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In a sign of the times, the Honda CR-V now only comes with a self charging hybrid engine. That change of focus comes along with a light update inside and out. Otherwise though, essential character of this fifth generation design hasn't changed. Nor has its primary rival, the Toyota RAV4.

Market and Model

Extra technology has to be accompanied by plumper pricing, which is why the CR-V range now starts from just over £30,000. A few extra items of equipment are added in here to sugar the pill, including smarter 18-inch alloy wheels and, on the flagship 'EX' spec, standard wireless smartphone charging. There's a choice of five trim levels, 'S', 'SE', 'SR', 'Sport Line' and 'EX'. Even base 'S' models get full-LED headlamps, an 8-speaker DAB audio system and powered lumbar support. The most obvious rival to this car is the similarly priced Toyota RAV4 hybrid; you might also consider HEV hybrid versions of the Kia Sportage and the Hyundai Tucson. All other class contenders use either nominal mild hybrid technology, or pricey plug-in PHEV tech.

All CR-V variants get a very high standard of safety kit, with the 'Honda Sensing' package offering one of the most comprehensive suite of active safety and driver assistive technologies in the class, combining radar and camera tech. Included are 'Forward Collision Warning', a 'Collision Mitigating Braking' system, a 'Lane Keep Assist' system, 'Lane Departure Warning', 'Road Departure Mitigation' and 'Traffic Sign Recognition'. The basic design is pretty safe too, thanks to Honda's 'ACE' 'Advanced Compatibility Engineering' body structure design technology, which employs a network of connected structural elements to distribute crash energy more evenly.

Cost of Ownership

Let's get to the WLTP figures. For the 2WD Hybrid model, you're looking at 42.8mpg on the combined cycle and 120g/km of CO2. For the AWD Hybrid that most customers will choose, the stats are 39.8mpg and 126g/km. The overall perspective here is that once you take fuel costs into account and consider real-world efficiency, this Hybrid CR-V will cost about the same to run as the old diesel model - and be far better for the environment. And your overall running costs will be lower if you take this Hybrid's cheaper Benefit-in-Kind taxation into account. Whether all this is sufficient to justify this car's current pricing another question of course. If your annual mileage is relatively low, it may not be.

Honda provides a series of driving tools to help owners maximise possible returns. There's an engine stop/start system of course. In addition, in the 'Trip Computer' section of the 'Vehicle Info' part of the centre-dash Honda Connect screen, there are 'Current Drive' and 'Previous Drive' read-outs, plus average fuel economy and range readings, along with a 'History' section, all of it enabling you to better track your efforts towards frugality.

Summary

This is as sensible s family segment lifestyle-orientated SUV motoring gets. A car for people who look at what a vehicle can do for them rather than what it says about them. End use you see, has been the over-riding design parameter here, not cutting edge styling, clever gadgetry, irrelevant pin-sharp handling or pointlessly powerful engines. As a result, a CR-V Hybrid is an extremely easy thing to live with, the kind of car you'll own, then wonder how you managed without. That may not be a recipe for media headlines but it's an approach that other brands could certainly learn from, explaining why so many CR-Vs are bought by folk who previously owned one.

In summary, we can see why so many global customers will accept nothing less than Honda's interpretation of what an SUV of this kind should be. And what's on offer with this improved petrol/electric version is a model that could conceivably interest many more of them. Ultimately, it remains distinctively different, distinctively... CR-V. Which ultimately, might very well be all you need.

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