The Globe and Mail

After the critical shellacking Honda received with some – not all – of the reviews of the redesigned 2012 Civic, there’s going to be a lot of pressure on some folks at the boardroom if the CR-V that’s based on that Civic tanks on the showroom floor.

But for small SUV buyers, the new CR-V makes enough advancements in the key style, safety and comfort departments to make it a truly worthwhile leap forward, building on what was still a very competitive crossover, even though it doesn’t make any notable drivetrain technology advances.

The CR-V is Honda’s second-most popular model in Canada, selling about half as many of the small SUVs so far this year as it does of the powerhouse Civic, according to the latest DesRosiers-compiled sales charts.

This all-new CR-V shares the Civic’s architecture, engine and transmission, but didn’t go through the same last-minute redo/cost-cutting the Civic received, prompted by the global financial crisis.

Though the Civic’s 13-year crown as best-selling car in the country is under siege this year by flashier compact competitors and natural disaster production delays, the compact CR-V crossover is expected to see a serious boost in sales for 2012, after adding CR-V production to Honda’s Alliston, Ont. plant. If current sales trends continue, Honda’s aim to sell 30,000 CR-Vs in Canada next year will make one of the most, popular small SUV/crossovers in the country.

And depending in part on whether production delays due to massive flooding in Thailand delay the CR-V’s planned January launch in Canada, it just may have the mainstream consumer appeal to pull it off.

Style-wise, there’s enough of a difference in this model that people will notice the new one, an extra note of aggression in the front grille that overlaps the headlights, as well as the extreme approach angle under the front bumper. It’s not radical, but like all good automotive designs, make its predecessor seem a trifle dated.

Sure, this latest CR-V is not going to flip the style meter as high as rivals like the Kia Sportage or the upcoming Kuga-influenced Ford Escape. Then again, this is a largely conservatively shaped crowd, the current Escape and CR-V’s ho-hum two-box shapes proving that you don’t need to sell style to sell well in this segment.

The more impressive gains come inside the CR-V’s slightly shorter and lower overall body. Honda has managed to squeeze out more interior volume by lowering the floor, creating the largest cargo area in its class, with a yawning 1,054 litres of space with all the seats up. It’s so large back there, it seems ripe for a third row, which some rivals offer.

Lowering its 60/40-split rear seat is easier now, with an interior door-like handle up high in the rear of the cargo area. Pull it, and the rear headrests flop forward while the seatback lies itself down, if the front seat isn’t moved too far rearward. This mostly worked flawlessly, although there were a couple of times when I pulled the handles and nothing happened, likely with the seat belts getting in the way.

From the cockpit, our top-of-the-line Touring tester – or at least its closest American equivalent – featured plenty of niceties, including leather seats, powered for the driver, and a large second screen for the high-mounted GPS system. The interior quality was fine for a 30-grand small SUV, though various materials looked better than they felt.

Final CR-V pricing hasn’t been announced yet, but Honda Canada says it will be priced closely to the current one. That would make this fully loaded tester come in closer to 38 large after freight (and before taxes), at which point larger five-seat crossovers with nicer interiors like the Toyota Venza start entering the picture.