2019 vs. 2020 Honda CR-V: What Changed

The 2020 Honda CR-V has several substantial changes in the specifications and ratings we track compared with 2019.

A hybrid appears in the 2020 listing for the first time in this range.

EPA lists a 2.0-litre four-cylinder for 2020 that does not appear in the 2019 listing.

The 2.4-litre four-cylinder is listed for 2019 but not for 2020.

Four campaigns cover both years. Four campaigns (air bags, equipment and fuel system) cover the 2019 and not the 2020, while three campaigns (air bags, equipment and fuel system) cover the 2020 and not the 2019.

Fewer campaigns do not establish better reliability. Confirm each car's coverage and repair status by VIN.

The campaigns that separate them

Imported NHTSA recall campaigns that name one of these two model years but not the other, with their component labels. Campaigns covering both years are left out of this list.

Only the 2019

19V383000 air bags
19V569000 fuel system
19V694000 equipment
21V215000 fuel system

Only the 2020

22V380000 fuel system
23V524000 equipment
24V064000 air bags

A campaign may cover only part of a model year's production. Use the campaign number to ask an authorized dealer whether the car's VIN is included and what work remains. Our recall tool finds model-year campaigns; this guide explains the vehicle-specific check.

Side by side

	2019	2020
Engines listed	1.5L 4-cyl, 2.4L 4-cyl	1.5L 4-cyl, 2.0L 4-cyl
Drive types	All-Wheel Drive, Front-Wheel Drive	All-Wheel Drive, Front-Wheel Drive
Fuel types	Regular Gasoline	Regular Gasoline
Combined MPG	27–30	29–38
Recall campaigns	8	7
Complaints on file	1091	428
Investigations	3	2

Complaint totals reflect different time on the road, sales and reporting. They cannot rank these years for reliability. The categories below identify symptoms to read about, not failure odds. How reporting time affects the comparison.

What owners reported, by system

2019

Other 405 (37%)

Steering 194 (18%)

Electrical 144 (13%)

2020

Other 158 (37%)

Airbag 50 (12%)

Electrical 49 (11%)

Full reports

Open each year's report to read the recall, investigation, manufacturer communication and EPA variant records on file:

2019 CR-V full report 2020 CR-V full report Every CR-V year compared

Sources and methodology

Recalls, complaints and investigations: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Engines, transmissions, drive types and fuel economy: FuelEconomy.gov (EPA/DOE). Differences between listed configurations do not by themselves establish a redesign.
See our methodology and data sources pages for how this comparison is built and its limitations.