HONDA CR-V 1,5T EXCLUSIVE AWD CVT

THE Honda’s mileage has been steadily building and it’s now passed the 20 000 km mark; it arrived with around 2 500 km on the odo, meaning we’ve completed a whole 18 000 km in the past nine months.

As this car needs servicing every 10 000 km – intervals that are shorter than those of its main rivals – I booked the CR-V into Mekor Honda at Cape Town’s Foreshore hub of dealerships, not too far from CAR’S of ces. It was a positive owner experience: rstly, because the service centre was able to accommodate me within two days of calling; and, secondly, it offered me a drive back to the of ce (not always a given, even with premium brands).

I asked the service team to grease the doors and reset a faulty tyre sensor, and the CR-V was vacuumed before the car was picked up. I do, however think they could’ve cleaned the rest of the cabin, too, especially since serviced cars are not washed anymore owing to the Cape’s water restrictions.

After recently swapping long-termers with Carmag.co.za editor, Ryan Bubear (who drives the eet’s Audi SQ5), he had the following feedback: “The continuously variable transmission didn’t bother me, mainly because the car as a whole is such a relaxing experience. This means that you rarely feel the need to rev the engine out.”

I can only concur with his remarks and this is partly the reason the CR-V has been clocking such impressive fuel-consumption gures.

Although the CR-V is no serious off-roader, I undertook an easy excursion to Atlantis Dunes outside Cape Town. After all, this CR-V is all-wheel driven and should be able to cope sand driving. More on that next month.