Could this be the winning formula?

Welcome to the current zenith of SUV motoring, where cost, comfort, performance, refinement all come together in a happy marriage of singing valves and silent street tires. To all those who continue the long wait for their CR-Vs, rest assured that the car does not disappoint. Now in its “Mk. III” iteration, Honda’s compact sport-ute has got the winning formula to lord over the market for at least a few years.

Wait, did we just say “car”? Yes we did, because the 3rd generation is even less of a gentrified off-roader from before than it is an all-wheel drive Accord with wagon-body sheetmetal. Especially so for the 4x2 version, whose dependable (and cost-effective) front-wheel drivetrain renders it solely effective for urban commuting and “strictly paved” road tripping. This is not a bad thing.

In fact, it’s just the thing that the majority of buyers want, because study after study has shown that SUV buyers rarely ever take their rides off the beaten path. “What, you want me to take my ride over those rocks?” Unless you’re a dyed-in-the-wool off-roader whose idea of fun is to cross rivers and fix banged-up driveshafts with a sledgehammer, two-wheel drive is a perfectly acceptable proposition... and if you ever come to a point that you do need four-wheel drive, well, you wouldn’t bring your 4x2 there in the first place.

As it is, the “base” model of the CR-V is perfectly positioned as a sophisticated, reasonably priced, family wagon, providing more versatility than the average sedan without the rough-edged image of your typical AUV. And among its ilk, such as the Nissan X-Trail, the budget Hyundai Tucson/Kia Sportage, the Ford Escape/Mazda Tribute, the Toyota RAV4, the CR-V has the advantage of sharper styling, late model allure, and characteristic Honda refinement.

The more cynical might dismiss the new look as ugly, but closer inspection reveals fine attention to detail such as the symmetry of lines with the split-grille, the perfect proportion of the glass areas, and the jewel-like play of light over the many creases along its flanks. While the “gaping mouth” front isn’t immediately likable, it contributes to a unique and precise look that – like much of BMW’s line – ultimately has a timeless appeal.

Ingress and egress is easy with the new CR-V. You neither sit down on it as with a car or climb up as with an SUV. You just get on the seat, have a quick familiarization with the controls, and off you go. As with all Hondas, the seating position is perfect: optimal placement of the pedals and wheel (it’s tilt- and telescopic-adjustable). Sightlines all around are excellent, with the low cowl and large windshield giving an IMAX view of the road in front. The cockpit is maddeningly perfect you begin to look for faults with the layout, the fonts used on the dials, the instrument lighting, but you end up conceding there are none. There is no gratuitous allocation of fake wood, no egregiously placed dial or button that needs referencing with the manual, and the only detail you will dislike is the replacement of last model’s joystick-style parking brake with a retro foot brake.

Otherwise, there’s very little to fault. The dials and buttons all move with silken precision that you get the feeling the car is fully loaded even if it’s not. Standard equipment includes a 4-speaker stereo with MP3 and AUV capability, Optitron gauges, multi-information display, ABS, and dual airbags. The 4x4 adds High Intensity Discharge Headlamps, foglamps, stability assist, leather upholstery, rear parking sensors, and automatic dual-zone climate control. The 4x4 uses a 170-horspower 2.4-liter, while the 4x2 gets by with a 150-horsepower 2.0. The former costs P1.460M, while the latter is a more palatable P1.260M for the automatic (the 6-speed manual is P1.205M).

Driving a 4x2 automatic for some 600 kilometers over a week, in the city and in the province, I found the package to be just right for all but the most demanding motorists. The 2.0 motor is a familiar unit in many Hondas, and breathing through twin cams and aided by i-VTEC in this model, it makes decent thrust. It’s not blazing fast by any means, but for small (and light) families, it has the grunt to do the usual overtaking and low-100’s cruising without much complaint. At full bore, it will push to around 170-180kph before wind resistance and spousal displeasure bring you down to a safer velocity.

At 100-130kph cruising speeds, there’s so much insulation behind the firewall too that you’ll barely ever hear the drivetrain humming along, and you’re more likely to tune into the humming of the street-biased tires (65-series 17-inchers, in case you were wondering).

The 5-speed automatic will be a default choice of many traffic-weary buyers, but here Honda continues to lag behind the arguably superior programming of Toyota and Mitsubishi units. Shift shock is almost nil, but responsiveness continues to be an issue. Below 80kph, a prod of the gas pedal almost always induces a needed downshift, but higher than that, it seems biased to holding the highest gear possible. On long uphill straights where you’d like to get into 4th or 3rd gear, for example, it will obstinately hold 5th even with the pedal all the way to the floor, and even as you’re visibly losing speed. Letting off it and then pressing deep again seemed to induce the downshift, but the competitions’ transmission algorithms require no such trickery.

While they’re at it, it’s strange that Honda still won’t offer a manumatic gate or at least the Euro-style gate system for selecting gears instead of the much less-effective linear layout. On zigzagging roads where you’d like to hold a gear, pressing the overdrive on and off or slowly clicking the shifter into the “2” and “L” positions just isn’t as confidence inspiring as the two other systems.

Drivetrain shortcomings aside, the rest of the car is simply too good to pass up. Even on the base model, the fabric upholstery feels rich, the seats are perfectly supportive and firm, the grain of cockpit plastic feels soft and expensive, and the suspension damping – criticized on the old model as too harsh – has been tuned to give an almost Accord-level of comfort and suppleness. Steering effort is light and responsive, while the brakes have a positive feel.

Cargo capacity is also generous and creative; the rear seats can be folded and tumbled, and behind it, the cargo cover uses a split-level design so you can segregate your luggage. Combine all these elements of passenger comfort with chassis refinement, of versatility with above-average driving precision, and you have an all-purpose family car that’s just as happy shlepping your groceries as it is taking your family to those weekend vacations. Competent in its operations and exceedingly refined in how it goes about its business, it won’t be a surprise if the CR-V racks up the awards and rules the sales charts while the competition scrambles to come up with a response. If you’re still in line to get one, take it from us: it’s worth the wait.

The Good:

• Exceedingly refined package.

• Timeless styling.

• Top-notch build quality.

The Bad:

• So in-demand you’ll have to wait a long while for yours.

• Obstinate transmission programming.

The Verdict: A do-everything, go (almost) everywhere family vehicle that raises the bar when it comes to sophistication at the price.