Review: Honda CR-V

Generational heresy alert: I've always hated Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

Maybe I'm a killjoy, but I thought the titular character was a spoiled brat who needed to learn that actions have consequences. Plus, even a replica of a Ferrari 250 GT California doesn't deserve to end up in a ravine.

It was with great satisfaction, then, that I watched Honda's Super Bowl commercial. A grown-up Matthew Broderick played hooky and sleepwalked through some Ferris-style hijinks. His car of choice? A Honda CR-V. Talk about accepting responsibility. Ask any CR-V owner why they decided to put one in their driveway and the answer will invariably include the phrase, "after our youngest was born," or "good in the snow." You can't outrun Mr. Rooney forever.

Ask any CR-V owner why they decided to put one in their driveway and the answer will invariably include the phrase, 'after our youngest was born,' or 'good in the snow.'I got a chance to drive a 2012 CR-V AWD EX-L (Honda apparently glued down the caps lock keys in their marketing department), an all-wheel drive model featuring a leather interior and an in-dash navigation system. It's not a midday romp through the Art Institute of Chicago, but it's no lecture on the Smoot-Hawley Tariff, either. You'll definitely feel like you're getting away with something when you look at the window sticker, too: Fully loaded, the CR-V tops out at about $30,000, and the base model starts at just $22,295.

Like the Civic, the CR-V got a conservative redesign for 2012. While the refreshed sheetmetal won't have valets wondering if Abe Froman is in town (last movie reference, I promise), it does make the Honda crossover look approximately 80 percent more like an Isuzu Axiom. The rear doors open wide, though the rear liftgate isn't powered.

Inside, Honda panders to the kids-in-tow crowd like a candy shop on a Disney Cruise. My first clue that I wasn't in the CR-V's target demographic was the storage cubby on the headliner: It folds down to hold sunglasses, but also reveals a trick fisheye mirror for keeping a close watch on anyone in the back seat – proof that this crossover is made for trips to Toys"R"Us.

If you're bringing home a new bike or an extra-large dollhouse, the back seats easily split and fold down with a single pull. In the upright position, they're big enough for adults to get comfortable, though younger kids who entertain themselves on long car trips by kicking the front seatbacks with their Stride Rites may be disappointed their legs won't reach. An optional rear DVD player may solve that problem, but it's only available if you skip factory navigation.

The driver's seat is a comfy captain's chair that's perched up high. While it offers a good view of the road ahead, the seating position makes the crossover feel truck-like. The tester I drove featured firm leather upholstery and sparkly metallic dark wood trim surrounding the mildly attractive dash. Climate control knobs were well-placed and easy to adjust, but dials-within-dials crowded the gauge cluster, obscuring relevant information – like vehicle speed – amidst a sea of other numbers.

Around town, the Honda feels quicker than a six-cylinder Toyota RAV4, though the four is a bit sluggish during high-speed highway maneuvers.Honda calls the plethora of LCD screens dotting the interior a Intelligent Multi-Information Display, which somehow translates to i-MID in Acronymese. The multiple displays may seem confusing at first, but they do a good job of presenting lots of information without cluttering a single screen. I've still got some gripes with Honda's navigation setup: the buttons are tiny, the on-screen text is jagged and the map wouldn't zoom in enough to be useful in city driving. If I were buying a CR-V, I'd skip the factory nav and suction-cup an aftermarket unit on the windshield.

Design quibbles aside, the CR-V is generally inoffensive. From the driver's seat, it's among the most entertaining in its class, and that's not faint praise considering what lies beneath the hood. Where other manufacturers have added gears or turbochargers, Honda stuck with a tried-and-true five-speed automatic transmission and non-turbo four-cylinder engine as the only available powertrain. It's been further refined for 2012 to improve fuel economy, and it shows: I managed an impressive average of 23.4 mpg in a week of combined city and highway driving. That's better than many all-wheel drive sedans, and truly stands out among crossovers.

Around town, the Honda feels quicker than a six-cylinder Toyota RAV4, though the four is a bit sluggish during high-speed highway maneuvers. Coincidentally, that's where Ford's turbocharged EcoBoost shines. The CR-V's high-speed lethargy combined with a numb steering feel and family-friendly handling means the whole package feels a little bit less crisp than it could.

Still, I suspect most crossover buyers will be willing to overlook those minor shortcomings and focus on the low price, high gas mileage and spacious interior. If you have the means, and still want to make a responsible choice, I highly recommend picking one up.

WIRED Great fuel economy for its class. Good for families. Well-priced. A responsible choice.

TIRED Lousy nav. A turbo would be nice. Handles like a crossover. A responsible choice.

Photos courtesy of American Honda Motor Co., Inc