2019 Honda Brio hatchback on its way to the Philippines

MANILA: A batch of all-new Honda Brio is making its way from Indonesia to the ports of the Philippines. The Philippines is also going to be the second country (after Indonesia) to get the hatchback.

Honda Philippines has been teasing the upcoming Brio from its Facebook handle for some time, and now the news of the four-wheeler being imported affirms its imminent launch. The cars spotted on the port of Indonesia are in left-hand drive, and the fleet composed of the Brio standard and RS variant.

All the Brios (to be imported) can be seen assembled at the company’s factory in Karawang, West Java and the production began on 26th March this year. Alongside the Philippines, the four-wheeler will also be exported to Vietnam. During the commencement of the production, Indonesia’s Trade minister Airlangga Hartarto said, “The maiden export of the All-New Brio in 2019 is planned to the Philippines and Vietnam with a total export value of Rp 1 trillion.”

Prior to this, the all-new Brio hatchback was showcased as the Small RS Concept during 2018 Philippine International Motors Show. As per the limited available details, it is expected that at least three variants of the car are going to make their way to the Philippines. Brio fleet is expected to include one standard variant with manual transmission and other with CVT, followed by the RS trim.

Philippines-sped Biro engine specs are yet to be revealed, however, all the five Brio variants available in Indonesia are powered by a Euro 4-compliant 1.2-litre four-cylinder SOHC i-VTEC engine that delivers a maximum power of 90 PS at 6,000 rpm along with a peak torque of 110 Nm at 4,800 rpm.