Used 2012 Honda CR-V Consumer Reviews
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Well done...
mtobon, 01/25/2012
2012 Honda CR-V EX 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 5A)
13 of 25 people found this review helpful
Just got my 2012 CR-V EX and I'm loving it. This is my first SUV ever and second Honda vehicle, after a 1998 Civic. I'm very well impressed with the level of sophistication and versatility of this vehicle for this price segment. After reading some expert reviews complaining about the CR-V being a little under powered, I can only say that unless you have a large family and/or large towing needs, this vehicle provides enough acceleration and handling to comply with most driver demands, especially in terms of fuel economy. Last but not least, Honda has a great lease deal going on that also added to the equation...
Everyone loves a CRV, right?
Paul DesRoches, 10/12/2018
updated 10/12/2023
2012 Honda CR-V EX-L 4dr SUV AWD w/Navigation (2.4L 4cyl 5A)
4 of 7 people found this review helpful
The Good: It fits a very desirable niche, these days. Decent ground clearance, which makes for easy ingress/egress from car. Stepped, classic transmission, not a CVT, which is preferable to most folks. Decent fuel economy if you are light-footed. Highway can average 32 with the 2.5 4-banger, but in-town the penalty is low mpg, around 22 or so. One of the most endearing qualities of the CRV is the "quick flip" of the rear seats by two levers in the back, which send the seats automatically to flip down and make the cargo area nice and roomy for carrying odds and ends.....large ones at that!! Seating position and comfort was quite good overall. The Not-so-Good: Handling is only fair........body leans and rolls, and is not quick to react to inputs. It's fine in a straight line, but not so much in the twisties. Navigation is quite simply, horrible. Use your phone. Sound system in mine was just passable, not good by any means. Performance was, at best, middling. Don't buy any CRV for performance, it's not the appeal of the CRV. The Ugly: A really bad noise emanated from the engine, which I've researched to be the VVT (variable valve timing) device located at the end of the camshaft. It sounds like a starter motor grinding, but it's a harmless though nasty weird mechanical rattttaaaatttttaaaattt, which lasts from 1 to 3 seconds or so, especially if it's very cold, like less than 50 degrees ambient temperature. If the engine's warmed up, it's unusual for the sound to occur. Online, it appears that it's a common issue with the 2.5 engine from Honda, though Honda won't admit it as a problem since it's a real piece of work to tear the camshaft down, remove it, extract the VVT mechanism from the end of the shaft, and replace it and put everything back together again, preferable r/r the water pump since you're already in there. I bought the car knowing this was an issue, and though it made the noise pretty much every first start of the day, it was never a problem for the reliability of the car, which I owned for 3 years. In the End: Well, it's a mixed bag, in my opinion. The ladies love it; it's a good size for getting the benefits of an SUV but without the negatives of the monster SUV's that abound out there. It's easy to get in and out of, is just peppy enough not to hate it, rides pretty well although isn't taught or lithesome, and gets fairly good mileage if you are gentle with the throttle. The worst thing in my experience was the noisy sound when starting most of the time, and I never got it fixed, since it would cost over two grand as I understand it. I thought about tackling it myself, since I'm a competent mechanic, but decided against it after youtubing the process. Newer CRV's don't seem to have this fault, but use care buying a used one, since it's a real costly repair.
- Safety
- Technology
- Performance
- Interior
- Comfort
- Reliability
- Value
2012 Honda CR-V for sale near you
3 of 29 listings
- EX-L 4dr SUV w/NavigationMSRP: $9,60985 mi away
- EX-L 4dr SUVMSRP: $12,52090 mi away
- LX 4dr SUVMSRP: $13,99010 mi away
See all 29 listings
3rd CRV - they keep getting better
zeebop2012, 09/28/2012
2012 Honda CR-V EX-L 4dr SUV AWD w/Navigation (2.4L 4cyl 5A)
3 of 5 people found this review helpful
Traded in a 2009 CRV (EX) for a 2012 EX-L with Nav. Got a great price for the trade-in (CRVs hold their value nicely) and am loving the new one. Favorite features: Getting about 23 mpg, which is what was promised. Comfortable ride and smooth handling Love the center console (much better than the table thingy in the 2009) The Navigation is a life-saver. When I travel to new cities, the Navi is a major "de-stressor" Love taking this car grocery shopping - easy to get groceries in and out (lots of room!).
Great family car
bandit911, 04/13/2013
2012 Honda CR-V EX-L 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 5A)
3 of 5 people found this review helpful
We have made 2 long trips along with the normal day-to-day driving. This is a near perfect car for us. While there is only 2 of us, we many times have 5 people in the the car. Everyone is comfortable in this car. Rear view camera turns out to be a nice convenience. The big disappointment is the rear hatch. Once it is open it is very difficult to close. There is not an option for an electric closer. You must reach fairly high in the air to grab the open door and if you have any type of shoulder or arm problem (I do) then you can not close the hatch. A car like this should have an electric closer. This is a big oversight.
2012 CRV -- Good basic car.
bruder, 04/08/2013
2012 Honda CR-V LX 4dr SUV (2.4L 4cyl 5A)
4 of 8 people found this review helpful
My girlfriend bought a 2012 CRV LX 2WD last summer. I've been driving it recently so I decided to share my experience. The CRV is comfortable and easy to drive. The seats are supportive and very comfortable. The engine provides adequate power and the transmission shifts are smooth. The brakes work well and stops are confident. The CRV handles reasonably well but the steering is somewhat disconnected. For most people it's fine. Visibility out the front and sides are good but the rear window is very small and the visibility out the rear is terrible. Fortunately the back up camera is standard on all models. The sound system is good. We're getting 27-29 mpg in mixed rural driving.