Bought a CRV. Put wheels and A/T tires on it, cause reasons.
A couple of months back, I set out on a mission to obtain a ‘reasonable’ car to supplement ownership of my BMW M3 (F80). While I love the M3, it def has shortcomings for daily duties, especially in the northeast where terrible roads, winter weather, and constant traffic are issues. I started by casting a pretty wide net, considering used X3’s, X5’s, and even Gen 2 Porsche Cayennes and the like. I looked at a few, but there was a part of me that was wanting for a car that I wouldn't be as ‘obsessed’ about, and could just use as a tool for intended purpose vs. having another aspirational car and all the minutia that comes along with it.
To help guide my search, I settled on a few problem statements that I wanted to answer for:
Problem #1: My commute / sitting in north jersey traffic is a mind-numbing exercise of futility. Auto cruise control and creature comforts (heated seats, carplay, etc) are quality of life requirements.
Problem #2: The rear seats of the M3 is not a comfortable place to be. Needs to seat at least 5 and be good for road trips to grandmas.
Problem #3: I am soon to close on a new home that adds another 20miles / day to my commute. Screw HP. Can it take regular gas and get decent mileage?
Problem #4: I live in North Jersey. The weather sucks. The roads suck. It also gets very cold in the winter.
Thus I set off, watching a bunch of Savagegeese and Straight Pipes videos to try and determine what sort of vehicle I should consider. My short list was Crosstrek, Rav4, CX-3, CRV, HRV. To be honest, I have been looking at the Crosstrek for a while and sort of figured that it would be the solve. Plus they look cool with some upgraded wheels. For whatever reason I decided to pass on one (I have a hard time w. Subaru Interiors). The CX-X line was unappealing to me because Mazda engineering is going a bit too far in the ‘everything drives like a sportscar!’ direction. I want to drive over potholes with contempt and not have my fillings fall out. The Rav4 and CRV I could have flipped a coin over, but I ultimately went with a 2019 CRV EX namely due to brand loyalty to Honda from my youth (oh and a _killer_ lease deal).
Dad-mobile activate!
2 months in and I can honestly say I have been super happy with this purchase and I am enjoying making it my own. What a load off my mind! The Honda sensing package is excellent, has radar cruise and lane-keep assist for my mindless commute. It has auto start on cold mornings, heated seats, (and soon to be added heated steering wheel). It gets 30mpg highway on regular gas. It has Carplay and Waze, All-Wheel Drive, and thanks to my LP Aventure LP-1’s with Pirelli Scorpion All Terrain XL’s, handles any speedbumps, pothole, snowy incline, whatever (with contempt). Plus it has an added 1inch of ground clearance for rock crawling (maybe not).
Anyhow, that’s the story of the CRV. The M3 is in my garage sitting on its winter tires and c-tek charger. Can’t wait to take it for a spin when the roads clear up.
