Honda is a pioneer in the crossover space. But how do Honda’s newer SUVs stack up against its pre-owned sport utility vehicles? We review the range to find out.
The Honda CR-V sprung onto the scene in North America in 1997, a year after the launch of the Toyota RAV4 that defined that segment.
The CR-V quickly paved the way for Honda to establish itself as one of the leading sellers of crossover vehicles in the U.S. This came after the Isuzu-made Passport (which debuted in 1993) had whetted the appetites of Honda’s customers for sport utility vehicles.
The CR-V’s success paved the way for bigger SUVs like the Pilot, which is now a mainstay of the company’s U.S. lineup. There were also smaller sport utility vehicles like the short-lived Honda Element. These vehicles allowed the brand to firmly position itself as one of the biggest players in the SUV market.
According to Good Car Bad Car, the CR-V was the second-best-selling small SUV in the U.S. during Q1 2021 behind only the RAV4. Honda’s own numbers show that more than half of all its vehicles sold during 2020 were trucks.
Given the company’s now wide range of strong-selling SUVs, customers looking at buying a newer Honda SUV have more choices than ever before. To take the stress out of figuring out which Honda SUV is best for you, we’ve done all the in-depth research and will delve in to the history, dependability, performance, practicality, and affordability of each of Honda’s SUV offerings to establish which is the best.
Honda Passport
The Honda Passport SUV was first introduced in 1993 as a badge-engineered version of the Isuzu Rodeo. The Passport was the first SUV sold by Honda in the U.S. It was built across two generations until the model’s axing in 2002, which coincided with the launch of the more car-like Pilot.
Unlike the crossovers Honda is better known for now, the original Passport was a more traditional SUV. It was based on a ladder-frame chassis with a live rear axle and optional four-wheel drive. The Passport is an outlier in Honda’s American SUV lineup history.
However, the Passport name returned in early 2019 on the back of an all-new crossover offering. Slotted between the CR-V and Pilot in Honda’s North American lineup and based on the underpinnings of the latter but with a two-row layout, this new Passport goes head-to-head with the likes of the Ford Edge and Chevrolet Blazer.
Fitted with the same 3.5-liter V6 that’s found in numerous other Honda and Acura models with a standard nine-speed automatic transmission, the Passport is available with both front- and all-wheel drive. Billed as being more rugged than Honda’s other SUVs, all-wheel-drive models have 8.1 iches of ground clearance to allow for some mild off-roading.
With 41.2 cu. ft. of cargo space behind the second row and 77.9 cu. ft. with the second row folded, it offers significantly more space in key areas than both of its American rivals.
Its $32,790 base price (which stretches to $44,180 for the Elite model) means it costs $540 more than the entry-level Edge, however. And it’s a whopping $3,990 more than the base Blazer L, although the Pilot Sport is a more strongly-equipped model to help justify that price margin.
Being a newer model to the lineup, few major issues have been reported at this stage. And Honda’s penchant for reliability bodes well for it going forward.
However, J.D. Power reports that it has the second-lowest customer satisfaction in its class ahead of only the Subaru Outback, although it still posted a respectable score not that far off the class leaders.
Honda CR-V
Introduced in Japan in 1995 and joining Honda’s North American lineup in 1997, the CR-V – Compact Recreational Vehicle – was released in direct response to the original Toyota RAV4, a vehicle which proved how successful crossovers that blended car-like driving dynamics with SUV ride height and practicality could be, which has paved the way for the SUV-dominant market we see today.
Now in its fifth generation, the CR-V has always been based on the underpinnings of the respective Civic of its time. Although, nowadays it outsells not only the Civic but every other Honda model. More than 40,000 were sold in April 2021 alone, putting it within 200 units of the perennially segment-leading RAV4.
The current model, introduced in 2017, has seen some of its best success yet. U.S. News has named it the best compact crossover for 2020 and 2021, as well as the best compact SUV for the money. Price-wise, the 2021 LX model’s $25,350 list price sees it undercut both the RAV4 and Mazda CX-5, although only by a few hundred dollars.
Reliability for the current-generation model appears to be strong, with the highest predicted quality and dependability according to J.D. Power’s studies, although early 2017 examples have had some issues recorded with the fuel injection system.
Motor Biscuit points out, however, it’s the prior fourth-generation model that has had the greatest number of issues, with the 2011 and 2015 models, in particular, having record numbers of complaints.
The 2011 model is one to definitely steer clear of due to a number of issues, including power steering fluid leaks, a strange issue where the engine revs as the brake pedal is depressed, faulty air conditioning compressors, and worrying airbag inflator issues.
The 2015 model has had hard-to-diagnose issues relating to the vehicle shaking uncontrollably while idling.
Honda CR-V Hybrid
In addition to the regular CR-V, a new Hybrid model joined the U.S. lineup in 2020, marking the launch of the first electrified Honda SUV. It was also the first electrified Honda with all-wheel drive in America, too.
It’s believed the model will become the company’s best-selling hybrid – a prediction no doubt made due to the immense success of the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid introduced the year prior.
The main selling point of the CR-V Hybrid is its improved fuel economy over the standard gasoline model, with it boasting claims of 40 mpg city and 35 mpg on the highway – noticeable improvements over the gas model’s 27 mpg city/32 mpg highway claims.
However, both the RAV4 Hybrid and Ford Escape Hybrid offer slightly better fuel consumption claims of 41 mpg city/38 mpg highway and 43 mpg city/37 mpg highway respectively.
Offered in the higher EX, EX-L, and Touring grades, each CR-V Hybrid model charges a $2,700 premium over the equivalent gas model.
However, despite being more powerful than the gas model, the additional weight of the Hybrid’s battery packs saw it achieve nearly identical performance against the stopwatch to the standard model in Car & Driver‘s testing.
Where the Hybrid’s additional weight proved to be at a disadvantage, however, was when it came to braking distances and road-holding.
Furthermore, the size of the battery pack reduces the CR-V’s cargo area from 39.2-75.8 cu. ft. to 33.2-68.7 cu. ft. along with also necessitating the removal of the spare tire.
Being such a new addition to Honda’s lineup, it’s hard to say how it will fare in terms of reliability and dependability at this stage.
Honda Pilot
First introduced after the phasing out of the original Isuzu-based Passport, the first-gen. Pilot was a larger vehicle aimed at bigger families due to its three-row stadium seating arrangement that could accommodate as many as eight.
Being a family-focused model, safety has always been paramount with the Pilot. And the current third-generation model (first launched in 2016) was awarded an IIHS Top Safety Pick ranking when it was facelifted in 2019. There was additional praise for standardizing the Honda Sensing active safety suite across the entire range.
Third-generation face-lifted models have faced some electrical gremlins that necessitated the issuing of NHTSA recalls, however. Issues included faulty instrument panel software and rear-view camera operation.
Engine issues have also been reported on third-generation models, which use a variant of the “J35” V6 fitted to all Pilot models. The problems relate to the teeth on the timing belt separating and causing the engine to stall, which could lead to an accident.
The Pilot has a number of key rivals, and it sits in the middle price-wise, with the likes of the Kia Telluride and Volkswagen Atlas coming in slightly cheaper.
Other SUVs such as the Toyota Highlander and Mazda CX-9 come in slightly more expensive.
In the practicality stakes, however, its cargo space of between 16.5 to 83.8 cu. ft. puts it behind all of those rivals except the smaller CX-9.
Honda HR-V
Although the HR-V name was new to North America in 2016, it dates back to 1998 in the Japanese, Asia Pacific, and European markets. That’s when the first-generation model arrived as a smaller three- and five-door companion to the CR-V.
Supposedly standing for “Hi-rider Revolutionary Vehicle,” the original HR-V was aimed at a younger market and represented Honda’s most affordable SUV offering.
In 2013, after a seven-year hiatus, the HR-V name made a return internationally, before finally being offered in America three years later.
Based on the Fit underneath, Honda has prioritized passenger room inside, with its 96.1 cu. ft. of interior space. These dimensions are not too far off the larger CR-V’s minimum 102.9 cu. ft., which is impressive for a subcompact SUV.
However, the diminutive model suffers when it comes to cargo capacity. Front-wheel-drive models offer up just 24.3 cu. ft. with the second row up, and 58.8 cu. ft. with it folded down. And those numbers shrink to 23.2 cu. ft. and 55.9 cu. ft., respectively, for models equipped with all-wheel drive.
While the majority of Honda’s other SUVs stay truer to the brand’s record for reliability, for the most part, early examples of the current HR-V model have had numerous issues.
In 2020, it came in dead-last among all small SUVs in the U.K.-based 2020 What Car? Reliability Survey. The survey took into account cars up to five years old, with it beaten out by the Mini Countryman and Mazda CX-3, the only other cars tested that are on offer in the U.S.
In terms of U.S. coverage, though, The Drive also pointed out that 2016, 2018, and 2019 models, in particular, received numerous complaints — with poor paint quality being one of particular noteworthiness. They were also subject to several recalls, most commonly for faulty fuel pumps but also issues with the coating on the rear brake discs.
However, newer 2020 to 2021 models have had far fewer complaints reported and are not subjected to any recalls at the time of publication. So, it appears these issues have been amended in Honda’s production procedures.
Priced between $21,220 and $26,020, the HR-V does come in at a higher price than its competition, which includes the Mazda CX-3, Hyundai Kona, Kia Soul, and Jeep Renegade. Although the Toyota C-HR, Subaru Crosstrek, Buick Encore, and Chevrolet Trax are priced slightly higher – meaning, like with the Pilot, the HR-V sits in the middle of the pack when it comes to pricing.
What is the Best Honda SUV to Buy?
Honda’s success in the North American market as a manufacturer of crossovers is unquestionable. It has boasted strong sales figures and a notable presence in the compact SUV space. But there can only be one when it comes to which is best.
Taking all the things we’ve looked at into consideration, the current CR-V is the Honda SUV that looks to be the best in our eyes. Although we’d be looking at examples produced from 2018 onwards to avoid the 2017 model’s injector issues.
The Honda CR-V is smartly-priced, practical, and considered to be the best offering in its class. And considering how closely it challenges the segment-defining RAV4 in the sales race speaks to just how good the CR-V is.
If you’re wondering which variant is going to get you the best value for money, we reckon the EX-L (priced from $30,450) is the best Honda CR-V you can buy. One rung below the top-spec Touring, the EX-L offers most of its key features without the frivolous bling.
Furthermore, the CR-V appears to be the most reliable Honda SUV in the company’s lineup of current models. Also, it has had fewer recalls and complaints than the other models the company has had on offer in recent years.
Photos: Honda
