Honda CR-V 2021 review: VTi-LX AWD off-road test

The five-seater CR-V VTi-LX AWD has a Manufacturer Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $47,490 and that’s also its price as tested. That figure represents a $3200 increase over the previous version. 

Standard features include 7.0-inch multimedia touchscreen (with sat nav, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), leather seat trim, heated front seats, electrically-adjustable front seats, adaptive cruise control, panoramic sunroof, roof rails power tailgate, as well as a wireless phone charger, and 19-inch wheels.

Inside is a 7.0-inch multimedia touchscreen.

It also has the Honda Sensing suite which includes forward collision warning and auto emergency braking with pedestrian detection, lane keeping assist and lane departure warning. 

Exterior paint is Ignite Red (metallic) and that’s pretty fetching.

The VTi-LX has the line-up’s 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engine – producing 140kW at 5600rpm and 240Nm at 2000-5000rpm – and that’s matched to a CVT automatic transmission.

The 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo produces 140kW/240Nm.

That pairing is generally a rather agreeable combination. 

This top-of-the-range CR-V has all-wheel drive.

The CR-V is 4635mm long (with a 2660mm wheelbase), 1855mm wide, 1689mm high and it weighs 1636kg. 

The cabin is a nice space – with solid build quality and pleasing fit and finish – but, even with leather-wrapped steering wheel and shifter, as well as leather-appointed seat trim – it doesn’t quite feel as premium as you’d expect a top-spec vehicle’s interior to feel. 

The front seats are power-adjustable – eight-way driver’s seat, four-way passenger seat – and don’t forget the panoramic sunroof. Nice, if you’re into that sort of thing.

The cabin is a nice space to be in.

The multimedia touchscreen is clear and colourful, but it’s still too small for my liking and, call me a Luddite, but I struggled with smooth operation of this unit as I did with a previous-gen CR-V. 

Otherwise, upfront there are ample storage spaces, including bottle holders in the doors, and cupholders in front of the centre console, and the centre console itself. 

There are two USB ports upfront, and a wireless phone charger.

The second-row seats are roomy enough and have three top tether points and two ISOFIX points. There is a fold-down arm-rest with are two cup holders, and there are two USB points and air-vent controls in the back of the centre console.

The back has a comfortable amount of head and legroom.

I sat behind my driving position and had a comfortable amount of head, leg and knee room.

Rear seat passengers get two USB points and air-vent controls.

Boot space is a claimed 522 litres with the second-row seats in use; that increases to 1658 litres if you load to the roof with those seats down. There is a power socket and tie-down points in the cargo area. 

The CR-V has a full-sized spare stored under the cargo area floor.

It is a tidy all-round drive with comfortable seating, a flexible engine-and-CVT combination, and not-too-firm suspension.

Steering is nicely weighted and suits a mid-sized SUV wagon which will likely spend the lion’s share of its time in the suburbs or the city.

It is consistent rather than dynamic, which is absolutely fine, and this CR-V has steering-wheel paddle shifters if you want to get energetic with your driving style. 

Ride and handling are rather well sorted with a reliable feel to it all.

The CR-V’s all-wheel-drive system is obviously well worth a mention because, on our wet and wild few days, it worked well on coarse country bitumen and loosely gravelled tracks, yielding a reliably consistent 

Other driver-assist tech, such as LaneWatch (which, when you use the left indicator, shows you what’s back along the left-hand side of the vehicle and which I have, in the past, initially disregarded as a novelty), actually comes in handy.

Otherwise, there is adequate visibility in every direction and when there’s not, you’ll likely be reversing and the rear view camera is sufficiently clear enough that you shouldn’t have any strife if you constantly refer to that as you reverse.

The CR-V rides on 19-inch Michelin Latitude Sport 3 Tyres (235/55R19) and, as mentioned, it has a full-sized alloy spare wheel in the rear. 

The VTi-LX wears 19-inch alloy wheels.

Fuel consumption is a claimed 7.4L/100km (combined). Actual fuel consumption on test was 9.4L/100km.

The CR-V can run on Ron 91 fuel.

It has a 57-litre fuel tank.

It has a five-year unlimited km warranty, six-year rust perforation warranty, and servicing is scheduled at 12 month/10,000km intervals or when the engine oil monitor light illuminates (whichever comes first).