Better late than never

I’ve got this friend who claims to be the world’s biggest Honda fan. From lawnmowers to NSX Type Rs, this guy reckons nobody loves the red H more than he does. He’s even considered that square-ish badge as a tattoo on his shoulder.

Problem is he hates diesels. I remember him telling me once: “The day Honda builds a diesel, is the day I’ll respect that oily, smelly stuff.”

Well, the day has come my friend. Introducing Honda’s first ever production diesel. Honda’s fitted its oil burning debutant to its already brilliant CR-V. So what’s the verdict? A rightful addition, or should the Jap marque stick with high revving naturally aspirated petrol mills?

If there’s one thing I know about Honda, it’s that they don’t mess around. Especially with something as serious as this. There’s no way it’d fit a lemon of a black smoke machine into one of its most prized possessions and earn a bad rep so early into their diesel escapade. Honda certainly took its time with this project and in my opinion it was worth the wait.

It may be a bit too early to tell, but this CR-V seems like a respectable addition to the family. I guess I’m just trying to cover my arse in case every one of these cars blows up at 50 000km, but I seriously doubt that will happen. Like I said, Honda doesn’t mess around.

I never suspected otherwise, but you’d never guess this is the first production venture Honda has made with diesel power. It sounds and feels right. Like they’ve been doing it all along. And I can assure you that it’ll only get better too.

Besides the diesel mill, the CR-V has come along way. It’s hardly the entry level SUV it used to be. There’s so much electronic gadgetry in this new version, that start up is actually quite intimidating. The instrument cluster is starting to resemble that of a Boeing 747. Most of the readouts are quite helpful though.

There’s a nifty little fuel consumption display that works in real time. Driving around town with one eye on the road and the other on the gauge can be quite amusing. Almost like a video game. If you’re into the whole fuel consumption thing, it’s actually quite fun to short shift and light-foot around trying to achieve a happy medium in the litres per hundred display.

It’s a rare occasion when I get to use a car like this to its full occupancy, but the day I received this test unit, I needed to take my family to the airport. All the luggage and carry-on baggage fit right into the boot like a glove, and four people nestled into the seats very comfortably. Now that’s what the CR-V is all about. And with this diesel engine, it pulls it off nicely.

By the way, my Honda fanatic friend has changed his tune. He still loves Hondas, but now he says he’ll only respect the bubbling crude when a Porsche can run on it. I’m sure the day is coming…