Honda CRV 2.4 4WD Owners

[crosswind338]

I plan to get a 2.4 CRV need your comment or any problem on the CRV!

[number001]

If I'm correct, I believe this article was written by tsikot moderator, mbt.

From this article, you can get a good idea of how Honda's Real Time 4WD system fares in less than ideal conditions.

Honda CR-V AWD and FWD mini off-road test report


we went to the Honda CR-V off-road test drive organized by Honda Cars Philippines, Inc. at the Fort this morning. the test drive was one lap around a short, closed dirt track, with the test vehicles including a "real-time 4wd" A/T CR-V 2.0 5-seater and a front-wheel drive M/T CR-V 2.0 5-seater. both 5-seaters feature more compliant suspension setups than the original 10-seater second-generation CR-V released locally (current 8-seater CR-Vs still have the stiffened suspensions of the original 10-seaters).

the track itself featured mostly unremarkable flat dirt sections, but there were two obstacles of note: one was a small "staircase" dirt section with three steps, and the other was a steep dirt incline followed immediately with an equally steep decline. outside the official test track but within the limits of the test area was a short section of moderate moguls (each "mound" was maybe 2.5 feet across and about 8 inches deep). overall though, the track itself is hardly challenging; an A/T FWD CR-V would be able to get through the whole track with hardly any effort. a more severe track is necessary to better probe the AWD CR-V's limits.

the interiors of the 5-seater CR-Vs are finally within the proper design guidelines, with a fully adjustable passenger seat with an integrated armrest and center tray. the second row bench now has three seatbelts, finally making all of them usable (the previous four seatbelts were usable only by small children). the third row bench has been deleted in 5-seater CR-Vs and have lost the anchors and brackets for the seat, making a retrofit impractical (there is still an 8-seater variant available though). 5-seater CR-Vs also have softer suspension settings (same as in other markets). all AWD CR-Vs come standard with body-color cladding, which greatly enhance the styling of the SUV) and genuine leather upholstery.

the performance of the AWD A/T CR-V in this particular dirt track was largely unremarkable, which is a good thing. on the staircase section, the front axle lost traction (announced by audible wheelspin) momentarily but kept moving with no further drama. at the instant the front wheels spin, some power is immediately redirected to the rear axle and helps keep the vehicle moving along. no buttons to press, no levers to pull, no sounds to hear, no clunks or vibrations to feel, no indicator lights to see... the system is completely transparent to the driver. in this setting (mild dirt roads), the system is quite effective, although had the surface been significantly muddy or had been much more severe, the story could well change (you shouldn't expect the CR-V to be tackling Land Cruiser territory anytime soon). the A/T made driving the sections easy and unchallenging. on the steep incline, we stopped the vehicle and left it hanging at the middle. gently rolling on the throttle resulted in the same behavior: the front wheels momentarily lost traction but the vehicle proceeded up the incline with no further fuss afterward.

the performance of the FWD M/T CR-V involved a little more drama, but only slightly so. a redline clutch-drop at the flat straight (c/o hard-driving OTEP) resulted in the front tires scrabbling desperately for traction as expected, but the behavior was largely similar to the AWD CR-V. at the more difficult staircase section, judicious use of the clutch and throttle was necessary to prevent the engine from zinging past 2000 rpm and to prevent the engine from stalling. i found the softly-sprung and short-travel accelerator rather difficult to control the revs, but more practice and experience would result in more finesse in these situations. i felt and heard the front tires lose traction on the staircase section, but a quick, careful dance with the pedals (with a little bit of clutch-slipping) easily got the FWD CR-V up the dirt steps. at the steep incline, the front tires lost traction longer than the AWD CR-V did (which sent the revs soaring a bit) but otherwise made it up the hill without much drama, not too much unlike the performance of the AWD CR-V A/T.

just for kicks, and to directly compare the ride quality of the stiff-riding 10-seater CR-V (now discontinued), we drove my own front-wheel drive August 2003 CR-V M/T on the test track. to my surprise, the behavior of my own vehicle was dramatically worse than the test M/T CR-V 5-seater. on the staircase section, the front wheels lost traction almost immediately (as in the other M/T FWD CR-V) but had great difficulty regaining traction. even at 1500 rpm (with the clutch slipped since the vehicle had stopped), the tires simply wouldn't bite. i had some difficulty with the clutch and throttle and had the engine zing to 3000 rpm at one instant and then in danger of stalling at the next... a lot of clutch-and-throttle feathering was required, and i didn't carry too much momentum (speed) up the steps since i didn't want to wreck my suspension. the vehicle managed to extricate itself after a little while (some seconds).

we didn't stop approaching the steep incline and carried some momentum going up, but again, the front tires simply lost traction while on the move halfway up the grade. a few seconds of clutch-and-throttle play got the vehicle across, but it was remarkably more difficult than in the other 2004 FWD M/T CR-V, where I had hardly any trouble even at the track's most difficult sections. on the steep decline, the M/T CR-V had poor engine braking and had to be assisted with moderate brake application to avoid landing hard on the undulating terrain at the base of the hill. since this was my own vehicle, we ventured out into the section of moderate moguls just for kicks. and boy, the vehicle and I had a really tough time here. the front tires were spinning across the entire section and stalled midway (lots of tricky clutch slipping was needed, and i had hardly any momentum since I didn't want to damage my vehicle hehe). i could feel the wheel squirming in my hands as the front tires clawed for grip, and even at low rpm with the clutch fully engaged, there was still lots of wheelspin. now you know why low-range gearing and low-end torque are much preferred in off-roaders. surprisingly too, the ride quality of the 10-seater CR-V wasn't much different than the softer-riding 5-seaters on this particular track. although the 5-seaters indeed felt more compliant, particularly in the undulating sections, the difference would probably be more pronounced on the streets in daily driving; this session was too short for a proper ride evaluation.

oh, we also tried going over a two-foot high dirt embankment with tall grass (in my FWD CR-V), but predictably, the tires just couldn't find any grip at all even at the base of the embankment. oh well hehe.

why the big difference between the performance of the two FWD M/T CR-Vs? my non-expert opinion is that the tires made the difference: the test 2004 FWD M/T CR-V was equipped with fresh Yokohama Geolandar H/T tires while my vehicle wore Bridgestone Dueler H/T tires inflated to at least 33 psi (30 psi cold). the Geolandars seemed to be much better tires than the Duelers, or perhaps the Honda test units had lower tire pressures, which would aid traction (the AWD A/T CR-Vs had the same Bridgestone Dueler H/Ts but the AWD likely made up for the tires' shortcomings). in fact, come to think of it, my FWD M/T CR-V spun its drive wheels on a flat, dry gravel parking lot on a gentle 1400-rpm clutch-slipped start once. next time though, i hope it would be a Patrol i'll be bringing into the test track and not a CR-V.

[voltes_V]

So far no major complaints with mine. It performs well on slippery conditions and is really fun to drive, however the suspension is a tad stiff and it has a bit of interior noise on the road. But once you hit the gas and watch the tachometer needle climb to 5000 rpm, youll definitely love its roar.
Its i-Vtec 2.4 in-line 4 engine is no V6 when it comes to long and steep inclines, but it has more than enough hp(160 hp)and more fuel efficient to carry a load in light offroad conditions. Just keep in mind that its just a honda civic with 4wd and a bigger cargo space. Nevertheless, this is still a good buy.