WELCOME TO OUR LONG-TERM HONDA CR-V SPORT 7

We kick off the new year with a new long-termer, a Honda CR-V Sport 7. Fun times ahead, we promise.

Think Honda, and what comes next? Civic, NSX and Integra Type R all rank up there in popular opinion. Maybe Accord, or Honda’s dominant Marlboro 1980s Formula 1 race cars of Senna and Prost? Can’t forget the S2000 either. . . maybe something quirky like a Honda Beat, or the ageing but iconic CRX.

All of these cars are icons for the brand, but can you name all five badges in the current Honda range? Unless you’re a Honda dealer, we’d guess possibly not.

Comparatively and anecdotally speaking, the Honda CR-V barely gets any relative love. Now in its 26th year and fifth generation, the current face-lifted model that we have in 2021 continues to show longevity, but what’s exciting about a CR-V? Exactly. And that’s largely our point – it’s hardly alone in the category of efficient but unexciting medium SUVs, but we want to change that, after considering that while a Civic Type R is great for a fling, the kids and shopping would be happier in something a little more practical. But that doesn’t mean life has to end, either.

We considered that the CR-V is worth a closer look and a little more time. With a starting price of $40,990 for the CR-V Touring, the four-model range peaks at $52,990 for the AWD Sport Premium – we’ve elected to spend a few months getting to know the only seven-seater in the range, the $48,990 Sport 7.

All variants run the same 1.5-litre VTEC Turbo petrol four-cylinder that’s quite happy to sip 91 octane and claim 7.3-7.4l/100km of economy. All CR-Vs feature the Honda Sensing range of electronic driver and safety aids – including Adaptive Cruise Control, Low Speed Follow and Lane Departure Warning, among more active safety features like Lane Watch

Camera and Trailer Stability Assist.

Other tech includes a threeangle reversing camera with dynamic parking aid, plus front and rear sensors, remote window operation and automatic walkaway door locking.

Not forgetting the passive niceties such as 10 cupholders (in the Sport 7), and the conversation mirror that pops down from the sunglasses holder in the roof.

We’ll spend a few months with a mix of motorway and suburban miles to see how the claims stack up in the real world, both for normal commuting and with a load up to the capacity of seven, and see how the gearbox fares. . . are you ready for its full title? The Earth Dreams Automatic Continuously Variable Transmission with G-Design shift; let’s just call it a CVT.

As the medium-sized but largest SUV in the Honda range, CR-V is larger than its HR-V sibling, but slots just under the Odyssey people mover, so it has plenty of strong-selling competition:

Toyota’s RAV4, Kia’s Sportage, Mitsubishi’s Outlander, Hyundai’s Tucson, and Nissan’s X-Trail to name just a few.

What does the Honda offer as USPs? That’s what we plan to discover as we rack up the kilometres in our appliance-white NAB197. But more than that, we want to showcase some adventure and excitement in what could be considered a rather sedate SUV: call it “Fun in a Family Car”; from