Honda CR-V 2023

Who knew that looking for a good family car under $50,000 would be a struggle these days. Thank you COVID, I had no idea a 2020 Toyota Prado GXL in white with 267,000km was worth $46,000…

It’s pretty obvious that a family car, at a price point of $50,000, won’t have much of a personality or ‘flare’. Charisma wouldn’t be expected of a car at this dollar figure, but what is expected is (in no particular order):

1.    Reasonable styling

2.    Reliable drivetrain and inexpensive maintenance

3.    Comfortable driving characteristics

4.    Creature comforts

Here’s where your prayers for a good family car have been answered. Enter the new 2023 Honda CR-V. With a base price of $44,500 driveaway, you’ll have a brand-new car that’s readily available, and with leftover change.

At this price point, you’re getting the VTi X variant. 5 seats, all the essentials, and you cruise along with a turbocharged 1.5L 4-Cylinder (VTEC) in 2WD. Last time I checked, you don’t need 4WD to be stuck in a School Zone at 3.41PM on a Wednesday afternoon. If you do go off-road and want a capable 4WD system, grab that Prado – You’ll have fun with the DPF and prehistoric infotainment system.

Choosing any of the 4 exterior colours on the VTi X won’t cost you extra but upgrading to the 7-seater will bump you up to $46,800 driveaway. Unlike most manufactures, stock is actually available. For anyone who wants to know more about the driveaway pricing of the entire range and how the range is organised, here you go:

• Economy Class – 1: 2024 CR-V VTi X: $44,500

• Economy Class – 2: 2024 CR-V VTi X7: $46,800

• Exit Row Seat – 1: 2024 CR-V VTi L: $48,800

• Exit Row Seat – 2: 2024 CR-V VTi L AWD: $51,300

• Exit Row Seat – 3: 2024 CR-V VTi L7: $53,000

• Exit Row Seat – 4: 2024 CR-V VTi LX AWD: $57,000

• I Fly Business Class – 1: 2024 CR-V e:HEV RS: $59,900

Northern Honda graciously loaned me their Honda CR-V VTi L. For the extra $4,300, the CR-V VTi L offers blind spot monitoring, leather-everything, heated seats and 18-inch alloys (there’s more but those are the extras that actually matter).

Reasonable Styling

Walking into the showing and seeing a CR-V in the centre of the floor says it all. Honda is no longer ashamed of their own design. The old design was always tucked away in the corner of the showroom floor, but now that Japan has finally given the CR-V the fresh skin-fade it’s been screaming for, it’s displayed right beside to the Civic Type-R.

The exterior is striking enough to capture your attention and keep your eyes locked for a few seconds. There’s just something cool about it. If the Civic Type-R had an elephant for a cousin, it would be the CR-V. Honda’s halo car has had its DNA trickle down the family tree, and that’s a good thing.

Open the driver’s door and you’re greeted with a refreshed and clean interior. The 9-inch infotainment screen doesn’t look as sophisticated and elegant as what you’d find in a Mazda, but let’s be honest, all it needs to do is magnify your iPhone for Spotify and Maps, so it does the job just fine. You’re spoiled with a 7-inch digital instrumentation cluster that displays you all of your need-to-know information. You’ll need to upgrade to the VTI LX to get the 10.2-inch driver display, but at $57,000 driveway, it starts to lose its “bang-for-your-buck” appeal.

Drivetrain and Maintenance

On the road is where you understand why this car is so affordable. I’ve spent time in the last generation CR-V. Mechanically, I cannot tell the difference between the two (keep in mind, we’re only talking about the non-hybrid variants here). There’s nothing wrong with how it handles or performs, it simply hasn’t been updated in a way that significantly differs from the previous generation CR-V.

The engine shared in both the current and previous generation is a 1.5L turbocharged 4-cylinder petrol, making 140kW and 240Nm of torque. Consulting the specification sheet reveals that engine tuning is slightly different, but the difference is negligible and realistically, you aren’t going to notice any difference between the two. One thing worth mentioning however is the kerb mass. Not only was the previous generation an abomination of a design, but it was a little overweight, sitting at 1,700kg, whereas the new 2023 model sits at 1,636kg.

Maybe this is what helps it with its claimed 7.4L/100km fuel economy rating? I averaged 7.5L/100km after doing both freeway and city driving, however it’s noteworthy that after borrowing a different CR-V (with the same engine), I managed to get 6.4L/100km. With a tank capacity of 57L and a minimum octane rating of 91RON, you won’t go broke filling up the CR-V.

You won’t go broke maintaining the CR-V either. Services are relatively affordable, and the prices of parts won’t make you jump. If you want to jump, have a look at what a water pump replacement costs at Volkswagen for the Tiguan you’re considering.

Comfortable Driving Characteristics

The CR-V remains to be plush, quiet, and comfortable. Inconsistencies in the road won’t disturb the ride, it’s settled and confident in tackling Victoria's B-roads. The set of 235/60R18’s suit the vehicle well and help it manage Victoria's unmaintained roads.

Allow me to nit-pick, just a little. The CR-V has shortcomings, but all of them are understandable and forgivable.

If you’re an automotive enthusiast like me, you aren’t going to appreciate the CVT transmission. I haven’t come across a single CVT transmission that I like, but this one in particular is a little sluggish. Will it impact the everyday driver? No. I would assume the CVT was chosen for one reason: cost saving.

“You wanted a new car for less than $50,000. Well, for that price, we’re using a CVT transmission.” – someone from Honda, probably.

All in all, you won’t really have complaints about its drivetrain or how it handles when doing the day-to-day commute. I mean honestly, the real things that matter here are:

• Is there enough room for the kids? Yes

• Is the boot big enough for a family? Yes

• When someone inevitably opens their door and hits my door at the Coles carpark, are repairs going to be expensive? No 

• Are there enough features in the car to keep everyone happy? Yes-ish

Creature Comforts

“Yes-ish”, because it simply depends on which trim level you purchase. Flying economy won’t get you anything fancy, apart from Apple CarPlay/Android Auto. I shouldn’t even need to mention this, but it has the basics like climate control, cruise control and unnecessarily, driving modes.

Upgrading to the VTi-L is where you’ll start to get the comforts you’d expect. Memory and heated seats, leather, blind-spot monitoring – those are the standout features. Everything else makes little difference.

I need to nit-pick again. I was surprised to learn how annoying it was to connect your phone to the infotainment system. You’d think you could just tap on ‘Phone Connectivity’ then select from the available phones within range, but no. It took a good 6 minutes just for the CR-V to find my phone. When it finally decided to connect, it wouldn’t let me use Apple CarPlay unless I disconnected and then reconnected my phone again. The frustration was real.

Like I said, I’m nit-picking. I could go on about wanting more power. I could comment on the size of the blind-spot created by the rear pillar, but truth be told, all of its faults are justified. Finding a brand-new car of that size and that quality under $50,000 is not common, unless it’s executed like absolute shi-.

Yes, there are other options in the market for that price point.

The 2023 Kia Sorento S AWD sits at $48,999 driveaway. For that, you’ll get a rattly interior and counterintuitive infotainment system.

The 2023 Nissan X-Trail comes in at $47,920 driveaway. A well-rounded vehicle, but you’ll need to put up with bad exterior styling and if you want to seat children in the 3rd row, be sure to amputate their legs first.

The 2023 Hyundai Tucson costs $48,990 driveaway. I know absolutely nothing about this car, but I do know that Hyundai used to make the Excel, and that’s all I need to know about Hyundai.

Sure, there are other makes and models out there that offer a product that would make you happy. It’ll be hard to ignore this one though, especially with the 5-year unlimited KM warranty.

The CR-V will get the job done, it won’t break the bank and dare I say it won’t break down either.