Honda Australia sets tight deadline for hybrids to account for 90 per cent of its sales

Honda Australia said 90 per cent of its local sales will consist of hybrid vehicles by mid-2026 – when the Prelude coupe is scheduled to return as a hybrid – compared to roughly half of its current volume. 

Hybrid models made up 53 per cent of Honda sales here across May and June 2025, despite its best-selling model – the CR-V – only offering hybrid power in its top trim level.

That percentage is even better than market-leader Toyota Australia, which saw hybrids make up 46 per cent of its sales in the first six months of 2025.

“That [roughly half hybrid sales] trend will continue for the balance of this year,” said Honda Australia managing director Rob Thorp during a media event in Melbourne.

“But as we go into next year, there are going to be a number of changes to our lineup which I think will accelerate that even more.”

CarExpert can save you thousands on a new car. Click here to get a great deal.

Mr Thorp confirmed updated versions of both the CR-V and ZR-V are set for arrival in Australia in the second quarter (April-June) 2026 and will offer a hybrid powertrain across more model grades. 

“Those models will expand a hybrid offering quite significantly and will see us introduce a new four-wheel drive hybrid powertrain to the lineup,” the Honda boss said.

“It means over 80 per cent of our products will be hybrid … and nearly 90 per cent of our sales will be hybrid in nature by this time next year.”

Honda’s hybrids – which it calls e:HEVs – in Australia are currently all front-wheel drive.

That’s pretty standard in the small SUV segment, but in the mid-size SUV segment – where the CR-V and ZR-V sit – rivals such as the Toyota RAV4 and Nissan X-Trail e-Power offer hybrid power combined with all-wheel drive systems.

The growing ranks of Honda hybrids will include the reborn Prelude sports car, which will make its return to Australian showrooms after a 25-year absence, using an electrified powertrain.

It’ll be sportier than the standard Civic and Accord, sharing components including suspension, brakes and other parts with the petrol-powered Civic Type R hot hatch.

Yet Honda Australia said the Prelude is “not a volume model”, with 94 per cent of its total sales in the first half of 2025 made up of its SUVs – the CR-V, ZR-V and smaller HR-V.

“If you look at the market year-on-year, while it is down, growth of SUVs where we [Honda] play in most of the time, the growth of SUVs is all in hybrid,” said Mr Thorp.

“BEV [battery-electric vehicles] is pretty flat, ICE [internal combustion engines] is declining, but all the growth is in hybrid technology … I think it’s a reflection of what customers want.”

“For a long time [at Honda Australia] it’s been a strategy built on hybrid before a transition to BEV – and fundamentally, that strategy we’ve held out for a number of years has not ultimately changed.

“We think that even right now, while BEVs are penetrating the market – there’s a lot of noise about – in reality the hybrids are the choice for consumers.” MORE: Explore the Honda showroom