Honda CR-V EXECUTIVE
Want A 4x4 With Luxury But Dont Want To Pay For A Luxury 4x4? Hondas CR-V Executive Might Be Just The Thing. Jonathan Crouch Reports
The relentless march of niche market products on to highways, byways and driveways around the country continues. A decade ago, mainstream consumer choice was largely centred around superminis, family hatchbacks or medium range saloons. Today, these bastions of modern car manufacturing are being gently eroded as Citycars, MPVs, 4x4s and numerous amalgamations thereof tempt family buyers with something different, something more individual. Hondas CR-V Executive is just such a vehicle.
Packed with equipment and inundated with styling accessories, its a flagship created to catch the eye of the world-weary executive saloon buyer who fancies a change.
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It takes no great stretch of the imagination to foresee a time when sales of compact MPVs match those of superminis and 4x4s eclipse medium range saloons as the family transportation of choice: its already happening. Motorists are being drawn away from the established model types in every direction as manufacturers dream up new products to separate them from their cash. Encouraged by this,
Honda are making a play for the top end of the family saloon market and the middle to lower end of the executive saloon market with their CR-V Executive. Starting from £21,530, it looks decidedly pricey for a compact 4x4 but if you try to match its specification in a
BMW 3-Series for example, youll need to spend much closer to £30,000.
The Executive is a big leap up from the £18,880 Sport which is the next CR-V down the pricing ladder, so youd have to suspect that there will be a shortage of CR-V buyers willing to scrape together the extra £2,650. No, the Executive will have to appeal to people who were originally looking elsewhere and Honda have given it a wide selection of tools to do the job. In the PR bumf, they call it a specification of unparalleled excellence. In the metal it means satellite navigation, leather upholstery, climate control, heated seats, electric everything, the list goes on.
In fact, there are virtually no options with the Executive: Honda have ticked all the boxes for you and loaded the car to the gunwales with everything on the list. The satellite navigation system alone would cost you £1,200 if you specified it on a lesser CR-V so its easy to appreciate why the Executive is offered at a premium.
"There are virtually no options with the Executive: Honda have ticked all the boxes"
This trim level is part of a revised CR-V line-up that has undergone a thorough wash n brush-up of late. Some detail changes to the front and rear bumpers will probably elude all but the most ardent Hondaphiles, and the repositioned foglights projector headlamps and bigger grille with chromed slats will likely only serve to raise a quizzical eyebrow amongst previous generation CR-V owners. At the back of the car, there are clear-lensed lights, and a spare wheel cover that does away with the vinyl unit in favour of a more upmarket solid clamshell. The interior has been treated to a sprucing with an LCD screen and backlit dials but its still not what youd describe as adventurous.
Retractable rear headrest help rearwards visibility and the seats can even recline to a 45 degree angle. Perhaps more important is the introduction, at last, of a diesel version, featuring the same excellent 2.2-litre i-CTDi diesel unit already used to great effect in the Accord. With fully 251lb/ft of torque and one of the sweetest engine notes of any oil burner, this adds an important additional string to the CR-Vs bow.
Capable of recording a smidgeon under 40mpg ion the combined cycle, many potential buyers who have rejected the CR-V on the basis of no diesel engine should now reconsider the Honda. Ordering this engine in Executive guise will cost you £22,930. Otherwise theres the willing 2.0-litre 150bhp intelligent i-VTEC powerplant, similar to that found beneath the bonnet of the Stream
mini-MPV and, in a significantly gnarlier incarnation, up front in a Civic Type-R.
Mated to a manual gearbox, it dispatches the sprint to 60mph in under ten seconds and averages over 30mpg. Unlike so many compact 4x4s that offer a roly-poly ride and dismal fuel consumption, the CR-V seems to make sense. Honda's president Nobuhiko Kawamoto once derided the genre when he said, "They are not often used off-road, yet carry around big tyres, diesel engines and heavy military-type transmissions. It's a waste of money." So it is that the latest Swindon-built CR-V is even more car-like than its predecessor. Not that it cant hack it in a muddy car park. Utilising a development of Hondas compact and technically efficient toe control link McPherson strut front suspension and a sophisticated multi-link set up at the back, the CR-V promises accomplished grass and gravel traction. Available with either a floor-mounted five-speed manual or a dash-mounted four-speed automatic, both transmissions are matched to the highly acclaimed 4WD system that only engages all-wheel drive when it detects wheelspin.
Although few would use it to tackle seriously tough terrain, its nevertheless a practical engineering solution. On road ride and handing are very good by 4x4 standard with minimal body roll and a nimble feel at the helm. One reason why the CR-V has sold so well is the fact that it can fulfil the roles of two cars in one. The versatility of the cabin and the view from the elevated driving position make urban fetching and carrying less of a chore itself yet the engines game enough to tackle long distance work without a worry.
The interior is a more mature, considered proposition compared to the first generation CR-V. The tandem distance, the distance between the hip points of front and rear passengers is now a class-leading 1,007mm, but this space has been found without sacrificing luggage space thanks to the slightly longer overhangs and a lower floor helped by the compact suspension causing little intrusion into the luggage bay. Hondas MPV experience shows in the sliding 60/40-split rear bench. These seats tumble forwards into a near-vertical storage position, freeing up enough room to fit two mountain bikes upright without having to remove their front wheels.
Even with the seats in place, the load volume ranges from 527 to 628 cubic litres. The much-copied waterproof storage bin positioned under the load floor has been retained, but Honda has gone one step further in turning its lid into a panel that can be used as a bigger, taller, easier to use picnic table. The pricing of the CR-V Executive has effectively cut it adrift from the rest of the CR-V range and so it must carve out a market largely for itself relying heavily on crossover business from the family and executive saloon sectors. The sky-high equipment levels will definitely be a big draw as will the CR-Vs inherent practicality.
It wont handle or perform like a good saloon but as an overall package it may make an interesting alternative that could appeal to more than a few buyers.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Honda CR-V Executive range
PRICE: £21,530-£22,930 - on the road
INSURANCE GROUPS: 11-13
CO2 EMISSIONS: [2.0 i-VTEC] 177-215g/km
PERFORMANCE: [2.0 i-VTEC] Max Speed 110mph / 0-60mph 10.1s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [2.0 i-VTEC] (combined) 31.8mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front and side airbags / ABS
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Height, 4615/2050/1710mm
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