The Hindu Business Line : Honda CR-V 2L: Smaller engine, yet zippy

There are no perceptible compromises in the new two-litre Honda CR-V. On the contrary, it is more practical, more economical and a more fun car to drive than the existing 2.4-litre version.

— S. Muralidhar

Four-wheel drive will not be missed in the new CR-V.

Few Indian car buyers have very different expectations from their vehicles compared to their counterparts in the more mature markets. A large majority of Indians want an affordable vehicle merely for enabling personal mobility at the cheapest possible cost.

A much smaller percentage of buyers here want their vehicles to reflect their personality, offer a more engaging driving experience and be loaded with features, even ones that they may very often not need. And this sub-set of the car buying population is not just from the premium conscious vehicle buyers, but also from the price and value conscious small car segment.

It is just more pronounced in the premium segment, where the number and type of features that buyers pay for but may never use, is higher. Four-wheel drive is just one such feature that can really only be best utilised while the vehicle is being driven off-road. But how many of us take our fancy, premium cars and sports utility vehicles with 4X4 or FWD off the road.

But apparently we are not the only ones with this urge to pay for features that we may not need. The Americans do it too. Four-wheel drive, as a safety feature, is pretty much unnecessary on regular blacktop roads. Extremely slippery conditions and highly uneven surfaces, such as is experienced while driving on off-road conditions, are the two situations when four-wheel drive technology will really kick-in and provide its money’s worth.

It would be anybody’s guess that if a survey is done about the driving habits of Indian car owners, the results it would throw up will show that much of the driving that Indian 4X4 vehicle owners do is within city limits, with a small percentage being on the highway.

So, there is really no need for the vehicle to be endowed with four-wheel drive. Well, of course, apart from the premiumness that the 4X4 badging could indicate.

Right timing

What’s more, current day technology in vehicles with real-time four-wheel drive is so advanced and discreet, that the driver will not even be able to say with certainty as to when all-wheel assistance kicked-in. As a result, the average modern day FWD vehicle has the prowess, but whether Indian owners put it to optimum use is a question mark.

Honda’s Indian strategy has been well thought out for each of its vehicles and the launch of the new, third-generation CR-V in November 2006 was again timed right. And, despite the fact that it was priced at a premium for an import in its class, the new CR-V quickly managed to become the preferred choice of buyers in the premium SUV category.

But there were probably a couple of points that buyers would have made a note of. The first would have been the fact that the 2006 CR-V came with a 2.4-litre engine and a five-speed automatic transmission. The other would have been that the real-time four-wheel drive that the 2.4-litre CR-V came with as part of standard fitment probably seemed like an unnecessary luxury.

Honda must have got customer feedback about the need for a manual transmission option, what with most owners using the services of a chauffeur. Anyway, better fuel efficiency is always welcome for the average Indian car owner.

The new, more frugal, smaller engine and manual transmission can provide that edge. And with competition nipping at its heels, launching competing SUVs at potentially lower prices, Honda has made one more shrewd move to maintain its lead in market share in the segment.

Pune to Goa

Earlier this month, the CR-V was launched with a new two-litre petrol engine, with the regular 2X4 option and with a six-speed manual transmission as standard. We test drove the new CR-V from Pune to Goa, a distance of about 550 km, that has a good mix of open 4-lane highway and steep, winding ghat roads, and came away feeling that this new version should be the preferred choice.

The new two-litre variant will be available alongside the current 2.4-litre 4X4 variant. Cheaper by about Rs 1.4 lakh, the new variant, is pretty much identical to the existing one in terms of exterior design, finish quality, interior trim level and options. The only feature that is available exclusively in the 2.4-litre variant is the sunroof and, of course, the four-wheel drive option and automatic transmission.

There are no compromises that the two-litre variant buyer has to make. On the contrary, we think that the new CR-V variant is the more practical, more economical and the more fun car to drive. Inside the new CR-V two-litre, in place of the existing version’s automatic gearbox stick, is a new short throw, slick, six-speed manual’s stick shift. The choice of a six-speed is also an intelligent one in the Indian context, as the buyer gets to experience the novelty of a sixth slot (though he or his chauffeur may not use it often).

Efficient mill

The heart of the new two-litre CR-V is its 1,997cc i-VTEC engine that is loaded with new fuel-saving, friction reduction technology to make it one of the most frugal, yet powerful gasoline engines of its class. Honda’s focus for this engine has been weight reduction, by building in features like a narrow width cam and balancer chain and by incorporating the oil pump inside the chain case. More weight reduction has been achieved by using plastic for parts such as the head cover and the intake manifold with variable port length and by using a slimmer, high strength hot forged crack conrod.

Featuring Honda’s variable valve timing control technology, the new two-litre mill, also features delayed valve closing for better low-end torque. Friction reduction technologies such as ion-plated piston rings, plateau honing and refinement improvement features such as a chain-driven balancer are also in use in the new two-litre CR-V engine.

Honda has also loaded the new engine with technology to optimise fuel consumption and to keep the vehicle’s emissions low. To this end, new features such as a step up in fuel pressure, a new multi-hole (six) injector and a high accuracy, adaptive air-fuel ratio control system have been incorporated in the engine and EGR (exhaust gas recirculation) system. This ensures lower fuel consumption and quicker catalyst warm up for tapping the engine’s efficiency better.

As a result of the various measures, the new engine variant of the CR-V with manual transmission and regular two-wheel drive is about 120 kg lighter than the 2.4-litre automatic variant. However, the peak power and torque differential with the bigger engine counterpart has been kept narrow, thanks to the other technologies in use.

The new two-litre engine offers a peak power of 143PS at 6,000 rpm compared to the 2.4-litre’s 161PS at 5,800 rpm. The maximum torque that the two-litre delivers is 190Nm at 4,200 rpm, compared to the 2.4-litre’s 218Nm at 4,200 rpm. Overall, the new engine’s power and torque characteristics are very reminiscent of the existing 2.4L’s.

So, the performance of the new engine is more than sufficiently positioned next to the bigger engined cousin that the driver will not make out the difference between the two mills. However, during our test drive of the CR-V we observed that the car’s performance on the highway, at high speeds, does tend to give one the feeling that there is a quicker tapering off of peak power.

Impressive even in comparison

But in terms of the numbers that really matter, the two-litre surely looks impressive despite its lower displacement. As tested by the company, this new engine consumes a full 1.5 litres lesser fuel per 100 km. And in the sprint to the 100 kmph mark it is only 0.5 seconds slower at 11.5 seconds, compared to the 2.4-litre.

CR-V buyers will love these numbers and coming as it does without any reduction in the safety features that the bigger engined cousin came with, such as G-CON technology body structure and dual airbags.

The two-litre variant’s owners will also not miss the four-wheel drive. On the contrary, they might enjoy, just like we did during our test drive, that bit of dreamed up edginess that comes to you in the CR-V at high speeds.

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