Introduction
Japanese manufacturers introduced their home-market "soft-roaders" to the U.S. almost a decade ago, quickly creating a burgeoning market for car-based sport/utility vehicles that combined adventurous spirit, interior flexibility, and all-weather performance with wagon-like road manners and fuel economy. The Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4 seeded this market, offering cheap tickets into the tragically hip active-lifestyle vehicles. Now in its second-generation Stateside, the CR-V maintains its basic four-cylinder, Civic-underpinnings formula, though it continues its maturation beyond the "entry-level" label. For 2005, the CR-V attempts to leave the true budget market to Hyundai and Kia, aiming instead at the likes of Ford's Escape, a set of GM offerings, and Toyota's increasingly premium RAV4. For this year, EX and LX models are joined by a new SE, with a more luxurious presence and standard amenities like leather-trimmed and heated seats.... Read full article