- There are some big changes coming
to one of your favorite compact crossover SUVs
for the 2023 model year.
Honda has redesigned the CR-V.
It's longer, it's wider, it's more spacious inside.
But most interestingly,
it has a new hybrid powertrain as well,
that Honda says could account for
as much as half of all '23 CR-Vs sold.
Now, how are they gonna get so many hybrids into your hands?
Well, they've changed up the trim levels a little bit.
So come along with us,
we're gonna take you through everything you need to know
about the new 2023 Honda CR-V.
(upbeat music)
The first thing to know about the new '23 CR-V
is that Honda has changed around the trim levels.
Gone is the base model LX; it no longer exists.
It's been replaced in the lineup
probably by the new larger and more expensive HR-V,
which slots below the CR-V.
Instead, you've got the EX, the EX-L,
the Sport and the Sport Touring.
And there's a number of different changes
in between the Sport lineup and the EX lineup
but you can identify them visually through a couple of ways.
First, the EX has the black grill with a chrome surround.
Whereas, the Sport has the black grill
with a gloss black surround.
There's also some changes to the front lower bumper.
Obviously, the Sport is a little bit more aggressive
than the EX.
The changes to the structure
are actually pretty significant.
The vehicle is more than two inches longer.
It's about 1/2 inch wider
and it has more than an inch and a half longer wheel base
than it did before.
That should translate into some more room inside.
But, the most interesting styling change
really is the windshield.
It's four inches rearward than where it was before.
It's also lower and wider than it was before, as well.
Now, Honda says that this is definitely
going to improve outward visibility.
Hondas used to really be known for having
that super low dash that really enabled you
to see out of them very easily.
But it also has the secondary effect
of creating a much longer hood
and a more rugged, boxy-looking profile.
Rear styling is also all new.
You've got somewhat familiar-looking rear taillights.
They're all LED across the board.
But, the easier way to tell between an EX and a Sport trim
is in the lower bumper.
On the EX models, it's pretty plain.
But on the Sport models,
you get these rectangular exhaust finishers.
Now, that's kind of misleading
because only one of those finishers
actually has a tailpipe in it.
In terms of wheels, that's tied to your trim level.
The EX and EX-L both get 10-spoke, 18-inch wheels,
alloys as standard.
The Sport gets 18-inch gloss black wheels.
And the Sport Touring top of the line model
gets five-spoke, 19-inch wheels.
But the wheels aren't really the big difference
between the EX and the Sport models.
That big difference is under the hood.
For the base vehicle, the EX and the EX-L,
you get a turbocharged 1.5 liter,
four-cylinder engine making 190 horsepower
and 179 pounds-feet of torque.
It's made into a continuously variable transmission
and is available with either front or all-wheel drive.
But if you step up to a Sport trim,
you get the new hybrid system.
It's a two liter, four-cylinder engine
made into a new twin motor, hybrid-electric powertrain.
It's good for 204 horsepower and 247 pounds-feet of torque.
Now that also enables a couple of new things.
It enables the hybrid to now tow 1,000 pounds
and it now enables the vehicle
to operate in hybrid continuous mode
at speeds that have gone up,
from 86 miles per hour to now 115 miles per hour.
Which really only is relevant
if you've stolen your Honda CR-V Hybrid
because you shouldn't be driving that fast
anywhere in the United States anyway.
If you're familiar with the changes that Honda made
for the latest generation Civic interior,
you're pretty much gonna be familiar
with what they've done with the CRV as well.
Front and center is this new metal mesh panel
that spans the width of the dashboard.
It hides the air vents
and it has this really cool retro-futuristic look to it.
It works really well in the Civic.
It works really well here, too.
You have some upholstery options with the new CRV
but they are tied to your trim level.
The EX gets cloth, E-XL gets leather.
The Sport gets cloth and the Sport Touring gets leather.
And you can get it in either gray or black,
except for the Sport trim,
which only comes with black cloth.
Now, the Sport models also get
this really nifty, orange stitching in the seats, console,
shifter, doors and steering wheel.
There's a new multimedia system as well.
And again, it is also tied to your trim level.
The Sport and the EX both get a seven-inch unit.
But it now has a volume and tuning knob. Hurrah!
The EX-L and the Sport Touring
get the larger nine-inch system.
Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard
across the board, but they're wireless
when you get the nine-inch system.
There's also storage for your smartphones
here in the center console.
And it's actually wide enough
to fit two of the large ones side-by-side.
In the Sport Touring model
and anything with the nine-inch screen,
you also get wireless charging
but only for one phone, not for two.
There's also a large seven-inch digital gauge cluster
and that's a standard across the board.
It's big and it's bright. It's easy to read.
This is one of the better digital gauge clusters out there.
The longer wheel base for the '23 Honda CR-V
has allowed Honda to increase the rear seat leg room
by half an inch.
They've also enabled it to increase the number of positions
for the rear seat recline as well.
But they've also enabled Honda to increase the cargo room
to more than it's ever had.
You get 36.3 cubic feet of cargo room behind the rear seats,
which is the most that the CRV has ever offered.
You actually get an additional three cubic feet
in non-hybrid models, 39.3 cubic feet,
because the rear load floor actually is adjustable
and can drop down.
You can't do that in the hybrid
because that's where your hybrid battery is.
If you drop all the seats,
you get 76 1/2 cubic feet of cargo room,
which is pretty significant for a vehicle this size.
Honda is once again targeting the CR-V
to hopefully achieve a Five-Star Crash Safety Rating
from the US government
and a Top Safety Pick+ Award from the IIHS
and has improved the crashworthiness
of the new model for those reasons.
New structures are reinforced to root crash energy
around the cabin instead of through it,
while side impact protection has been improved as well.
New style airbags meant to help protect
against brain trauma, first introduced on the latest Civic,
have been included as well.
And there are now standard knee
and rear passenger side airbags in every CRV.
The Honda Sensing Suite of electronic safety systems
has been upgraded as well, with more advanced cameras
and a higher definition radar system
meant for more accurately identifying vehicles,
pedestrians, road lines, boundaries, curbs and more.
Blind spot information systems are now standard
on all models, as is a driver attention monitor
and rear seat occupant reminders.
New semi-autonomous braking systems
with more natural responses
for things like Adaptive Cruise Control
with Low-Speed Following and Lane Keep Assist
have also been included.
The changes to the 2023 Honda CR-V look really good
and it should be pretty competitive
when it hits the market later this year.
Now, we don't have any fuel economy
or pricing data just yet.
Those will be coming closer to its on-sale date,
which is going to start with the non-hybrid models first,
later this summer, the EX and the EX-L.
That will then be followed by the hybrid models,
the Sport and Sport Touring, later in 2022.
And when we have all of that pricing, fuel economy
and availability data, you'll find it at cars.com.