The next time you’re out on the road, look around and count how many Honda CR-Vs you pass. There’s a good chance it’s going to be several. It may be so many that you lose count. Or the CR-Vs may just blur into the background because all six generations of Honda’s perennially popular SUV make up so much of it already.
In an April press release, the automaker said, “The Honda CR-V is America’s best-selling SUV over the last 25 years and continues to set sales records, surpassing 400,000 units last year – an all-time best for the model. Increasing sales of hybrid-electric vehicles is key to the Honda electrification strategy. And led by CR-V, hybrids now represent 30% of all Honda brand sales. CR-V also is America’s best-selling crossover since 1997 and the best-selling Honda vehicle every year since 2017.”
What makes the CR-V such a common sight is that it’s so…common. That’s not a bad thing. Not every SUV has to – or should – be a rugged body-on-frame rig with front and rear lockers and knobby tires or a high-riding rocket car that can shoot a family of four and their dog around a track in record time. Some people just want an attractive vehicle that’s affordable, comfortable, and practical. Clearly, millions of buyers have found that in the CR-V for the past quarter of a century. With a base price of $30,100 and fuel economy as high as 43 mpg in the city, the 2025 hybrid model should continue the CR-V’s streak of uncommon ubiquity.
An all-new, longer, and wider CR-V arrived in the 2023 model with new styling that visually connected it to the 11th-generation Civic. Its quieter and more spacious cabin came equipped with new standard infotainment and safety features. Updates under the hood further refined the 1.5-liter turbo I4 and added torque to the more responsive two-motor hybrid system. Honda also found ways to make the gas engine’s CVT transmission and the available Real Time All-Wheel Drive system operate more quietly. A new Sport-L model with black accents, leather seats, and thoughtful standard convenience features joined the hybrid lineup in 2024.
The CR-V goes into 2025 unchanged with a lineup that includes the LX, EX, and EX-L gas models and the Sport, Sport-L, and Sport Touring hybrids. Our Sport Touring test vehicle came standard with glossy black 19-inch wheels, a hands-free power liftgate, Real-Time AWD, a heated leather-wrapped steering wheel, a 12-speaker Bose audio system, a Wi-Fi hotspot, navigation, and a nine-inch infotainment system touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Its only option was the $455 Urban Gray Pearl paint, which brought its as-tested price up to $42,605, well below the average price of $48,641 for a new vehicle. That kind of money buys you an SUV that goes straight down the middle of the road, checking a lot of boxes along the way.
You’ll never mistake the CR-V for a more expensive vehicle (the way you might with a glance at the 2025 Hyundai Santa Fe), but Honda didn’t try to make it look like anything else. Even with the 2023 redesign, the CR-V is still undeniably a CR-V, neither totally bland nor tastelessly over-styled.
There was a similar modesty to the CR-V’s Black leather interior, but certain flourishes kept it from being boring, such as honeycomb-style HVAC vents and metallic dials with textured grip rings for the dual-zone climate control system. The Sport Touring’s long list of standard comfort and convenience features made every drive more pleasant and less stressful. Its full roster of Honda Sensing Technologies, which includes Adaptive Cruise Control with Low-Speed Follow, the Collision Mitigation Braking System, and eight other electronic safety nets, added peace of mind.
On the road, the MacPherson strut front and multilink rear suspension struck a commute-friendly balance between cushy and firm. Thanks to its heated, fatigue-reducing Body Stabilizing Seats in the front row and ample legroom in the reclining second row, the CR-V was comfortable for everyone inside. Folding the back row flat almost doubled the available cargo room from 34.7 to 76.5 cubic feet, which was plenty for hauling bulky housewares to Goodwill.
As its name indicates, the two-motor hybrid system consists of a pair of electric motors, which Honda combines with a direct-injected 2.0-liter I4 that produces 145 horsepower and 138 lb-ft of torque, and a lithium-ion battery. Total output is 204 horsepower and channeled through an E-CVT (Electronic Continuously Variable Transmission). Right foot down, the CR-V accelerated with a satisfying urgency that never felt manic. That restraint helped it make good on its fuel economy promises. According to the window sticker for our review vehicle, it was capable of returning 40 mpg in the city, 34 on the highway, and 37 combined. After 247.1 miles, the onboard gauge showed we had averaged 37.9 mpg.
There are droves of CR-Vs out there, but if you want to see 2025 Sport Touring Hybrid we evaluated and learn more about it, watch our full video review below.
