.
Hybrid
Unfortunately, the 2019 Honda Freed Hybrid will be available only in its homeland. Japanese had buyers already got used to this model, available since 2011. However, we were hoping the company will launch it elsewhere in the upcoming season. But, we must wait for this to happen. The same 1.5-liter unit is used as the main power source. Electric support boosts the energy outputs to 135 HP and torque to 110 lb-ft. Fuel economy numbers are jumping to 25 km/l (59 mpg).
2019 Honda Freed Release Date and Price
According to the latest rumors, the upcoming 2019 Honda Freed will be available at the middle of this year. The buyers can expect many new features with this MPV. Unfortunately, at this moment there is no official price. However, from some experts, the price of upcoming 2019 Honda Freed will be in the range from $23.000 to 29.000 depending on trim levels.