2025 CRV Sport Hybrid- 1 YEAR REVIEW

This is my 1 year of ownership review of my 2025 Honda CRV Sport Hybrid. I come from a 2015 Pilot and I wish I kept it for our second car even though it had 160K on it. They forced us to buy something new because we would be driving our grandson in it and they insisted on new safety features.

SPACE:

I think this car is so well designed it is to cars what the iWatch is to watches. It is the PERFECT car IF you are shorter and slender, perfect for most females. However, I am a slim, 5’-11” male, 170 lbs and I have long legs. During my several test drives I was so concentrated on noise, ride, etc. I didn’t notice the lack of leg room, for me I wish the seat would go back another 4 inches like my wife’s 2015 Subaru Forrester does.

To open my drivers door from the inside I have to take my left foot to push it open which leaves scuff marks.

In fact, it does lack space in most areas. Yesterday I had an adult in the passenger seat behind me and for their comfort I pulled my seat forward to the point I was almost forward to the max making it dangerous for my foot to slam on the brakes.

We have a child seat in the back passenger right seat, the child is 3 and trying to lift him into the seat he always will bump his head on the door jam. We now coach him in getting in by himself with a cookie.

RIDE:

The ride is superb which is what sold us on the car, and quiet. The seats aren’t comfortable for more than 4 hours which is something you don’t notice `on a test drive, you can’t shift your position, you feel like you are a pilot in a fighter jet. The handling is superb though.

MILEAGE:

Suburbs and highway driven, all flat.


We were very excited into trying a hybrid and are not disappointed! But over the year I averaged 34MPG. Never trust the digital odometer! You will get 1-1.5 MPG less per tank. I always reset the odometer when I fill up and then when I refill I use the calculator to find and write down my MPG, this is an old habit from having my own business, I needed to know the real MPG.

Just today on a beautiful, sunny Chicago suburb day I was at 41MPG but my whole year average of 34MPG combines using the AC, high heat, seat heaters, remote control to warm up the car and a few times when tires got low. You MUST maintain your exact tire pressure or the MPG goes down way before you get a low tire alert so find the closest high tech air hose, usually at the local tire shop.

We will be selling the 2015 Forrester and getting a slightly larger car to compliment the CRV since I was dumb enough to sell the Pilot. However, we may not go hybrid or EV because there are rumbles in Illinois that there will be a tax on EVs and hybrids because they use the roads and highways also and should pay their share of maintenance. I guess that’s fair. So the savings we have on gas will be much less. Of course we will wait until the negative effects of the tarriffs come down as well as interest rates on car loans.

OTHER THINGS:

I had two flats from nails, so I joined AAA.

I will never buy a black interior again, Ever! I come from a forgiving grey interior with the Pilot. Black shows ever crumb, scuff, potato chips, everything! The seats are made with several thousand little holes, I suppose for ventilation, but sand, dandruff, whatever gets in these holes and stays there forever! Even the strongest vacuums at the best car washes won’t suck it out, this is something you can’t foresee in a test drive. We’re neat people and keep our cars clean but this looks like teenagers have been using it.

The floor mat on the driver side wore out in a year where the right heel rests, so I just bought two fronts from Weathertech for $170. This is very cheap carpeting.

I swim several times a week and am disappointed they give you only one hook, how cheap! I can’t hang my towel or anything else besides my trunks.

Very weird that the windshield wiper detergent squirter is only on the passenger side wiper. Why Oh Lord why??? It squirts only on that side but expects enough to come over to the driver’s side, ugh. So in a large plastic bin in the back, which I use for a trunk :-( , I have rags and a can of glass cleaner among all the other things one needs. There is zero storage space due to the battery.

Know how to use Car Wash mode by disabling collision mitigation before you take it to a car wash!! Very embarrassing to hold up the line. People start honking!

I did find after many attempts the perfect cell phone holder:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C2KGCK5M?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_3&th=1

In sum, it is a great car! But for small slender people. My wife loves it!

Ned in Chicago