Our cars: Honda CR-V - May

Honda CR-V 2.2 i-DTEC auto EX

Week ending May 17
Mileage 15,500
Driven this week 550 miles

Read the full Honda CR-V review

I had a play with the sat-nav on a lower-trimmed Honda CR-V recently, and ended up a little jealous.

The car I was in was fitted with a modern, relatively sophisticated and intuitive system that offers a perspective view option with more contemporary graphics (see the picture above). The menus were less complicated than those on the DVD-based system fitted to our top of the range EX-trim CR-V.

Our version offers only a 2D look-down map display. Although it seems to work well, it seems strange that you pay more and, in my opinion, get less useability for your money.

By Neil Williams
Neil.Williams@whatcar.com


Week ending May 10
Mileage 14,950
Driven this week 350 miles

When the Honda first arrived at the beginning of the year I promised to look out for any issues
that might crop up in the otherwise faultless CR-V.

One minor annoyance is that the automatic's gear change from first to second is not as
smooth as the other changes, which is a shame as the gearbox is generally smooth. I thought it
had something to do with not liking cold starts but it continues to happen. It might be time for a trip to the local dealer to see if there's an underlying issue.

The gearbox is the source of a second irritation as well. The automatic misses out on
a sixth gear that would help with fuel economy on the long drives that I regularly do and make
the CR-V an even better cruiser.

Nevertheless, the CR-V continues to pile on the miles and still impresses.

By Will Williams

Week ending May 3
Mileage 14,600
Driven this week 273 miles

I finally took a chance to drive our long-term Honda CR-V the other evening – the first chance I've had to try this generation of the car, apart from a two-mile squirt around Twin Ring Motegi racetrack in Japan in a (Japanese-spec) example 18 months ago.

It's pretty much everything I'd expected – which is to say that the CR-V is a refined cruiser on the motorway, and very worthy, without ever stirring an emotion. The cabin is comfortable enough and clearly laid out, but while the materials are robust enough, they haven't moved on much visually since earlier editions. The latest Hyundai Santa Fe looks more polished, I'd argue.

Still, I can see why snapper Will is pleased with the big Honda's practicality; it feels huge inside, with loads of room in the rear for three grown-up passengers, and a fair-sized boot. I do see a lot of CR-Vs being used as fully laden suburban workhorses near What Car?'s London office, admittedly – so perhaps that's its natural role. Should be perfect for a photographer, then.

By John McIlroy
John.McIlroy@whatcar.com