Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

The new CR-V from Honda is seriously special

Post Thumbnail

The big news with this CR-V is the fitting of a 157bhp, 1.6-litre diesel engine, which replaces the old 147bhp 2.2-litre diesel, an engine that was looking a bit off the pace in terms of efficiency.

The 117bhp 1.6-litre diesel carries on much as before and there’s a 2.0-litre petrol engine offered that’s probably going to be largely ignored by UK buyers.

Specify the CR-V with a manual gearbox and you can also have it in front as well as four-wheel drive guise. But you shouldn’t.

That’s because Honda has replaced the old five-speed auto with a nine-speed automatic that then sends drive to all four wheels.
It’s an impressive piece of technology and does a great job plugging the diesel engine right into the meat of its 258lb/ft of torque available from just north of 2,000rpm.

The CR-V was never marketed as a particularly sporty drive and the updates to the car’s suspension and steering don’t aim for that goal.
Instead, the steering has been revised to offer an 8% quicker ratio, while revised bushings, dampers and other suspension fettling aim to deliver a smoother ride. Refinement is something valued by CR-V owners and the latest car features added sound insulation material, thicker carpets and chunkier door seal rubbers. The net result is a 6% reduction in cabin noise at speed.

The changes to the latest car could best be described as a facelift, although Honda has gone further than the usual grille, bumpers and lights. Having said that, this latest CR-V does have a revised front grille, smarter bumpers and sleeker lights, the latter featuring LED daytime running lamps. At the rear, the LED combination lamps have been restyled. There are revised 17 and 18in alloy wheels designs on offer as well.

The cabin has been tweaked courtesy of a reshaped chrome-effect inlay running the width of the dashboard, and through the use of higher quality materials on key surfaces. The dashboard has been redesigned to allow better visibility and access to the seven-inch touchscreen displaying the Honda Connect system.

The latest CR-V also features a one-action fold down rear seat system, with the rear seats featuring a 60/40 split function. With the seats in place you get an excellent 589-litres of luggage space which transforms to 1,648-litres with the seats folded. The load length is up to 1,570 mm, allowing the CR-V to easily swallow two adult mountain bikes (without having to remove the front wheels) or four sets of golf clubs.

HondaCRV0315(5) HondaCRV0315Int

You’ll need a budget starting from around £22,500 for a 2.0 i-VTEC petrol model: that’s for 2WD. The 4WD petrol variants start from just over £25,500. The 1.6 i-DTEC diesels start from around £23,500 in 117bhp form and come only with 2WD. If you want a diesel 4WD variant, you’ll need this 1.6-litre i-DTEC unit in 157bhp – and you’ll require a budget starting from around £27,500.

Honda’s quite proud of its Honda Connect infotainment system, which is fitted to all but the entry level SE grade and it’s quite an installation. Running on an Android 4.0.4 platform, it employs the familiar ‘pinch, swipe and tap’ functionality of a smartphone. It gives access to vehicle information, the rear-view parking camera, music and Bluetooth connectivity for smart phones.

Then there’s internet access, two pre-installed apps, Honda App Centre, optional Garmin satellite navigation, DAB / FM / AM and internet radio and, of course, the phone interface.

The adaptive cruise control system also features something genuinely new. Capable of predicting and automatically reacting to other vehicles ‘cutting-in’ to the vehicle’s lane, based on extensive real-world research of typical European driving styles, Honda’s i-ACC uses a camera and a radar to sense the position of other vehicles on the road.

It then applies an algorithm to predict the likelihood of vehicles in neighbouring lanes cutting-in, enabling the equipped vehicle to react quickly, safely and comfortably.

HondaCRV0315

The 157bhp diesel engine is unique to Europe and fares
so much better than the 2.2-litre it replaces. Helped by a two-stage turbo, it offers higher power output, lower fuel consumption and reduced CO2 emissions.

Where the old 2.2-litre lump managed 42.8mpg on the combined cycle and emitted 174g/km, the 1.6-litre records 55.4mpg and emits just 134g/km, making it a far more cost-effective proposition for both business and private buyers. What’s more, the 1.6-litre diesel engine and transmission together weigh 65kg less than the 2.2-litre with its auto ‘box, bringing benefits to ride, handling and steering response, as well as efficiency.

Emissions are as low as 115g/km for a 1.6-litre 117bhp diesel that only drives its front wheels via a manual gearbox. Residual values look set to stack up very well if the last CR-V was anything to go by.

Honda is a company that occasionally makes some rather strange decisions. For years it was utterly half-hearted about diesel engines, thinking that variable valve timing of its petrol engines would win the argument. It didn’t. Only belatedly has Honda delivered really class-competitive diesels and in doing so, it has propelled the CR-V to the number one spot as the best-selling SUV in Europe.

Of course, it helps that it’s built in Swindon and has been designed to appeal to European tastes, but the powerplants now look pretty well sorted with the addition of the 157bhp 1.6-litre diesel with its nine-speed automatic transmission option.

Perhaps the only way that the CR-V range could be better rounded out would be through the addition of a top-drawer hybrid, one field that Honda has a stack of experience in. As it stands, it’s going to take something extremely talented to dislodge this car from the top spot in the sales charts.

Facts & figures

Model: Honda CR-V
Price: from £22,500
Engine: 117bhp 1.6-litre diesel
Performance: 0-62mph in 11.2seconds; top speed of 113mph
Economy: 62.8mpg
CO2 rating: 119g/km