New Off-Road Ready CR-V Exploit Is What You Want And Honda Desperately Needs Now
If Honda wants to move ahead of Toyota they need to expand their SUV lineup and a new 2020 CR-V off-road-ready vehicle for active customers would be a big hit. A report from the Wall Street Journal says Honda is slipping behind because consumers are not buying sedans and the Accord is too high priced. Consumers in the U.S. are buying more SUVs and Honda is too sedan heavy in their lineup so this one change would help. Toyota is shifting to an SUV/truck lineup (63%) where Honda is about 50/50 SUVs versus cars. It’s not working for Honda, so here’s what they need.
2019 Honda CR-V
The solution for Honda who is shutting down Accord production because dealer lots are full of them and they aren’t selling as they had planned, would be simple for them to do. Honda should build a new CR-V Exploit when they make the 2020 model change to compete with other adventure-ready vehicles. They brought the new rugged Passport which was a good start, but now they need to give their number one selling vehicle in the lineup, CR-V, a new trim that will appeal to urban-adventurers.
Exploit would be bold and daring and it would give the brand a boost, and it would give Honda a new vehicle they need without having to develop a whole new nameplate. It’s the perfect solution to falling profits and slow sedan sales. The CR-V is selling well and Honda needs to capitalize on its popularity. Bring a new adventure CR-V and customers will buy it. Probably in big numbers like Toyota has seen with the RAV4 Adventure.
Toyota priced the 2019 RAV4 Adventure at $33,050 so Honda could have a starting price of $32,900 for the CR-V Exploit and all they need to do is raise the ride height to 8.5-inches, give it suspension upgrades with different shocks, custom wheels with all-terrain tires, include the already capable Honda Real Time AWD system, the 1.5-liter turbo engine and add a new high-tech all-weather fabric interior for easy cleaning.
The 2019 Honda CR-V offers the ideal platform for the Japanese automaker to bring a new off-road-ready Exploit trim. If they build it, customers will come.
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Photo credit: Honda USA