Test drove the new redesigned 2023 CRV

3050 Views 14 Replies 9 Participants Last post by Chief65, 6 mo ago

Gatorgibson

Discussion Starter · 6 mo ago

Stopped by my local dealership today while out running some errands. First thing I noticed is their lot was pretty full which kinda shocked me, guess the chip shortage is getting better.
They had a demo 2023 loaded CRV so I thought wth, I wanted to test drive it to see what all the fuss was about with the redesigned 2023.
Likes:
Front end and rear looks really good compared to the outgoing model
Seats are much better all around and the rear seats recline twice as much as my passport seats
The ride and smoothness of the ecvt transmission was nice
I'm 6'1 and 215 and had plenty of room in the back seat.
Dislikes:
No headup display available
No panoramic roof
No cooled seats
Standard stick shift changer
Lack of storage bins
No 360 camera available
All in all a very nice vehicle but Honda and the lack of available tech options are a head scratcher.

Reactions: 5

1 - 15 of 15 Posts

jasonpp

· #2 · 6 mo ago

Gatorgibson said:
Stopped by my local dealership today while out running some errands. First thing I noticed is their lot was pretty full which kinda shocked me, guess the chip shortage is getting better.
They had a demo 2023 loaded CRV so I thought wth, I wanted to test drive it to see what all the fuss was about with the redesigned 2023.
Likes:
Front end and rear looks really good compared to the outgoing model
Seats are much better all around and the rear seats recline twice as much as my passport seats
The ride and smoothness of the ecvt transmission was nice
I'm 6'1 and 215 and had plenty of room in the back seat.
Dislikes:
No headup display available
No panoramic roof
No cooled seats
Standard stick shift changer
Lack of storage bins
No 360 camera available
All in all a very nice vehicle but Honda and the lack of available tech options are a head scratcher.

I wouldn't consider shift knob a con. I personally don't like the button selector on the Passport.

Reactions: 4

lvdukerider

· #3 · 6 mo ago

jasonpp said:
I wouldn't consider shift knob a con. I personally don't like the button selector on the Passport.

I was thinking the same thing, I'm getting used to the push button shifting and it does free up space in the vehicle, but I worry if the push buttons fail and the car needs to be moved, pulled, or towed with a strap in an emergency. I don't like the idea of needing special tools or gizmos just to get the vehicle in neutral. Even more perplexing is Honda left the Passport/Trailsport with a manual mechanical foot brake, (which I view as a positive thing), with all the other tech and safety nannies built in to the vehicle it just seems contradictory.

Reactions: 2

jasonpp

· #4 · 6 mo ago

lvdukerider said:
I was thinking the same thing, I'm getting used to the push button shifting and it does free up space in the vehicle, but I worry if the push buttons fail and the car needs to be moved, pulled, or towed with a strap in an emergency. I don't like the idea of needing special tools or gizmos just to get the vehicle in neutral. Even more perplexing is Honda left the Passport/Trailsport with a manual mechanical foot brake, (which I view as a positive thing), with all the other tech and safety nannies built in to the vehicle it just seems contradictory.

You don't know how the shifter on the CR-V is configured either. It's possible it's the same park by wire system like on the Passport. Having a mechanical shifter doesn't mean the mechanism is mechanical.

lvdukerider

· #5 · 6 mo ago

jasonpp said:
You don't know how the shifter on the CR-V is configured either. It's possible it's the same park by wire system like on the Passport. Having a mechanical shifter doesn't mean the mechanism is mechanical.

Yes that is a very good point indeed, if that's the case I'll just learn to love my buttons.😁

JLH

· #6 · 6 mo ago

lvdukerider said:
I was thinking the same thing, I'm getting used to the push button shifting and it does free up space in the vehicle, but I worry if the push buttons fail and the car needs to be moved, pulled, or towed with a strap in an emergency. I don't like the idea of needing special tools or gizmos just to get the vehicle in neutral. Even more perplexing is Honda left the Passport/Trailsport with a manual mechanical foot brake, (which I view as a positive thing), with all the other tech and safety nannies built in to the vehicle it just seems contradictory.

They've been using push button shift selectors on semis & mid sized trucks with auto trannies for decades without issues. Chrysler & AMC cars had both mechanical & electrical pushbutton shifters in the 50's & 60's. I doubt they'll be a problem & if they do fail they'll be easy to replace. Yeh they're a couple seconds slower to shift than a shift lever, but we ain't driving NASCAR...

Reactions: 3

jasonpp

· #7 · 6 mo ago

JLH said:
They've been using push button shift selectors on semis & mid sized trucks with auto trannies for decades without issues. Chrysler & AMC cars had both mechanical & electrical pushbutton shifters in the 50's & 60's. I doubt they'll be a problem & if they do fail they'll be easy to replace. Yeh they're a couple seconds slower to shift than a shift lever, but we ain't driving NASCAR...

I don't mind them if they are in a more visible location. I hate needing to look down to see the buttons.

Gatorgibson

Discussion Starter · #8 · 6 mo ago

That is the least of my grips, it's more the other options that are not available but hey, got a very reliable drive train across the board so there's that 😁

Reactions: 3

lvdukerider

· #9 · 6 mo ago

JLH said:
They've been using push button shift selectors on semis & mid sized trucks with auto trannies for decades without issues. Chrysler & AMC cars had both mechanical & electrical pushbutton shifters in the 50's & 60's. I doubt they'll be a problem & if they do fail they'll be easy to replace. Yeh they're a couple seconds slower to shift than a shift lever, but we ain't driving NASCAR...

Yea I'm not super concerned I'm sure Honda isn't going to produce unreliable push button shifting that's going to fail.
I still remember the old push button Chrysler's and AMC's, those were a little more problematic but those were from a completely different era of automotive manufacturing. ( Back when Honda Civic's were prone to rust). 🤣

Janizary

· #10 · 6 mo ago

jasonpp said:
I wouldn't consider shift knob a con. I personally don't like the button selector on the Passport.

Yep. My one big dislike. They made a system whereby I can't put the car in N with turning it on or buying a $170 tool that should have come with the vehicle.

Reactions: 1

fx_chip

· #11 · 6 mo ago (Edited)

Janizary said:
Yep. My one big dislike. They made a system whereby I can't put the car in N with turning it on or buying a $170 tool that should have come with the vehicle.

Same here on this, given the choice I will pick a car with a traditional shifter but I think the auto industry is suggesting that in a few years if we need an actual traditional shifter that is directly attached to the transmission we will have to buy a manual transmission car.
Like most people I can live with the button shifter Honda uses and I also like the joystick (monostable) shifter in some competitors, they look like a traditional shifter but have no direct connection to the transmission so they are basically the digital relatives of the button shifter, with same limitations. What I can absolutely not stand are the dial or rotary shifters in some Land Rover and Ford SUVs and the electronic parking brake everyone seems to be switching to now, other than the fact that it's one more expensive thing to repair when it fails, I like the ability to determine the holding strength and the firmness of the brakes when I apply the parking brake with my left foot or my right hand.

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Reactions: 3

Janizary

· #12 · 6 mo ago

fx_chip said:
What I can absolutely not stand are the .....electronic parking brake everyone seems to be switching to now,

That was a dislike I had in my Outback and in my wife's CRV. Electronic parking brakes are evil.

Reactions: 1

Tadakatsu

· #13 · 6 mo ago

Janizary said:
That was a dislike I had in my Outback and in my wife's CRV. Electronic parking brakes are evil.

I actually really liked that feature in both the 2018 and 2021 Outbacks I have had, it is actually one feature I wish I had on my 2021 Passport.

14v6

· #14 · 6 mo ago

That tech is necessary for low speed follow. It's probably better anyway, no more cables and shoes/hat rotors for the parking brake

Chief65

· #15 · 6 mo ago

fx_chip said:
Same here on this, given the choice I will pick a car with a traditional shifter but I think the auto industry is suggesting that in a few years if we need an actual traditional shifter that is directly attached to the transmission we will have to buy a manual transmission car.
Like most people I can live with the button shifter Honda uses and I also like the joystick (monostable) shifter in some competitors, they look like a traditional shifter but have no direct connection to the transmission so they are basically the digital relatives of the button shifter, with same limitations. What I can absolutely not stand are the dial or rotary shifters in some Land Rover and Ford SUVs and the electronic parking brake everyone seems to be switching to now, other than the fact that it's one more expensive thing to repair when it fails, I like the ability to determine the holding strength and the firmness of the brakes when I apply the parking brake with my left foot or my right hand.

I personally have no problems with the rotary shifter in many JLR vehicles. What I dislike however is the 'joystick' style shifter which is electronic but is tricky to put into neutral which is what my Land Rover Defender had in it. It worked such that if you were in drive and had to put it into neutral in a car wash for example it was extremely likely that when you pushed the stick forward it would pass over neutral completely and go directly into reverse. The rotary dial shifter in many other Land Rover, Range Rovers and Jaguars has no issue like that. Honda's system with the push buttons is a welcome change from my Defender. Neutral has it's own button. (sigh of relief)

Reactions: 3

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