Thanks Riyad Kalla to this awesome mini-review
It seems there has been a huge lack of minis on the nerds list in the last 6 months… I refuse to believe we aren’t buying stuff, so here goes.
Kelly has had a 98 Dodge Neon since time began. She got it in college and we’ve run it into the ground. The car was still running fine but it was an issue of “I swear, one of these days, it’s going to just die and cost a lot of money to fix up again” type of situations. So we went to Showcase Honda in Phoenix (great service, good buying experience and a price we were comfortable paying).
Right off the bat I’m going to say, if you are a person who thinks of cars as “Boxes with wheels that get you from point A to point B” and want SUV-like functionality but think it is perverse to drive a Yukon or some “huge american SUV” then the CRV is going to be one of the best fits for you on the market.
If you are a slut (like me) that likes leather, bells and whistles, and the whole “manly” image, the CRV is not for you (you can only even get leather in the Special Edition).
- It’s got the Element’s more powerful 156hp engine which really gives some surprising get up and go when you floor it
- I think the interior will be snug for larger people or people (like
- me) that like big roomie interiors of most huge american cars
- The controls are well laid out and make sense
- Visual appeal of the car externally was 0 for me previously, but has grown on me quite a bit since. Nice simple styling.
- Functional car, the back seats not only fold forward, but also unlatch in the back and roll up against the backs of the front seats to give even more room.
- The rear area of the car (where you expect to find the spare) lifts up to reveal a handy container area. The top of this portion is actually a little square picnick table you can take out and use which was cute.
- Lots of door pockets and rear seat pockets for maps, bathing suits and stuff of that nature.
- Seating 4 people is a good roomy fit. Seating 5 works but it will feel the same as seating 5 in a Toyota Camry or Honda Accord.
- Since the CRV is built on the accord platform, the ride is smooth.
- Suspension is nice and not floaty and the tramission is like butter.
- Hard to feel the shift points.
- While the CRV isn’t intended to be towing trailers around, it is equipped (with D3-mode) to handle some towing if you need to. Like a small popup camper or trailer.
- Gas mileage is pretty good for a 156hp SFF SUV (25mpg).
- As with all Hondas, the organization under the hood is awesome.
- Everything is easy to get to and roomy (for such a small car).
- Build quality is excellent, doors close solidly with a nice tight feel.
- Rear window is dual-mode. You can open the glass or the whole door
- Car comes with these nice full-floor mats, not just little mats that go under your feet, but actually cover the full floor.
Overall I’d give it a 8.2/10 right now. It would be a 9/10 if it had leather interior and a 10/10 if it was just a hair roomier in the front knee area. When you are driving you don’t notice it, just getting in and out. You can put he seat farther back to make more room, but I think where I have the seat now is a good fit while driving. If you were 6ft or taller you might find this a tight fit, probably the same as finding any other small car a tight fit and would opt for the Pilot (assuming you were a Honda man).
If I forgot anything, let me know!
-Riyad