FULL REVIEW: 2023 Honda CR-V 2.0 S CVT -- Old-school comfort in a new crossover world

Disclosure: Honda Cars Philippines Inc. very kindly lent me a 2023 Honda CR-V 2.0 S CVT for 12 days. It arrived with a full tank of fuel and loaded RFID cards. AutoFun Philippines paid for additional fuel, toll and a carwash.

When I was a teenager, I used to have lots of shoes.

Back then, outfits with strong colors were in. That’s why aside from having a wide variety of shirts, pants and blazers, I had an assortment of shoes to complement whatever I had on.

I remember having these gorgeous leather boat shoes in bright red with white accents, almost as vibrant as Dorothy’s ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz.

I especially remembered this pair because when I was still breaking these shoes in, my spine lost the battle against the still-tough hide.

My shoe collection is far less garish now, but what has remained constant over the decades are my brown slip-on topsiders. Whether I’m out in the field for an event or just meeting friends, these simple shoes are my default pair.

Topsiders may not have as much visual impact as, say, a pair of Yeezys, but they remain perfectly respectable while being absolutely comfortable.

This is much the same vibe that I got with my recent test unit, the Honda CR-V 2.0 S.

Nearly 30 years in the game

Before the era of the crossover, small sport-utility-vehicles (SUV) were generally just miniaturized pick-up trucks.

For instance, the Suzuki Vitara and the Daihatsu Feroza in the early 1990s had ladder-frame chassis with mechanical four-wheel-drive systems, leaf-spring rear suspensions and small gasoline engines. 

Although they were quite cute and did extremely well off-road, these little SUVs were bouncy, unrefined and quite slow on the tarmac. But everything changed when the mid-’90s rolled in.

The first-generation Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V were launched worldwide with unibody, front-wheel-drive car platforms. These new machines had the looks, space and versatility of SUVs, but rode and drove like regular sedans.

Thus, the crossover was born, sweeping the automotive world over the last three decades. Indeed, my CR-V test unit is the fifth-generation model that debuted worldwide in 2016.

Unassuming appearance

Looks-wise, the CR-V 2.0 S has none of the chunky off-roader looks of SUVs like the Toyota Fortuner or Mitsubishi Montero Sport.

Large LED headlights flank the prominent chrome Honda grill. The facelift in 2020 included a more aggressive bumper with gaping lower grills and boxy silver accents.

Down the side, the CR-V manages to not look slab-sided with the high beltline, swooping front fenders and the chrome trim on the lower part of the door. The two-tone, 18-inch alloy wheels provide a slightly sporty flavor to the profile.

Meanwhile, the upward kink in the rear quarter window leads the eye to the wraparound LED taillights, which are placed up high in typical CR-V tradition.

The rear end has a gently raked rear windscreen that is framed by a thick chrome strip that runs across the span of the tailgate. Additional silver trim spruces up the lower rear bumper.

The CR-V’s blob-like appearance isn’t ugly, but it hasn’t aged quite as well as the sporty “Kodo” design of its rival, the Mazda CX-5.

Vast interior

Step inside the CR-V and you are greeted by a black leather interior with very generous space for five passengers.

Headroom and legroom are superb for the compact crossover class, made better by the easy ingress and egress courtesy of the low floor.

Other neat features include the high-mounted gear selector, the rear air-conditioning vents and the huge cubby hole in the center console that even has a sliding shelf underneath the armrest.

In fact, there really is no shortage of storage space in the CR-V, which is perfect for people (especially families) that need to have an assortment of important knick-knacks close at hand. 

The digital gauge cluster is clear and easy to read, with a design similar to the previous-generation Honda Civic. There’s also a 7-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

However, the screen is quite small. It also displays the view from the rearview and blind-spot cameras that have subpar lenses, leading to a grainy image.

Cargo capacity is excellent, though, with 1,110 liters of space with the rear seats up and a truly voluminous 2,146 liters when the 60:40 split-folding rear seats are put down.

Relaxing drive

Once you get behind the wheel of the CR-V, the first things you notice are the comfortable, supportive seats and the superb all-around visibility.

Much like my trusty topsiders, I can just slip into this Honda crossover and feel completely at ease on the go.

The CR-V has quite firm springs for a crossover, so the body roll isn’t as alarming as I expected. But the dampers are tuned almost to perfection, ensuring that only the most enormous of road imperfections sully the remarkable grace at which this Honda makes progress.

The steering is light and has a surprisingly quick ratio, although it still feels rather numb at speed. Meanwhile, the brakes are strong, but the pedal could use more firmness to make braking action easier to modulate.

Drivers who want a crossover that can really hustle may prefer to get the more agile CX-5.

No replacement for displacement

Unlike the latest crossovers, the CR-V S uses a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter, single-cam, 16-valve inline-4 gasoline engine. 

This unit produces 154 PS and 189 Nm of torque, which are coursed through a continuously variable transmission (CVT). Many 1.5-liter turbocharged engines may produce more punch, but none have the smooth power delivery and response of this big motor.

The 2.0 is refined and has excellent torque from as low as 2,000 rpm, although it really gets going at around 3,500 rpm. However, there isn’t much happening past 5,000 rpm, especially with the CVT just whining all the way to the redline.

Nonetheless, the CR-V 2.0 S is an effortless expressway cruiser. With the non-adaptive cruise control on (the Honda SENSING active-safety suite is only available on the higher-end CR-V variants), 100 km/h is at an easy 1,600 rpm.

Fuel economy is also not bad for the class – I got 7 to 10 km/l in the city and 14 to 17 km/l on the expressway. One thing I did notice about this particular test unit, which had 23,000 km on the odometer, was that it was running rich.

In other words, the engine was burning more fuel than air, which made the exhaust reek of gasoline and likely worsened the fuel consumption. And given that it was idling rough, I suspect that this press car had an issue with its mass air-flow sensor.

Aging, but not decrepit

While I had this unit, the 2024 Chevrolet Trax was launched locally, now as a compact crossover.

The Trax’s price made my jaw drop – the entry-level LT variant was ₱1,793,888. And although it had active-safety features as standard, it had a turbocharged 1.2-liter inline-3 gasoline with 139 PS and 220 Nm of torque.

This put the Trax LT directly in the firing line of this ₱1,763,000 CR-V 2.0 S. And then there’s the Ford Territory Titanium X, which is fully loaded and undercuts both the Chevrolet and the Honda at just ₱1,599,000.

These two newer models got me thinking about how crossovers have evolved so aggressively since this generation of the CR-V was launched seven years ago. 

Certainly, the Honda still has plenty going for it for those who want a well-proven, spacious and refined compact crossover. There will always be space in the market for brown leather topsiders.

But the tidal wave of Chinese crossovers is starting to make many Japanese models like the CR-V look overpriced and underequipped. Then again, the all-new 2024 CR-V is launching locally sometime September 2023 with either a 1.5-liter turbo or a hybrid engine.

Perhaps this upcoming model will be a pair of shoes that even ardent Chinese brand lovers would love to wear.

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