From the swing-out tailgate of yesteryear to today’s optional third row of seating, the Honda CR-V interior has come a long way. We review the significant changes over its generations.
The Honda CR-V is one of the most successful crossovers in history. After two decades and millions of vehicles sold, this SUV shows no signs of slowing down. Over the years, the CR-V has evolved considerably, and its interior has changed as well, from the seats to the onboard entertainment system.
The very first CR-V vehicles only offered cloth seats and a stereo with a cassette player. The newest CR-V, the 2020 model, is available with a third row of leather seating and comes standard with a suite of high-tech driver aids. From a folding picnic table to Bluetooth, we will outline all the changes to the interior of Honda’s popular compact crossover sport utility vehicle.
1997-2006: A Revolutionary Budget-friendly Vehicle
Launched for 1997, the Honda CR-V was an affordable crossover engineered to drive like a car. According to Car and Driver, the new vehicle had more in common with the Honda Civic AWD station wagon than any contemporary SUV. Still, with its tall greenhouse, flat floors, fold-flat rear seat and tailgate-mounted spare tire, the CR-V boasted more interior space than a Jeep Grand Cherokee.
Honda offered a few extra options for the early, budget-friendly CR-V. All interiors were cloth, featured dual front airbags, A/C, cruise control, a cassette player, power windows, power door locks, and power mirrors. The rear end featured a top-hinged glass hatch and a swing-out tailgate.
The CR-V would prove to be a bestseller among entry-level SUVs during 1998, 1999, and 2000. By 2000, Honda offered the base-level LX and the upmarket EX, which featured ABS, remote keyless entry, and a CD player—according to New Car Test Drive.
Mid-year, Honda dropped the 2000 CR-V Special Edition (SE) with privacy glass, leather-wrapped steering wheel, leather-trimmed seats, and a nifty folding picnic table.
For 2002, Honda unveiled a second-generation CR-V, which Car and Driver reviewed and called “improved in all areas.” The new crossover featured a more compact rear suspension setup which increased interior space to 72 cu. ft. Honda elevated the rear bench seat slightly to give passengers a better view.
All second-generation CR-Vs had a stereo, thoughtfully mounted in the driver’s natural line of sight, that featured a CD player. They also all had a tiny folding picnic table, a folding rear armrest, rear-seat heater ducts, rear accessory outlets, and a lockable glove compartment.
The top trim was the 2002 CR-V EX with its privacy glass, power moonroof, remote keyless entry, six-speaker sound system, six-disc CD changer, and ABS.
Honda upgraded the second-generation CR-V with a 2005 mid-cycle redesign. The EX trim-level received steering-wheel-mounted audio controls, an XM-radio-ready stereo, an electric sunroof, and revamped interior storage.
The CR-V’s rethought interior featured a storage compartment in the center console, a shelf above the glovebox, and a folding table between the front seats.
Honda also brought back the SE trim level, which added heated leather-trimmed seats and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. Motor Trend awarded the 2005 Honda CR-V “Best Overall Value of the Year.”
2007-2011: A Modern Crossover Hatchback
As the CR-V turned 10, Honda launched a third generation of the compact SUV—in time for the 2007 model year. The new CR-V did away with quirks such as the side-hinged rear door and folding picnic table in favor of a more conventional rear liftgate or hatch, hinged at the top of the car. For this reason, Honda mounted the donut-sized spare tire under the trunk and shortened the wheelbase.
The CR-V still had a flat floor and a folding table rather than a console between the driver and front passenger. Motor Trend said that despite its small size, “the (2007) CR-V feels very large inside.”
Reviewers appreciated the shelf above the glovebox, the well-engineered two-tier cargo hold, and the openness between the console and the dash made possible by the flat floor.
All third-generation CR-Vs also featured a four-speaker stereo with a CD player and auxiliary input jack. New for the generation were a maintenance reminder system, under-seat storage bins, a rear seat monitoring mirror/sunglass holder, and ambient console lighting.
The top trim of the third generation was the 2007 CR-V EX-L. The L stood for “leather,” and it was the first CR-V with fully leather seats. This loaded vehicle also had a security system. Navigation and a multi-speaker stereo with a subwoofer were optional on the EX-L.
The next mid-generation facelift arrived in 2010. The CR-V received upgraded cloth for the cloth seats. According to Top Speed, most of the other improvements were to the radio functions and controls: A USB audio input became standard for all CR-Vs.
Honda also widened the armrests and changed the instrument cluster backlighting to blue. Bluetooth was exclusive to the EX-L models that owners had ordered with the navigation package. Auto on/off headlights also came standard on the 2010 EX-L. Some owners shared air-conditioning-related complaints about their 2010 CR-Vs.
2012-2016: Bluetooth & Other Tech as Standard
The fourth-generation CR-V arrived in showrooms in 2012. The previous CR-V had been such a success, selling over 200,000 units a year, that Honda limited itself to slight improvements for the fourth generation.
The New CR-V was one inch shorter but featured an additional 1.5 cu. ft. of interior space and a five-inch longer cargo floor. Honda also did away with the flat floor and folding table between the driver and front passenger in favor of a more conventional center console. CR-Vs began to come standard with green-tinted heat-rejecting glass.
According to Motor Trend, Honda leaned heavily on electronic features with its fourth generation of the CR-V. All 2012 and later CR-Vs came with Bluetooth connectivity, infotainment screens with SMS text messaging software, Pandora internet radio, interior lighting customization, and a multi-angle rearview camera.
In 2015 Honda completed a major redesign of its CR-V, and Car and Driver swooned: “Inside, richer-looking materials surround new features.”
One of these features was Honda’s cutting-edge seven-inch touch-sensitive and swipe-sensitive screen at the center of the top-trim CR-V’s infotainment center. Check it out in action in the Kelley Blue Book video review, below, of the 2016 CR-V.
The new top-trim 2015 CR-V Touring also offered a power liftgate and a suite of “Honda Sensing” driver aid technologies.
These technologies included adaptive cruise control, LaneWatch, forward-collision warning, collision-mitigation-braking, and a Lane Keeping Assist System which uses active steering to keep the car in its lane for 90 seconds without driver input.
2017-present: The Seven-seat CR-V
The fifth-generation CR-V debuted for the 2017 model year. Honda offered fifth-generation CR-Vs in either a traditional five-seat configuration or an unprecedented seven-seat configuration.
Another new option was four-way power lumbar support for the driver’s seat. Also, standard was a power rear liftgate, a large center storage bin, increased rear storage, and legroom thanks to a longer wheelbase, and twin USB ports for the back seat.
All fifth-generation CR-Vs also featured a seven-inch touch screen while bringing back the traditional volume knob; Honda programmed them with Android Auto and Apple Carplay.
Car and Driver called the dashboard “pleasantly upscale” and approved of Honda’s bravery showcased in the cutting-edge digital instrument cluster. EX, EX-L, and Touring trim levels from 2017 onward offered the expanding technology suite of the “Honda Sensing” package.
For the 2020 model year, Honda revamped the fifth-generation CR-V. Much of Honda’s engineering resources went into the all-new CR-V Hybrid edition. The hybrid CR-V even received push-button transmission controls.
According to Car and Driver, the rest of the lineup enjoyed a continued feature creep: all 2020 and later CR-Vs include the “Honda Sensing” driver assistance suite, which now included autonomous braking with pedestrian detection and traffic-sign recognition.
In addition, the 2020 and later CR-V Touring boasted wireless phone charging, navigation, and an audio system upgrade.
Check out the newest Honda CR-V in the vehicle History gallery below.
Photos: Honda
