The latest CR-V sports turbochargers and hybrid systems to augment its small 4-cylinder engine, but the powertrain isn’t the performance star. The CR-V rides better than many of its rivals, and puts its technology to use to generate great gas mileage. We give it a 6, with a point above average for its above-average ride comfort.
Almost all models start out as front-wheel-drive crossovers. Honda fits all-wheel drive to any version for $1,500. The Sport Touring hybrid edition gets AWD standard.
How fast is the Honda CR-V?
Quick enough to resolve any qualms you might have about hybrid performance. The Sport hybrid’s the quicker CR-V, in fact, thanks to a tech-savvy powertrain. Neither CR-V is truly quick, but the hybrid can scoot to 60 mph in under eight seconds thanks to a combination of a 2.0-liter 4-cylinder and a pair of electric motors. With a total output of 204 hp and 247 lb-ft of torque, the CR-V leans heavily into its 1.4-kwh battery pack and taps its power to smooth out launches and feed in torque when it doesn’t truly need the engine’s help.
The hybrid system does its chores without much fuss, and tweaking its drive modes—Eco, Normal, Sport among them—might be the only way you hear the crossover switch from electric to gas power. The CVT even offers simulated gear changes. Honda does pump some simulated engine sounds into the vehicle in Sport mode, and like so many of those fake noise generators, we wish we could turn it off.
Without the hybrid, the CR-V’s slower. The 1.5-liter turbo-4 kicks out 190 hp and 179 lb-ft, and offers three drive modes—Econ, Normal, and Snow—but none of them trigger the kind of acceleration that charms the Toyota RAV4 Prime or even a Ford Escape with the 2.0-liter turbo-4. The CR-V’s simply responsive, moderately gaining pace as the pedal’s mashed, and mostly quiet in terms of wind and road noise; it’s the thrash of the engine you’ll hear as its CVT passes through an infinite number of ratios, without much eagerness and without much reluctance, as if to answer the call for power with a simple, “fine.”
Thanks to a longer and wider and stiffer body, the latest CR-V has more ways to damp out road harshness. The suspension continues to pair front struts and a multilink rear suspension, but has stiffer subframes that let Honda give it more relaxed spring rates and damping. It leans like most crossovers, but resolves its ride motions with more maturity than, say, a Bronco Sport. The tires have plenty of sidewall, the steering has good on-center feel without much weight as it moves away from the middle, and the CR-V’s shocks know when to let it hang loose. It’s smoother but also more responsive, a magical combination that the CR-V just nails while rivals wander out on the ride-and-handling margins.
