Honda CR-V

The cabin layout of the Honda CR-V is now a lot more common with other Honda offerings like Civic and Accord. All the variants of the CR-V come with black leather upholstery as standard, with the RS variant also having contrast red stitching on the seats, steering wheel, dashboard and door panels for an added dose of sportiness. There are piano black trims offered in all variants, along with some exclusive trim finishers – honeycomb pattern for the V variant, wood for the VX variant and brushed metal for the RS variant. 

Like in other new-generation Honda offerings, the CR-V also comes with a horizontal layered design for the dashboard. While the touchscreen infotainment system has a free-standing design at the top of the dashboard, the AC vents are seamlessly integrated into the middle layer. The multi-zone climate control panel has a trapezoidal design in the lower centre console, below which there are the transmission lever, drive mode switches and electronic parking brake. 

The second-row of seats in all three variants of the Honda CR-V have a 60:40 split folding theme and are reclinable, while the third-row seats in the V and VX variants have a 50:50 split folding theme. All the door panels of the CR-V have door pockets and bottle holders, with the SUV also having four grab rails, a driver-side coat hanger and active noise control. 

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Spacious front and second-row seats

Con: Third-row seats in V and VX variants lack space

Features and Technology

For the mid-size SUV segment, the Honda CR-V comes decently loaded with equipment, including some in-trend ones.

The common features in all three variants of the CR-V include a push start-stop button, a 9-inch touchscreen infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, LED cabin lights, multi-zone automatic climate control, rear AC vents with individual controls and a 10.2-inch full-TFT instrument console.

Other common features across all the variants are an 8-way powered driver’s seat with memory function, 4-way powered co-passenger front seat, two 12V power outlets, auto-dimming inside rearview mirror, sunglass holder, a wireless charger, front and rear USB-C charging ports and ambient lighting. 

The VX and RS variants further get a few more additional goodies, including a smart key card for keyless entry, integrated navigation and a conversation mirror. While the V and VX variants have an 8-speaker audio system, the RS variant gets a more premium 12-speaker BOSE audio system, along with a few exclusive features like a panoramic sunroof, head-up display and 4-way powered lumbar support for driver’s seat. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Several features are offered as standard

Con: Sunroof available only in RS variant

Boot Space and Storage

With the third-row seats up in the V and VX variants, the Honda CR-V offers a minuscule boot space of 184 litres, which is good enough only for small storage bags and not big bags. However, after folding down the second and third-row seats, these two variants have 840 litres of space on offer.

Due to the placement of the battery at the back, the RS variant doesn’t get a third-row of seats but gets an excellent boot space of 581 litres with the second-row seats up. After folding down the second-row seats, the boot space goes up to 1,064 litres. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Excellent boot space in a five-seater configuration 

Con: Boot space with third-row seats up is minuscule

The sober-looking CR-V has a hexagonal grille with honeycomb mesh at the front, with the RS variant having a gloss-black finish for this grille. The long and sleek-looking headlamps placed adjacent to the upper edges of the grille have full-LED treatment with LED DRLs and sequential LED turn indicators as standard, with the RS variant also having active cornering lights and auto-levelling headlamps. 

The front bumper of the Honda CR-V has L-shaped black housings for the LED fog lamps in all three variants. The SUV gets 17-inch alloy wheels – silver-coloured in V and VX variants and a piano black machined finish in the RS variant. Also offered in the CR-V as standard are roof rails, shark-fin antenna and tailgate spoiler, which get a piano black finish in the RS variant. 

The Honda CR-V gets Christmas tree-themed LED tail lamps with L-themed combination LED inserts extending towards the boot lid. These tail lamps make the rear profile of the Honda CR-V look sporty. The RS variant also gets piano black-themed rearview mirrors and body-coloured mudguards, but misses out on a spare wheel, though it gets a tyre repair kit as an alternative. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Classy and sporty design

Cons: No spare tyre in the RS variant

Honda hasn’t stated the Philippines-spec fuel efficiency figures for the CR-V. However, globally, the SUV claims fuel efficiency figures of 11.9 kmpl in the city and 14.4 kmpl in highway driving conditions for the 1.5-litre turbo-petrol variants. On the other hand, with the hybrid powertrain, the CR-V manages to deliver 18.3 kmpl in city and 15.2 kmpl in highway driving conditions. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Good fuel efficiency in city conditions 

Con: Highway fuel efficiency of the hybrid variant could be better

The Honda CR-V has always been praised for its car-like driving dynamics, and this sixth-generation version continues to follow the tradition. The coil springs with the Macpherson struts at the front and multi-link at the rear offer a very plush ride quality, while at the same, the CR-V has excellent high-speed stability and cornering stability with minimal body roll, thanks to the agile handling assist and nicely-tuned steering setup. 

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Comfortable ride quality and nice handling

Con: No drive modes

The V and VX variants of the Honda CR-V have a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine under their hood, which is paired with a CVT gearbox and produces 190 PS of maximum power and 245 Nm of maximum torque. While the V variant has a front-wheel drive configuration, the VX is available with an all-wheel drive system.

Meanwhile, the top-spec RS variant is being offered with a petrol-electric hybrid powertrain. It is a combination of a 2.0-litre four-cylinder Atkinson petrol engine (148 PS of power and 183 Nm of torque) and a dual motor setup (184 PS of power and 335 Nm of torque), along with a lithium-ion battery. Available with a front-wheel drive system, this powertrain is mated to an advanced e-CVT. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Smooth and reliable powertrain options

Con: CVT and e-CVT feel lazy at times

Honda is offering its ‘Honda Sensing’ suite of ADAS features in the CR-V as standard, which includes adaptive cruise control, low-speed follow, collision mitigation braking system, forward collision warning, lane keep assist, road departure mitigation, lane departure warning, auto high beam, lead car departure notification and adaptive driving beam. 

Other standard safety features offered across the entire Honda CR-V lineup are agile handling assist, driver attention monitor, seven airbags, vehicle stability assist, hill start assist, hill descent control, ABS with EBD, Honda Lanewatch camera, reverse parking sensors and tyre pressure monitoring system.

While the V variant has a reverse camera, the VX and RS variants come with a more advanced 360-degree parking camera. The RS variant also gets front parking sensors as an exclusive add-on. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Standard ADAS features across all variants 

Con: Front parking sensors only in the RS variant

Competitor Comparison

The Honda CR-V competes with a range of SUVs and crossovers with monocoque construction, such as Kia Sorento, Hyundai Tucson, Subaru Forester, Toyota RAV-4, Mazda CX-8, Peugeot 5008, Chery Tiggo 8 Pro, Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, KG Mobility Torres, Lynk & Co 01 and Changan UNI-K.

Conclusion and Final Verdict

With this sixth-generation version, the Honda CR-V has taken care of the novelty factor by offering several new-age equipment and comfort and convenience features. At the same time, the CR-V continues to offer a well-balanced, car-like driving experience, comfortable ride quality and refinement, and quality levels people have been expecting from it for years now. The hybrid variant is our pick for its sporty-looking design elements and fuel-efficient and technologically advanced powertrain, offering the best of both worlds.