• Dashboard is simple and logical
• But it isn’t particularly interesting
• Comfortable and good visibility

How is the quality and layout?

Overall, very good. The CR-V’s interior is solidly built and logically organised. Its dashboard also retains vital physical controls for the temperature settings and demister functions, which some drivers might view as old fashioned – but which we love. The CR-V’s large buttons and dials are way easier to use on the move than the Kia Sportage’s fiddly touch-sensitive panel, for example.

We also like how light and airy the cabin is, especially when you specify it with a panoramic sunroof and cream leather upholstery. The leather trim isn’t quite as soft as the upholstery in the most expensive versions of the DS 7 but it’s hard wearing and, more importantly for families with mucky kids and muddy pets, wipe clean.

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There isn’t a gear selector in the cabin, which those trading up from an older 2010s-era car might find odd. Instead, you change gears using a collection of buttons mounted on the centre console. This setup is becoming more commonplace in new cars, especially amongst EVs.

The system makes the dashboard look a little tidier and allows easier access to the climate controls, but it doesn’t work as well as it should. We found Honda’s buttons to be quite slow to respond – and that can make parking manoeuvres frustrating. We lurched forwards a few times when reverse parking because the selector took its time recognising that we’d prodded reverse.

Infotainment and technology

The CR-V’s screens are a little lacklustre. There’s a barn-shaped digital gauge cluster, like the unit fitted to the latest Civic hatchback, and a 7.0-inch touchscreen in the centre of the dashboard.

The instrument panel doesn’t look as glitzy as the units fitted to cars from Volkswagen or Kia, but its slightly blocky graphics and simple menu design mean that it’s easy to read. Even if you’re a staunch advocate of analogue dials, you’ll find the CR-V’s digital gauges easy to get to grips with.

We can’t say t6he same about the infotainment system, though. Compared with its rivals, the CR-V’s unit is desperately clunky. The menu design is old-fashioned, the built-in Garmin sat-nav is laboured and the screen isn’t particularly responsive, so adjusting settings on the move can be tricky.

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The good news is that Apple CarPlay and Android Auto come as standard, meaning you’ll only need to interact with Honda’s factory infotainment software if you need to disengage any of the driver assistance technology.

The flagship EX model also comes with a wireless smartphone charging pad (although you still need to plug your phone in if you want smartphone mirroring) in the centre console. It’s big enough for most phones but it’s designed in such a way that, if you commit to a roundabout a little too quickly, your phone will move around and stop charging.

Comfort

• Compliant at motorway speeds
• Wide, comfortable seats up front
• Rear passengers well catered for

As a family car, the CR-V needs to be comfortable – and it fulfils that brief well. The front seats offer plenty of adjustment to suit all shapes and sizes of driver and the excellent lumbar support setting helps to take the strain off your back on longer journeys. Unlike some rivals, the lumbar adjustment setting is fitted as standard to every version of the CR-V.

Rear-seat passengers are equally well-catered for with individual seats that slide and recline. That’s another rarity in the family SUV class – the rear seats bases in the Toyota RAV4, Kia Sportage and Mazda CX-5, for example, are fixed in place and can’t recline individually. The range-topping EX model also features heated rear outer seats.

Overall, refinement is good. Wind and road noise are kept in check by the glazing and sound deadening and, the suspension does a good job of filtering out pockmarks. Older cars on 19-inch alloys are noticeably less composed, but all new CR-Vs now come as standard with 18-inch alloy wheels which offer a little more compliance over rough tarmac.