Here's bit of important news that was kinda lost in yesterday's automotive info blitz. The Honda CRV has overtaken the Ford Explorer as the #1 in SUV sales, as CRV sales are up 42 percent this year. Honda "hit the market with pinpoint accuracy with the new CR-V in terms of design, styling, powertrain and fuel economy,'' said Michael Robinet, an industry analyst at CSM Worldwide Inc. in Farmington Hills, Michigan...
Not only has the CRV surpassed the Explorer, but so has the Toyota Rav4 (#2) and Ford's own Escape (#3). So the once-king-of-the-hill Explorer now sits in 4th place.
Full story here at Bloomberg.com.
Full story here at Bloomberg.com.
isaacl says:
09:01 AM, 05/15/07
WHOA! The only suprising data here is that the Escape is in #3!
This has been expected among us in the know however. the car-based UV / cross-over / CUV was inevitably going to replace the standard truck-based...trucks....like the Explorer, Trailblazer and so on and so forth.
I hardly even see Explorers (of any gen) anymore.
Over time I expect the truck-based mid-size SUV to disappear save for one or two "alternatives" to the mainstream car-based thing.
PEACE
ISAAC
mikemir87 says:
09:27 AM, 05/15/07
Didnt the Trailblazer outsell the Explorer last year too?
carlisimo says:
09:31 AM, 05/15/07
So crossovers that came out before crossovers were called crossovers, are called SUVs? Or are crossovers also eligible for "best selling SUV" titles?
Either way, congrats to the CR-V. We have an older one at home and it's served us well (but the ergonomics and road noise are pretty lousy in the 1st gen, I'm glad the new design seems to be so much better).
ateixeira says:
10:31 AM, 05/15/07
Frankly, I'm surprised it took this long for a body-on-frame SUV to lose the title. Now the top 3 are unibody, and all are offered with fuel efficient 4 bangers.
Ford was in part hurt by their own in-house competition, though. They are dividing sales between the Escape, Edge, Explorer, and even the Freestyle/Taurus X. Pretty soon you can add the Fairlane.
Honda has the Pilot, CR-V, and Element. A little better spread between them.
bbechtel16 says:
10:36 AM, 05/15/07
Styling? Am I the only one that finds the new CR-V front end and C (D?) pillar ugly?
rsholland says:
10:42 AM, 05/15/07
No, but it sure hasn't hurt their sales.
ew3074 says:
11:00 AM, 05/15/07
Can't believe RAV 4 still loses to CRV...
I was wondering how toyota's new corolla can battle against civic
arumage says:
11:19 AM, 05/15/07
I totally agree with you bbechtel16. The new CR-V is truly an ugly duckling! Nothing is cohesive about the styling. It is very mechanically sound though.
carlisimo says:
12:31 PM, 05/15/07
I couldn't call it uncohesive. It's only the front bumper that bothers me, but less and less. I also don't understand all the blind spot arguments (not in this thread, but others) - when the pointy end of the rearmost side window is on the bottom edge, you can see everything you need to see. It's upturned windows that have blind spots.
But we see vehicle design differently. My nonenthusiast coworkers have been telling me that they see the new CR-V as having moved way upscale in terms of exterior looks. I can see why - early on I noticed that the nose is taken right off the RX330, but now I see that the whole vehicle looks like the Lexus. And everybody thinks that the RX330 is the best looking SUV ever created. (Before I gained enthusio-vision, back when I saw cars as a whole without noticing details at all, I felt the same way.) I think that's what's at play here.
hondacura4 says:
02:03 PM, 05/15/07
EW3074, drive the Rav then drive the CRV. Even though you can get the CRV with 268hp the CRV drives MUCH better as its body motions are very well controlled and it always feels buttoned down. Overall its a better package than the Rav. So in the end you can either have power (Rav) or great chassis balance (CRV).
bbechtel16 says:
02:50 PM, 05/15/07
I have found the RX attractive since its inception.
ateixeira says:
08:35 AM, 05/16/07
I'm not a fan of the CR-V's underbite, but I shoppers were ready for something new. I like the profile OK, but not the front and rear views.
Who cares, they're selling like crazy.
I'm surprised the RAV4 doesn't beat it, given it offer a V6 and a 3rd row option.
afontanelle says:
04:05 AM, 05/17/07
It is tha automakers goal to produce high quality parts like of Honda clutch. The Honda CRV's sturdy framework is designed to provide greater safety because of its unbeatable strength and durability.