2001 Honda CR-V LX review from North America
"A great compromise between car and SUV, with a somewhat underpowered engine"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
The front disc brakes needed to be re-machined soon after purchasing the vehicle to correct a shudder through the steering column due to warped rotors.
Other than this, nothing has gone wrong with the vehicle.
General comments?
The CR-V is a great vehicle for people who want a higher ride than a sedan, more room than a typical car while maintaining good fuel economy.
I routinely get about 26 miles to the gallon driving stop/start traffic on my commute 5 days a week.
The fuel tank is somewhat small (15 gallons) and I usually get about 350-375 miles out of the tank before I fill it again (12.5 gallons or so).
On a long freeway trip, I managed to get it to about 29 miles to the gallon, but see notes below.
The 2.0 litre engine is not very strong, and pushing the vehicle up Tejon pass (Interstate 5 north of Los Angeles) while maintaining 70 miles an hour is challenging. The same could be said for any semi-steep highway-speed road grade, as I have had similar experiences over Cajon pass (I-15 towards the Mojave).
The engine can and will get the car to 70MPH up the grade, but the automatic cannot hold any more than about 55 in 4th gear, and in 3rd gear the engine jumps to about 5,500rpm and pushes readily back to 70 miles per hour while decimating the fuel economy.
The high engine and road noise in the cabin (a common complaint among CR-V owners) combined with the high level of RPMs needed to get this car up any major hill have lead my family to dub it the "UV", as in a "Sport Utility Vehicle" without the "Sports" part - there's nothing sporty about it.
The cabin is somewhat sparse and a little boring, but the car is very reliable and runs like clockwork day in and day out. Aside from the brake rotor, an oil change every 4,000 miles is all the maintenance I have done.
Recommended reviews
| Stay away from this vehicle!!! |
|
| Made for short people |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model year | 2001 |
| Year of manufacture | 2000 |
| First year of ownership | 2006 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2006 |
| Engine and transmission | Honda B20Z 2.0L 4 cylinder DOCH Automatic |
| Performance marks | 5 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 9 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 7 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 8 / 10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 8 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 61000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 80000 miles |
| Previous car | Holden Commodore |
| Date of Entry | 21st October, 2006 |