Honda CR-V is cool choice

The Honda CR-V has evolved, introducing a 160hp 1.6-litre diesel engine to replace the old 2.2-litre unit, a nine-speed gearbox, city braking technology, a new infotainment setup and a bafflingly smart adaptive cruise control system.

A few years ago, buying a Honda CR-V was the signal that you’d almost given up on life.

The styling was pretty bland, the engines unexceptional and it was just another one of those boring school-run cars.

Then Honda started building in some design flair, the interiors went upmarket and the engines got a whole lot better.

These days, the CR-V is one of the more extrovert choices in its segment and the latest one hopes to convince you it’s the smartest too.

The big news with this CR-V is the 160hp 1.6-litre diesel engine, which replaces the old 150hp 2.2-litre diesel, an engine that was looking a bit off the pace in terms of efficiency. The 120hp 1.6-litre diesel carries on much as before and there’s a two-litre petrol engine offered that’s probably going to be largely ignored by UK buyers.

Specify the CR-V with a manual gearbox and you can also have it in front as well as four-wheel drive guise.

But you shouldn’t. That’s because Honda has replaced the old five-speed auto with a nine-speed automatic that then sends drive to all four wheels.

It’s an impressive piece of technology and does a great job plugging the diesel engine right into the meat of its 350Nm of torque, available from just north of 2,000rpm.

The CR-V was never marketed as a particularly sporty drive and the updates to the car’s suspension and steering don’t aim for that goal.

Instead, the steering has been revised to offer a quicker ratio, while revised bushings, dampers and other suspension fettling aims to deliver a smoother ride.

Refinement is something valued by CR-V owners and the latest car features added sound insulation material, thicker carpets and chunkier door seal rubbers. The net result is a six per cent reduction in cabin noise at speed.

You’ll need a budget starting from around the £22,500 for a two-litre i-VTEC petrol model: that’s for 2WD.

The 4WD petrol variants start from just over £25,500, the 1.6 i-DTEC diesels from around £23,500 in 120PS form and come only with 2WD.

If you want a diesel 4WD variant, you’ll need this 1.6-litre i-DTEC unit in 160PS – and you’ll require a budget

The Honda CR-V has evolved into a much better-looking and inspired choice of car.