Honda CR-V 2019 pricing and specs: Added safety for AWD VTi-S

The Honda CR-V 2019 range will see additional safety equipment added to the most affordable all-wheel drive variant, the VTi-S AWD.

The upgraded 2019 Honda CR-V VTi-S AWD will see a $1000 price hike as a result of the move (now $36,490), but will essentially give customers an almost-$8000 advantage compared with the existing range, which only saw the advanced 'Honda Sensing' safety gear offered on the high-spec VTi-LX ($44,290).

The Honda Sensing suite of equipment includes auto emergency braking with forward collision warning, lane departure warning with lane-keep assist, adaptive cruise control with ‘Low-speed Follow’. 

The reason it isn’t offered in any of the bulk-selling front-wheel drive (FWD) models is because the system is linked to Honda’s AWD system. That means four of six variants - Vi, VTi, VTi-S 2WD and VTi-L - will still miss out on the added safety of AEB and lane-keeping assist. 

The CR-V is, then, still well behind the best in the class - Mazda recently announced that the 2019 CX-5 range will have an even more comprehensive list of safety gear across its entire range. 

Honda Australia says it will have the safety equipment tech offered on all models in the in 2022, with the aim of offering the tech where possible in the period up to then.

There are no changes to the rest of the range. The recently-added 1.8-litre FWD Vi grade remains one of the most aggressively-priced models in the market, while the remainder of the line-up continues to be offered with the more impressive 1.5-litre turbocharged engine.

The updated VTi-S AWD with the Honda Sensing safety gear will be on sale in dealerships from 1 January, 2019.

See how the Honda CR-V VTi-S 2WD model fared in our 2018 mid-size SUV comparison.

Will the lack of safety gear in 2WD Honda CR-V models matter? Tell us what you think in the comments below.