Video: 2012 Honda CR-V

The all new design can be a bit deceiving. I thought it looked a little longer, but it's less than an inch shorter than before, but there's actually more room for passengers inside. Gone is the rugged look of the old CRV for a more elegant style, but shoppers are gonna be really interested in what comes standard on any CRV. That includes this nice information screen at the top of the dash. You get standard USB, Bluetooth, stuff shoppers today really want to have. There's only one engine choice for the new CRV. It's a four cylinder with 185 horsepower and a five speed automatic. But the big change is to the mileage. The CRV gets excellent mileage. 23 miles per gallon city, 31 miles per gallon highway for the front wheel drive version. And the all wheel drive also gets very good mileage for the class, 22 MPG city, 30 MPG highway. Now that Mazda CX-5 that was just introduced at this show gets better mileage, but has a weaker engine. No one's gonna say no to good gas mileage, but the biggest improvement with the CRV is the ride quality. The old CRV, the last generation, drove much more like an SUV instead of a crossover. When you hit bumps, the whole body shook a lot more than you'd want. This new CRV drives much more like a car. So when you hit those bumps, it's a smoother experience. The front seats are extremely comfortable, and in back, well they're okay. They're a little firm, but you can see, I have plenty of room. I have the driver's seat exactly where I would have it if I were driving. I'm 5'10, and you can see I have knee room here, and there's plenty of headroom despite this model having a moon roof. There have also been significant improvements in terms of cargo. Up front, you have a huge storage bin between the driver's seat and the passenger seat. And in back, while cargo space is very close to last year's, they've improved the system for folding the back seats. It is a huge improvement. Let me show you, just pull this lever here. A spring folds the seat bottom up and the seat back down all in one motion. The CRV was already one of the best selling cars in the country. And with all these improvements, I don't see that changing. <v Announcer>For more car related news, go to cars.com or our blog, kickingtires.net.