Honda ZR-V vs Renault Arkana

What's the difference?

Honda used to be a big deal in Australia back in the 1990s and early 2000s but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s moved off your radar in recent years.

The Japanese carmaker has seemingly fallen out of favour in the last few years following its move to an agency retail model which negates haggling on price with dealers.

However, Honda is making a resurgence and it’s putting a heavier focus on hybrid power.

The ZR-V small-to-medium SUV has been updated for 2026 and picks up new, more affordable hybrid trims, among other minor tweaks. Read on to see if this car should be on your shortlist.

Renault’s Arkana coupe-style compact SUV has been hit with its first makeover, which ushers in a range of styling changes, increased equipment and new model grade names.

There are few cars like it in the compact SUV segment, where vehicles usually favour the boxier, traditional SUV wagon shape over the stylish but often internal space compromised coupe SUVs.

Renault Australia is only expecting about one per cent share of the segment or around 1500 sales a year.

But if you want to stand out from the crowd of Mazda CX-30, Mitsubishi ASX and Toyota Corolla Cross small SUVs then the Arkana might be for you.