I have the 1.5 and feel the drivers seat is great but the passenger side lacks adjustment and is not very comfortable . The 1.5 is great if you do a lot of highway/mountain driving and it will return fuel mileage on par with the Hybrid. City driving is another story- The best I can do in ECO mode is 28 mpg in spring /summer very short drives and that'd using 91 octane. Sound deadening- The average person would not be able to tell a difference between a EXL and Touring model especially if you had different tires on the EXL IMO. A EXL would be cheaper to buy although due to tariffs I heard only Canada makes 1.5 versions? I don't think XM is available now.

 

I see no advantage to AWD unless you are off-road. (I know some do )
I still do not trust hybrids yet! (still too many stories out there )

Other than that- I like the CRV

 

AWD is needed if you live in New England.
FWIW

 

I just traded a 2019 Legacy for a 2025 CRV Sport-L. You will miss bigtime the steering responsive headlights, the CRV Sport-L does not have navigation and using Carplay or AndroidAuto in the CRV will be prone to losing GPS. Comfort-wise, the CRV is very comfortable but I thought the Legacy was very comfortable also. I really like the touch screen size & function of the CRV much better than that of the new Outback/Legacy. My understanding is that the Touring navigation is really not that good.

I really thought I was going into an Outback but I could not see myself in it, which is how I ended up in the CRV. I think the CRV drives so much better than the Outback but in retrospect, I think I would have stayed in the Legacy. It's very early still in my ownership of my CRV but there are some things that I find really unfortunate. The lack of navigation at this level is not acceptable only because without GPS, AA or CP navigation is just not that workable for me. Constant disconnections unless I put my phone in the armrest. Painful.

I hope this helps.
FWIW

 

If the stereo would be your only reason to swing towards the touring, skip it. You listen to XM radio and that sounds horrible on every stereo so it will not even matter to you

 

Another questions, I seem to read that the spark plug replacement interval on the CR-V is 30,000 miles. Is that correct? Don't they use 100,000 mile plugs like everyone else?

 

The interval is around 100k miles. You’re probably reading some really old interval from the 90’s.

 

Yea, my old first gen cr-v was 30k miles I believe.

 

I went back to the closest dealer and drive the sport-l in fwd and AWD and the sport touring. I let them appraise a potential trade in while there. My sales person was an idiot who does not understand the vehicles at all. They also low balled my trade in quite a bit, about 3-4k. The salesperson got the manager to come talk to me right before I left. I left after that being reminded how I hate dealership sales tactics. I’m thinking of just keeping the two cars I have and forgetting it, or maybe try another brand. I had a vw Taos as a rental that I loved. Maybe that!

 

I'd just keep the Outback. It's a better vehicle too.

 

I'm not sure about "better vehicle" but it certainly has some advantages. I chose the CRV over the Outback because of ride & quietness, and the fact that the CRV overall felt nicer. The performance of the Hybrid system is nice except in bigger hill country. I also prefer the CRV touchscreen over the Outback's huge mess (which by the way is infinitely better now than it was back in 2020). What do I miss from my 2019 Legacy: the Steering Responsive Headlights, real information from the instrument panel (tire pressure, time of drive, rpms, ...), built-in GPS, a trunk, more intuitive media & ACC controls. The Legacy was more of a car, while it seems the CRV is more of an appliance. That's not necessarily bad but it is different.
MOO & FWIW

 

Welcome to the CRVOC forum. Many fine folks here from around the globe.

Click on your avatar in the upper right hand corner, —> Account Settings, —> Vehicle Details. Complete for your vehicle, then hit Save. In this manner, that vital piece of information automatically appears whenever you post.

With 6 generations of the V on the road today, knowing the year & trim level of the vehicle in question helps those asking & those willing to respond.

Be sure to include your location so when a member hovers over the flag, it shows where you are. There might be a member close to you who could recommend a reputable shop if needed.

 

Well, I pick up the Sport Touring today. I went with the touring for a few reasons. I traded in a 10 year old subaru forester, keeping our 2019 outback. I bought it from a dealer 100 miles away through the Costco program.

 

How did the Costco program work for you? I was very pleased with the process.

 

Hope you aren't regretting the way I am. This is the worst CRV yet. I can't even fit in my show equipment properly, which is the reason I buy this vehicle. This is my third. Wheels out of alignment quickly, no flat folding seats, steering wheel makes weird noises, super hot/air does not flow well with shape of vents, ugly interior (cheap looking), ugly silver rims (also cheap looking) on my black car... I miss my old CRV.

 

If you don't like the car, don't keep it.