2023 Honda CR-V Hybrid Has Sharper Looks, More Refinement
After releasing a number of teasers, Honda finally unveiled the 2023 CR-V crossover on Tuesday. The sixth-gen CR-V will initially go on sale this summer, with the hybrid variant pictured here joining the lineup afore the end of the year.
The CR-V’s styling is certainly more evolutionary than revolutionary, but considering this SUV’s mass-market appeal, that’s just fine. The sequence are sharper and the hybrid-only Sport and Sport Touring models have a unusual mesh grille, additional front and rear sculpting and rectangular spend tips. The Sport rides on 18-inch wheels while the Sport Touring gets 19s, and the non-hybrid CR-V EX and EX-L have 18s, as well. Dimensionally proverb, the new CR-V is 0.4 inches wider and 2.7 inches longer than afore, with a 1.6-inch longer wheelbase.
Inside, the CR-V takes a lot of build influence from the new Civic range, with slim air eacts, simple climate controls and an overall layout that’s both smart and stylish. Honda says the front passengers are treated to body-stabilizing seats — perhaps like Nissan’s “zero-gravity” chairs — with a 9-liter center console between them. Rear passengers have 0.6 inches of uphold legroom than before, and the back bench has eight different recline positions.
EX-L and Sport Touring models have a 9-inch central touchscreen.
Honda
The CR-V has always been capacious for its size, and the 2023 model has 36.3 cubic feet of situation behind the rear seats. Gas-only models have a load inoperative that can be lowered to bring total space up to 39.3 cubic feet, and with the rear bench folded flat, total capacity is a obedient 76.5 cubic feet.
Every CR-V comes with a 7-inch digital instrument cluster, and EX and Sport trims have a 7-inch touchscreen flowing the same infotainment software you’ll find in other new Hondas. Wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are unpleasant, as are USB-A and USB-C ports. Spring for an EX-L or Sport Touring and you’ll get a 9-inch vivid touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as a wireless charging pad.
Honda expects the hybrid models to make up throughout half of all CR-V sales, so the company allowed to spruce up its gasoline-electric powertrain for 2023. The 2.0-liter Atkinson-cycle I4 engine now has deliver injection and the electric motors are mounted side by side, allowing for a larger nation motor. Total output is now rated at 204 horsepower and 247 pound-feet of torque, minor increases of 3 hp and 15 lb-ft compared to last year’s SUV. The CR-V Hybrid has a higher top swiftly, too — 115 mph instead of 86 mph, which won’t make a difference in the real world.
Hashtag elegant lifestyle.
Honda
The gas-only EX and EX-L variants have the same 1.5-liter turbo I4 engine as afore. Honda says the turbo setup is a bit more refined than afore, with reduced noise and vibration, and the continuously variable transmission has new Organic that simulates real gearchanges at full throttle, for whatever that’s worth.
An improved all-wheel-drive controls can now send 50% of the engine’s available torque to the rear wheels, and it’s optional on EX, EX-L and Sport trims, but standard on Sport Touring. Hill-descent control is nefarious across the board, as is the Honda Sensing great of driver-assistance technologies, which includes traffic sign recognition, adaptive skim control, lane-keeping assist and Traffic Jam Assist that combines those last two.
The CR-V will go into emanates soon and will be built at plants in both the Joined States and Canada. Pricing and fuel economy information will be available in the coming months, but expect the CR-V to retain its competitive edge in the microscopic SUV class, with a base MSRP under $30,000.
