Best Honda Car To Buy

Reviewers note one drawback is the infotainment system, calling it dated and clumsy. Though reviewers say competitors like the Toyota RAV4 and Subaru Forester may offer you more fuel economy and off-roading capabilities, respectively, the CR-V brings all of it together with the best.

best honda car to buy

The Honda HR-V is one of the United States' best-selling small SUVs. That's saying something, as the small crossover segment has exploded in popularity over the past few years. This year the HR-V is all-new. Honda has given it a complete redesign, improving the affordable subcompact SUV in practically every way. It is larger, more comfortable, more refined, better looking, and it has more cargo space. It's also more fun to drive thanks to its larger, more powerful engine, some steering components from the sporty Honda Civic, and a new sophisticated independent rear suspension borrowed from the Honda CR-V.

In hindsight, the Passport concept is a no-brainer: Distill the best of Honda's bestselling SUV crossovers, the compact Honda CR-V and the three-row Honda Pilot, into a midsize package with a bit more off-road capability than either. That's what you get with the 2023 Honda Passport, now in its fourth year of production (we're not counting the late 1990s-era Passport that shared badges with an Isuzu model).

Under the hood, Honda's best-selling vehicle has a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine generating 190 horsepower and 179 lb-ft of torque. As with the previous-generation model, Honda is sticking to a front-wheel drive configuration as standard fitment here. However, those wanting all-wheel drive can have it upon request.

Updated April 2022: From compacts to SUVs and sports cars, Honda has a flawless track record of building popular and reliable models that compete with the very best in their respective segments. However, with the ever-changing market conditions, anyone considering buying one of these cars should be aware of their downsides. That's why we've updated this list with more pros and cons of buying a Honda.

Car and Driver reports that this first incarnation of the turbo-charged engine made its appearance for this model year of the CRV. The 1.5-liter engine is paired with one of the best continuously variable automatic transmissions (CVT) on the market. The 190 horsepower engine (212 horsepower for the hybrids) might be powering a model on the lower end of the spectrum for towing capacity at only 1,500 pounds, but what it lacks there it makes up for in its smooth handling, high safety ratings, ample passenger room, and large cargo area.

U.S. News and World Report rated this model year Accord #1 in affordable mid-sized cars, giving it high marks for reliability, safety, comfort, and onboard features. You'll enjoy the superior handling, competitive pricing, overall fuel economy, and comfortable ride that helped to make this the best model year of the legendary Accord lineup to date.

Following a break in production for a few years, the Ridgeline was back on the assembly line in 2017 with a redesign. The best of this generation is 2020, as it has all-wheel drive as a standard for the first time, working with a solid and dependable nine-speed automatic transmission and a powerful V6 engine. Rated #1 in its class (a common rating with this vehicle), it boasts a state-of-the-art infotainment system, great audio, and solid performance (via U.S. News and World Report).

While Honda has a reputation for family-friendly sedans and mini-vans, it's done more than its fair share of producing riveting sports cars. In the open-top sports car category, many enthusiasts reminisce about the exciting Honda S2000 that had its best model year in 2004.

Picking the best Civic model is a bit challenging, but we feel like the first year of the latest redesign that launched for the 2019 model year is the one that stands out. Aside from the standard dependability and longevity people associate with this model, 2019 saw three body styles and five different trim levels. The redesign brought the most up-to-date onboard features to the Civic, including a better infotainment system and more onboard storage space (via Car and Driver).

The Civic CR-X was only available from 1988 until 1991, but that was long enough for it to gain a respectable reputation as one of the best compact sports cars during its run. Swift and powerful, the CR-X was built off of the Civic platform. But Honda transformed its smaller sedan into a completely different animal, giving it double-wishbone suspension. Three engine options were available, including a four-cylinder job that topped out at 150 horsepower (via Auto Evolution).

Motor Biscuit agrees and takes its recommendations a step higher. This publication reports that this is the best in its class for a family vehicle, citing the overall spaciousness, onboard comfort, and current onboard technology as reasons that should entice anyone with a family to place the 2022 model at the top of their list of considerations. The larger touchscreen for its intuitive infotainment system, compatible with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, rounds out the fine-tuning of the cabin technologies that the Accord has fine-tuned over the last several model years.

Honda's subcompact crossover SUV was introduced in 1999 and had consistently rated near the top of its class. But after two generations of producing good models, Honda introduced a total redesign that hit the pavement in 2021 that would become one of the best SUVs the automaker ever brought to market in the United States.

But the best reason to buy a Civic is every other Civic ever built. On the shoulders of a 50-year history of well-regarded, reliable Civics, the current model has one of the highest resale values in its class. Some rivals cost less. But they keep less of their value for the day you trade them in.

Although we believe this shortlist of advanced safety/driver-assist technologies is the foundation for the ideal best cars for a young driver, several more common features help every driver safely operate a vehicle.

Honda is predictably unpredictable. As its longest serving, most popular model, the Civic is perfect proof: every single generation is almost entirely different from the one that preceded it. No VW Golf-style gradual evolution of the species here. Though it'll always be renewed in some form or another, nobody is ever quite sure what will come next - Honda seemingly least of all. Whatever is best at the time is what's made.

What you'll get for that is one of the best examples out there - less than 50k, two owners, a Recaro driver's seat still in one piece - and, perhaps as importantly, a glorious throwback to a Honda (and a hot hatch) heyday. Light, fun cars with revvy engines and brilliant manuals are going to be missed - they don't come much better than the breadvan Civic.

Frequently voted one of the best front-wheel drive performance cars of all time, it shouldn't be hard to understand why the Integra Type R has appreciated over the years. This car introduced hot Hondas to Britain - the NSX-R and first Civic Type R remaining in Japan only - and did so in uniquely enthralling fashion. Never has a car so plain to look at been so extraordinarily good to drive. 041b061a72