2000 Honda CR-V

Honda's CR-V sport-utility vehicle has proven so popular, it set sales records in its first three years. But now, as new and updated competition arrives, it's becoming more obvious that more horsepower, more features and an updated look would go a long way in furthering the CR-V's appeal.

The Honda CR-V appears to have been the right sport-utility vehicle that arrived at the right time. Just as the SUV craze was going full bore in 1997, Honda brought the CR-V to U.S. shores from Japan, adding a new, small sport utility to the SUV landscape.

Longtime Honda loyalists were arguably the first and most appreciative customers, since Honda's only other offering in the SUV category was the Passport, a re-badged Isuzu. But soon, the combination of Honda's well-known quality, the CR-V's maneuverable size and starting price tag under $20,000 lured other SUV buyers, too.

Now, with a considerable number of laurels—including being named Best SUV under $25,000 by auto researcher IntelliChoice early in 2000 and being ranked first in J.D. Power and Associates' Initial Quality Study in 2000—the CR-V is on a roll. It set sales records each year that it has been on the U.S. market.

2000 another banner year
Even the gasoline price hikes early in 2000 helped put the now 3-year-old CR-V in the spotlight for savvy shoppers. As gasoline prices rose, consumers looking for the utility of an SUV but wishing for fuel economy more akin to a car's found the CR-V, with all-wheel drive and city fuel economy rating of 22 mpg and a highway rating of 25 mpg, definitely to their liking.

Compare this to the 18-mpg city rating for a 4-wheel-drive, 4-cylinder-powered Jeep Cherokee or the 17-mpg city rating for a 4-wheel drive Toyota 4Runner with 6-cylinder engine and you can begin to appreciate the CR-V's fuel thriftiness.

Only 4-cylinder power
There is a tradeoff, of course. The test CR-V—a top-of-the-line SE model with all-wheel drive and 4-speed automatic transmission—wasn't exactly a powerhouse. In fact, the 2.0-liter DOHC 4-cylinder made quite a ruckus when pushed hard, and there were times in the mountains that I held back on passing maneuvers.

Still, the CR-V performed admirably in mostly runabout work around town, where frequent stops and starts were adequately managed without fuss and where the CR-V merged with city traffic easily, if not always quietly.

CR-V, by the way, refers to Comfortable Runabout Vehicle.

Careful design in all-wheel-drive system
The careful fuel usage in the CR-V comes in part because of Honda's compact and lightweight all-wheel-drive system that activates only when needed, such as when wheel slip is detected. Otherwise, the CR-V travels the roads as a front-drive vehicle, just as most of today's cars do.

A driver does nothing to engage the CR-V's all-wheel drive. The nearly seamless transition from front- to all-wheel drive and back again is handled automatically via a sophisticated clutch pack. Honda calls the system Real Time 4WD, but it doesn't come with a true low gear for really rough off-road going.

The CR-V also can be had without Real Time 4WD. In fact, a CR-V LX with 2-wheel drive and automatic transmission is the lowest-priced vehicle in the lineup and still had a starting manufacturer's suggested retail price of under $20,000 for a 2000 model.

Easy entry and exit
All CR-Vs, regardless of whether they have the Real Time 4WD system or not, ride 8.1 inches above the ground. Thankfully, that high ride height doesn't make for an awful scramble to get up and inside the CR-V. At 5-feet-4, I merely opened a CR-V door and turned and sat on the seat cushion. I didn't sit down, exactly, as the cushion was right there, next to me, not below me.

Helping to ease my entry was leather on the seat—it's a standard feature on the SE and helps reduce the static cling and rubbing that come with the standard CR-V fabric seats. Other SE features include AM/FM stereo with cassette player and in-dash CD player, body-colored bumpers, hard spare tire cover and leather-wrapped steering wheel.

Honda only began selling the SE model—it stands for Special Edition—in March 2000 and advertises the SE as having popular amenities but at a $1,000 savings over what it would cost to put the items on individually.

Some novel features
The CR-V SE's stereo was acceptable, though it competed with wind noise as the CR-V got into highway speeds. Gauges and controls are easy to understand and well laid out in all CR-Vs. But I continue to wish that Honda offered an optional, factory-installed sunroof.

The retractable center tray table between the two CR-V front seats remains a pleasing alternative to the usually bulky, fixed center consoles in other SUVs and lets front-seat riders easily climb to the back seat. But note the retractable tray table doesn't incorporate covered storage space.

The back seats still fold back and nearly flat, mating with the two front seats so riders can literally stretch out and nap during a long road trip. And the CR-V continues to be the only vehicle that offers a standard, molded plastic, picnic table. It serves as the floor in the back cargo area. Just lift it out, extend the folded table legs, and you're set for a roadside lunch stop.

Note that the rear hatchback door of the CR-V continues to swing over to the right, where it blocks access from curbside, though.

Car-like ride
The ride is surprisingly car-like in the CR-V, which is built on a modified Civic platform. And the CR-V's exterior, virtually unchanged in appearance from its initial introduction, is among the more docile looking for an SUV. This is especially true these days as more sport utilities add cladding, big bumpers and large headlamps to exaggerate their rough-and-ready image.

Competition is getting more intense with the arrival of the rugged-looking 2001 Ford Escape and Mazda Tribute small SUVs, a redesigned 2001 Toyota RAV4 and a value-priced 2001 Hyundai Santa Fe.

All these brawny-looking, new, small sport utilities with higher-power engines than the CR-V's are bound to cast a new light on Honda's popular-selling SUV. And despite its noteworthy accolades, the CR-V runs a serious risk of suddenly looking very dated.