Shop the Best Selling Auto Parts Here: amzn.to/2CQmxLz Plus Great Car Deals by Zip Code: bit.ly/2CYZxuL Performance Auto Parts: amzn.to/2Clupnn Automotive Car Car Products: amzn.to/2q69Eot Exterior Accessories: amzn.to/2pXxLW7 Interior Accessories: amzn.to/2pZ3TJ9 RV Parts &d Accessories: amzn.to/2CQgF4P Tools & Equipment: amzn.to/2ymITk4 Wheels & Tires: amzn.to/2NMv9DP Light & Lighting: amzn.to/2RY4kQr
I have driven my 2012 for 12 months now. Average mileage is 23.6mpg (calculated over the life of the vehicle, by hand). Best gas tank was an impressive 31 mpg on a pure highway trip of 3000+ miles, fully loaded with 4 passengers. Pure city gives me 22-23mpg without any effort. It's a solid performer, at least for me. And I'm sometimes heavy footed.
Also, I have seem many people asking for " features" that can be found on more expensive cars/SUVs. In my personal opinion, CRV is just right. It has some toys but not over the top. I think the CRV is designed to be more useful on a daily basis than more high tech or flashy. It has a good balance between usefulness and value. Price is right as well. With added held and whistles the CRV is just the same as RDX, and cost abut the same. CRV is more of a car for average family that needs a reliable vehicle to do daily things. It is just my opinion.
I went from having a 1997 GMC Jimmy to getting the 2014 LX CRV. I was getting on average 14 MPG doing mixed driving with the Jimmy. With my CRV I'm getting over 21 MPG so to me this is a good thing. I can't possibly complain about the gas mileage at all. One thing you didn't talk about was using the Eco boost. I went on a drive during the spring time with ideal road conditions, during the drive I turned on the eco boost and cruise control. I was getting 39.8 MPG traveling around 65 MPH while using that feature which I thought was unbelievable. The one problem I have is that the airbags between the door window and windshield are rather large and obstructive to my view when I'm driving around bends. I am very outdoorsy so I bought weathertech mats all round for the entire vehicle including the trunk which I really like.
My jaw literally dropped when the tailgate actually opened in that cold weather. My CR-V tailgate becomes ineroperable below 40 degrees. It's the bane of my existence.
Do you think your MPG could be due to low tire pressure? I noticed a lower tire pressure warning at 4:16 when you showed the instrument cluster. Always enjoy your reviews. Thanks Dave!
So, Miss, you fuel economy is a big concern for you and would deter you from this car, yet you would tend to a V6? A bit contradictory? You guys may be a bit unfair here. Honda aims to bring a top-notch Crossover to the market with a convenient automatic transmission and a planted 4WD system, yet the fuel economy tradeoff is such an issue for you? Then complaining about headroom when you have an impinging sunroof, and about the rear blindspot, which is present on all crossovers? Please be more reasonable. It's benefits will become evident after spending a few years with it.
My comments are specific to being a 5"4" person. I find visibility merging from left to right lanes is very bad and somewhat dangerous in the 2014 CRV. The side view mirror's wide angle viewing causes terrible distortion for gauging the distance of cars coming up on my right hand side as they are MUCH CLOSER than they appear. To see over the top of the backseat headrest including the lump in the middle I must push upward with my left foot and my weight shifted to the driver's armrest to rise above the blocked view to see out the side and back windows. As for the front seat headrests - the slant of the headrest is so pronounced it pushes against the back of the head forcing my head forward on an un-natural tilt at the neck causing neck and shoulder discomfort. Adjusting the seat to tilt backwards is not an option for shorter persons as reduces visibility over the dash. The flip down sun visors (sun shields) are basically useless as in the 2014 models are extremely small and narrow with huge gap around rearview mirror for dangerous blinding moments of reduced to zero visibility. My model doesn't have electric seats so raising or lowering the driver's seat is a manual pump action that is dangerous while driving and would be too late anyway. The seats are so narrow the floor mounted seatbelt hook digs deeply into my hips. If I had realized the discomfort and bad visibility of this vehicle I would not have purchased it.
We have the 2012 LX Awd version in the same color. We get about 20 mpg average in this vehicle with this recent cold snowy Chicago winter. Our averages are usually 25 most of the time in the city except said cold or extreme cold/snow weather conditions. We have a blast with it in the snow and probably reflects also with said fuel millage. Stable, Predictable And Safe driving dynamics and we love it!
I had a escape After 150000 km nothing but problems //// continuous/// resale value very disappointing. In. 3 years lost. 2 third of its value the rav 4 similar story but better resale l do around 80000km per year the CRV has now done 190000 km no problems due for change but going so well l feel I don't want to change //maybe. Does not have all the latest toys but reliability comfort and. Resale /// l will buy another CRV
My 2014 has been pretty darn good EXCEPT for noisy VTC Actuator issue, fixed under warranty. (about $900 repair). Now my AC twin radiator fans are noisy when they click on, cycling on and off is annoying if I'm standing outside the front end where I can hear it. Headlights are crappy. Very comfortable to drive. Getting 26 mph overall. Burns zero oil, 50K miles on it now.
The RAV4 is reliable, but I drove a 2020 the other day and it still suffers from the same understeer that has plagued Toyota crossover and sedans for many years. It's not a good fit for a driving enthusiast. The 4Runner, on the other hand, drives well for what it is.
Your misuse of you're when it should be your is intriguing as most of those misusing your/you're seem to be of the opposite violation. Bravo to you for going against the grain of the grain!
Nice chapeau. I own this vehicle (2013 EX AWD) and consistently get 29-30 MPG, and i'm on Fuelly to prove it. The reason for the poor MPG came from Melissa's comments. It is "peppy" if you drive it that way, hard starts and an average amount of downshifts will do it. You need to start slower and feather the throttle best you can. Also stay off ECO mode, it didn't really work for me.
I have previous gen CRV - same engine - same mileage all year long. It's simply too small engine for this car. Europe has the same model with diesel - wish we had it here too. The best I ever got was 26mpg on a long highway trip with 4 ppl on board. It's surprising that larger SUV's get the same numbers offering more space and better engine.
I test drove all three pretty close competitors (cx-5, rav 4 & cr v) but my heart went to the cr v, people complain about dated nav, a 5 speed and some other stuff that a handicap would need. But cr v has the most smoothest transmission of all three. I bought the lx trim since I dont need a sunroof and I didnt like there nav but there are tons of nav systems out there I can buy.
The MPG assessment is way off. You can say "in mixed driving" but MPG will be largely dependent on how each individual drives. MPG is less of an objective standard because we all are going to drive it differently. Dave obviously has something of a "lead foot" or there is something is wrong with the power train. I regularly get 23-27 mpg in mixed driving in south Florida. Highway will regularly be above 30 mpg.
I have a 2012 CRV ex Awd model. I noticed the mpg isn't as good as advertized,by only for the first 1000 miles or so. I've driven it less than 20,000 miles so far, most of the tanks I get was about 21-24 mpg and those are pretty much 100% local. I have see many CRV owners that has actuator issues. Mine was fixed by dealer free of charge. Personally I like the light steering, sensitive brakes and the sitting height of the front seats. All in all a pretty good small SUV to have. And a good buy if you have small kid. The rear door are designed for loading kids. It is a small by useful SUV.
Excellent review, I'm 6'3" and although I always like more room, I also have the top trim exl and with the adjustable seats, I am comfortable at MAX adjustment. I feel if you were 6'4" you would feel like you needed a touch more adjustment. Now the cons, just 2, excessive road noise and since this is my wifes car. I always want her to be safe, that being said, while at work, she called me with a completely dead battery after being parked for approx 1 hr food shopping with mistakenly leaving the interior light on when car was less than year old. Never happened since but now is always a concern to the point I leave a micro jump pack device in her glove comp. In case.
That real-world gas mileage is pretty shocking. I get 15.5 mixed in my Expedition EL and 17.x with mostly highway. Going up to only 19 wouldn't be enough to justify the massive decrease in cargo space for me.
The problem I have with this vehicle (and I was shopping for a small SUV) is that Honda relies heavily on their reliability. Their features are 5 - 8 years behind. No direct injection, no push button start, only a 5 speed auto trans, pretty basic navi/sound system, no self park, no adaptive cruise control, etc.
I'm surprised at how basic the American CRV is. The New Zealand CRV SPORT has sunroof, HID headlights with washers, reverse camera, front and rear park sensors, push button start and proximity key, auto headlights and wipers, lane departure warning and collision mitigation system, adaptive cruise, adaptive headlights and folding wing mirrors with integrated indicator repeaters.
I have to say that my 2014 CRV AWD is not getting the gas mileage I am use too. I traded my 2012 CRV AWD. It was doing 4-5 MPG better than the 2014. I have complained, but they say I have to give it time to get better. My 2012, started off doing well, so I have no idea what waiting is going to do for it!
Great review, Melissa adds a good dynamic and mentions things not always covered in other reviews, keep up the great work Dave the no BS approach works well.
The fuel economy is affected heavily by winter conditions. They were probably driving in show and slush most of the time. Additionally, winter gas formulations alone can cost you 5% drop in fuel economy. EPA ratings barely take into account snow, cold weather, and winter fuel.
We just bought this exact year crv with 66,000km but a touring edition to use for a toad. This is the last year made you can flat tow behind a motorhome. We named it "tick" cause it sticks to our mh.
I have absolutely no idea why or how these reviewers are getting just 19.2 mpg. My mom's 2012 CR-V EX-L AWD is basically the same exact car they are testing (doesn't have the nav and has gray interior instead of black interior) but it gets 25.2 mpg when I drive it (50/50 mixed driving). Since my mom drives like a grandma, she gets 26+ mpg. It breaks my heart to see all these people dropping the CR-V from their shopping lists just because of these guys happened to return horrible mpg on their tester when in reality, the CR-V is an excellent real world car. For people still looking around for a car like this, don't count it out. It still ranks number one in its class on U.S. News Car Rankings. Just do more research.
Dave, let me give you a compliment. I have seen yor channel for a while and you rock brother! And give to Melissa my compliments too, she's gorgeous and have very good opinions! Congratulation from Brazil!
Claudio de Lima Fontoura Junior - Thank you very much. Our goal is the be the GO-TO channel on RU-vid for the very best, high quality, professionally produced, detailed car reviews! Anything you can do to share our videos and channel with other car enthusiasts is appreciated - Dave
I wonder if something is wrong with this particular car, to get gas mileage that low. I just test drove this car last weekend, and I loved it. Sort of. Lots of rear passenger space, great cargo area, and I loved the button to automatically lower the rear seat. This is the perfect car for my Great Danes. The dash doesn’t have any pizzaz, but it does have what you need in a well-organized layout. My favorite part? The front cargo area between the driver and passenger seat. Finally, a place to put my purse! Every car needs this. I loved this car. Until I drove it. And then I quickly fell out of love with this 4 cylinder CRV. If it had a 6 cylinder option, I might have walked away with a new car.
I am very close to purchasing a 2014 CRV. I want an EX but will probably only be able to do the LX. I am a little worried about what's under the hood. I do like a little power. But I love the design (especially the backs) and have to make some concessions. Any advice or things I should know? Thanks a lot.
I have a 2012 with 116,000 miles, about half city. I've had no issue with the power, to my surprise, and the mileage has actually improved with time and a switch to higher pressure tires and full synthetic oil. While it's not a drag racer, I've found there is plenty of pep when needed on a highway merge.
i have the 2014 manual gearbox (stickshift) 2ltr petrol (gas for you in america) and i do have a bit of a lead foot and i am getting 24 - 30 mpg around the city and motor way is 30 - 37 mpg depending on my driving ;) i have a cetral storage box between the front and rear seats that moves forward for resting my arm on
I heard your every woman say she wanted a six cylinder vehicle, and better gas mileage. I understand women well enough to know they won't always carry logic into the conversation. But you both failed to point out the Economy button. The Econ button works well around town and our CR-V gives us close to 30 MPG in town. You also did not mention the D3 gear that pumps up the RPM for driving in hills, or steep areas like we have in Utah. It also give you that peppy get up and go when needed, but if you use it constantly, and it looked like that was what you might have been doing for that lousy gas mileage you can expect lousy gas mileage if you are using the D3 for anything but where it is intended. I recommend the Honda CR-V or Comfort Ride Vehicle, to everyone.
CRV reliability is untouchable. The interior can be little better, but it will be receiving an upgrade very soon. Honda is going through a transition phase in terms of Interior design. They have developed the foundation such as smartphone sync with thirty party apps to download. Soon, buyers will able to mirror smartphones and third party apps will completely take the system to a next level. Imagine free GPS, free music streaming and download and one click maintenance appointment with coupon integration. It would be nice to see an average fuel consumption with respect to the average speed for a year in new Honda models though. I always wonder that how many gallons i burned in a year :(
Absolutely not true on mpg for all 2014 CRV's. I get 25 when driving 80% city - and higher when driving more combo city/highway after having mine for a year. I do love mine - handled great (AWD) in midwest winter. He is correct on headroom - very roomy - I do not like the caged in feel so this was a huge sell for me - especially w/ the lighter gray interior. My back seats do not lay as flat as his in video - but it did easily fit 19 bags of mulch (12 - 2 cu ft and 7 - 1.2 cu ft). Cargo tray is a must - would be nice to have one that flips back to cover entire rear area. My plan is to keep it - very happy - biggest sell is safety rating, reliability, comfort/ride, gas savings & looks great. Mine is not loaded & I'm leasing for under $250 a month - GREAT deal for a new SUV.
You probably forgot to put it in ECON mode for the gas mileage. I consistently get above 31 MPG on the highway while in ECON mode. Although putting it in ECON mode will affect performance.
She said she uses it for going to shops and running short distances. With any car, driving it short distances will result in a poor MPG. Its because of the number of cold starts, and low traveling speeds. Low speeds means, the lower gears will be used, hence reduced economy.
My beat up old '07 Santa Fe with V6 FWD gets 22avg MPG [97K on the clock], would love a AWD similar size new vehicle...BUT why would I go into debt again for basically the same mileage? When a gas crossover comes out that I can get a solid 30 MPG average on I'll buy again.
My 99 CR-V gets better than 19. What gives? Is Jeremy Clarkson doing the "real world" driving? When I rented a 2012, I was getting about 24mpg mixed highway/city mostly city in weaving around shitty Houston traffic. I find the 19mpg in this video a little bogus. I'm sure you COULD get 19, hell I'm sure you could get 9. Hell, I'm sure you could get 29. Driving style is driving style. I kind of preferred it back when the CR-V's had the FULL SIZE spare on the OUTSIDE of the vehicle. Under the rear cargo hold was a waterproof area I've used to store wet items, clothing, shoes, ice and soda :D, and the picnic table I've actually used on occasion So I don't like the idea of the new ones having a MINI spare on the INSIDE losing some of that convenience and space.
I been getting 31-32 mpg highway, and I seen it as low as 22 mpg mix driving. One funny thing I notice one morning warming up my crv, the mpg display show me that while idling it will decrease the mpg about one mpg per minute just for idling in place. I enjoy driving my new crv!
I get lower average fuel milage in winter because I warm the car up before getting to drive. It's amazing how five minutes twice a day of the car running but not moving will bring down your fuel milage. Is this a possibility?
One piece of advice for your 'Everywoman' counterpart. PLEASE keep at least one hand on the wheel, and stop turning around in the seat to look backwards while you're moving! She took both hands off the wheel at least four times, and not only looked to the side while moving, turned all the way around in the seat to look in the back while driving forward. I thought you were going to test the crash worthiness of the car.
Complained about fuel economy but never once mentioned the ECO feature that adjust the four components (throttle, transmission, cruise, A/C) to get extraordinary gas mileage.
I know that 2012 was the redesign and 2013 allowed for blue tooth on all models (not just higher models), but I was wondering what is different on the 2014 from the 2013? I heard the 2015 is going to be another carryover.
My 2012 has bluetooth that works great. I use it everyday for phone and internet radio from my phone. Maybe that came with the trim level? Not sure as I bought it used. So far my only issue was a sticking rear brake caliper which I replaced. Very good car.
well....I love Melissa comment on the arm rest. These are very true comment and 99% people test drive won't notice it due to the short length of time. I am sure she drove the CRV for 200+miles. Hope to see Melissa and Dave test drive Rav 4.
Alan Pak the captains chair arm rests are one of the main reasons I chose this over other models. Disappointed Honda removed them and hope they bring them back, May upgrade if they do?
The graphics on the navigation system seem archaic and do not match the small iMid screen in the center of the dash.. that kind of bugs me for a vehicle that has a price close to $30,000.00.
Hyundai is stepping up with decent looking cars at much less than this dino. Not to mention this dino looks even more boring than Accord and Corolla ... Mazda 3 and also at similar pricing the Mazda6 both have so much better designs.
Even with lots of bias, I agree, the navi sucks on the 2014. Thankfully they anounced the 2015 will come with the newer system, and fixing most of the annoying things about the CR-V.
Probably been like that since last 10 years…had an 07 EX L V6 accord with NAV and now a 16 CRV, I get the same feel. It’s time for Honda to update the graphics on their NAV. BTW they do charge for navigation updates every few years….shocking since you actually don’t need nav when you have the phone😮
I really don't understand what this guy is talking about when it comes to 19 miles per gallon. was he driving like a race car driving? maybe the all wheel drive has somethinug to do with it. This little bit of misinformation gave me pause. But i wound up buying a front wheel drive cr v anyway. and it gets 28.5 miles per gallon in mixed driving. So, i have no idea what he's talking about. It's a great car. oh, and people. do your research. they changed the crv in 2012. it used to get worse gas mileage.
Not sure where you live but winter reduces MPG quite a bit in snow/ice areas. I had a 2007 CRV and got around 27 - 30 MPG but winter did affect it quite a bit. I think if they tested more in the warmer season it would change quite a bit.
I bought a 2014 CRV in the summer. When I drove, it said i was driving efficiently. I always used my Eco button. I got 18 MPG. I traded my CRV in for a 2015 Nissan Rogue and am getting much better fuel economy.
My 2012 AWD got in the 22's in the winter in Pittsburgh (hilly and snowy). In Grand Rapids now getting 24 to 25 in town and as much as 33 on the highway. Changed to full synthetic oil (dealer used to use a blend?) and keeping the tires fully inflated seems to boost mileage significantly.
great review dave. different dynamic with you and melissa compared to your reviews with the your male co-reviewer. as a guy I'm always surprised by how women see/feel things differently then men (though I understand that melissa and you are a small sample set). For example - melissa focused more on the cuv's 'safety rating' and like some other women I know - she seems to like bigger cuvs/suvs and bigger engines even though it's clear from the video that she has loads of head room in the honda (much more than you and you remarked on the roominess). she also comments that it's 'peppy' but states a preference for more powerful 6 cylinder cars/cuvs. same non sequitur with her focus on price and fuel economy, but her preference for bigger, more expensive and less fuel efficient mid and full size cuvs/suvs. I know so many diminutive women who love sitting up high and driving suburbans and other bigger suvs. I think it makes them feel safe or something. bottom line is that men and women see/process the world differently a lot of times. btw - the fuel economy thing is interesting - don't know whether the high altitude and winter driving had anything to do with the low #s, but don't think you've had the some issue with the mazda cx-5 for example. also interesting that honda has delayed putting in one of it's new 'earth dream' engines into the the civics and the crv and/or any of their new more efficient trannies like they've done for the accord. guess if their still selling like hot cakes honda doesn't feel the need to up their game even though they obviously could.
There are problems with third windows, the power very low, not enough power especially at entrance highway take off, AC compressor, water leaking insides from foot both sides, and transmission issue.
Many people have responded this way - she said if she was going to go from a larger more powerful vehicle to a smaller she would expect better gas mileage for a smaller vehicle.. Glad I could sort this out 4 years later. lol
I was a little disappointed in the review. The CRV has always had problems with road noise. My wife has a 2004 CRV and you can hardly hear the radio because of the road noise. One of the things Honda has improved was the road noise but nary a mention of it in your review.
The 2014 CR-V is still better in Europe and Japan with stuff like push button start, power tailgate, HID headlights with LED daytime running lights and 18 inch wheels.
WAIT A MIN! HOW COME THIS 2014 HONDA CR-V DOES NOT HAVE THE KEY FOB WHERE YOU CAN OPEN THE HOOD BY ROMOTE AND HAVE A BUTTON ON THE DOOR TO AUTOMICALLY CLOSED BY ITSELF BY A PUSH OF THE BUTTON, BUT THIS VIDEO ON THIS LINK SHOWS THIS 2014 HONDA CR-V DOES HAVE THOSE FEATURES ->>> ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-1nqHenVcA80.html....
Quite possibly the weakest 4WD system to come to anything called an "SUV". Not only that, but any weight in the rear cargo are will cause the rear wheels to sag like crazy. Wait scratch that, the rear independent suspension can barely even support its own weight. You see completely empty CR-V's with excessive rear camber lean which probably chew through tires in under 20,000 miles if you're even that lucky. It's almost as bad as the Honda Element which again - another SUV based on the Civic platform and Civic suspension just couldn't support its own weight without the rear wheels sagging excessively and destroying your tires despite rotations. Compare this to the Subaru Forester which also has an independent rear suspension but fully loaded has minimum lean in the rear. A much better suspension, and a much better 4WD system, which is actually an AWD system offering 80/20 split with the auto/CVT model. As a result, you can actually tow much better if that is something you wish to do