The 2012 Honda CR-V

Los Angeles Times

The fourth-generation CR-V isn’t truly all-new, but “it’s new in the right places.” A sales leader in its segment for five of the past six years, Honda’s versatile compact crossover is meeting increased competition with tweaks rather than an overhaul. This edition’s transmission and four-cylinder engine are essentially carryovers, but the 2012 CR-V comes loaded with new “tech goodies” and “looks, rides, and sips gas like a new vehicle.”

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

The modified engine now delivers a “reasonably impressive” 30–31 mpg on the highway, even in the four-wheel drive CR-V. And spending little on the power-train upgrade has allowed Honda to throw in such extras as hill-start assist and a rear-view camera—not to mention a “nifty” one-touch rear-seat release. For all its competence, though, the CR-V has been saddled this time with a “numb” power-steering system that “simply kills the fun-to-drive factor.”

Car and Driver

Most of the car’s potential customers won’t mind. Though the CR-V rates “among the slowest in its class” for zero to 60 pickup, it still feels much sportier than its rivals. Though slightly roomier inside and more aerodynamic outside, the new CR-V is “a lot like the old one”—far from thrilling but “fundamentally satisfying” all the same.