How far can a Honda CR-V hybrid go on a full tank?

Hybrids are the flavour of the month, or perhaps that should even be decade, up 18 per cent so far this year with more than 78,000 sold.

While Toyota undeniably dominates when it comes to hybrids, having switched almost all models in its line-up to pure hybrid power in 2024, there are many other excellent choices on offer, one of which is the Honda CR-V hybrid.

The CR-V mid-sized SUV is just one of five hybrid models sold by Honda – in fact, that’s the whole line-up in Australia, with the marque also offering its Accord sedan and Civic hatch/sedan with petrol-electric powertrains, as well as its HR-V and ZR-V SUVs.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Honda CR-V hybrid I have on long-term test and how it performs in the real world.

The Honda CR-V e:HEV RS costs $59,900 drive-away. Disappointingly, you can only buy this version of the CR-V with hybrid power, as the rest of the range is petrol only, so if you want a hybrid, with AWD and seven seats, you’re fresh out of luck.

It would be great to have hybrid power offered on a lower-spec grade, so buyers after good fuel economy can access the technology even if they can’t afford or don’t want all the higher spec that comes with the RS.

This is expected to change in the future, however, as Honda has begun rolling out hybrid power on entry-level grades of the Civic and HR-V, with the CR-V likely to eventually follow.

Right now, though, in comparison, for example, all five grades of the Toyota RAV4 are hybrid-powered, as are four of the Nissan X-Trail and three of the Hyundai Tucson, with prices starting from $42,260, $50,765, and $41,500 before on-road costs, respectively.

Furthermore, you can also get plug-in hybrid power in a medium SUV across a broader range of grades and for less money elsewhere.

For example, five variants of the Mitsubishi Outlander range can be had with the PHEV powertrain, and both grades of the PHEV-only BYD Sealion 6 for $57,290 and $42,990 before on-road costs, respectively.

I have been driving the Honda CR-V hybrid now for around two months, and have put roughly 5000km on the clock during that time.

Honda claims a fuel-economy rating of 5.5L/100km for the e:HEV RS; however, I have seen this drop as low as 4.8L, but more regularly find I can get 5.3L/100km out of a full tank.

There is more you need to know about this, though. How many kilometres you can eke out of a tank can vary a lot depending on how you drive, how far, in what circumstances, and even what type of fuel you use.

Let’s walk through some of the scenarios I’ve encountered during my time with the CR-V.

A weekend away, driving from Melbourne to Castlemaine in Victoria’s Goldfields, a journey of around 200km each way, plus short trips around the area, including 40km to Bendigo and back, the CR-V showed it was using 5.7L/100km.

Bear in mind that it was fully loaded with bags, a pram, a portacot, toys and all manner of other things, as well as three adults and two children.

However, using it as a daily driver, doing the school run and daycare drop-off/pick-up a couple of times a day, which is around 5km in each direction, a few days a week, plus two days of a much longer 60km commute to work and a couple of airport trips, meant that figure dropped to 5.3L/100km.

Regularly, the Honda CR-V hybrid is capable of giving you 900km out of a tank of 91RON. However, on one tank of more premium 98RON, I found I was able to get as much as 1200km before needing to refuel, an incredibly impressive feat.

And that was without particularly attempting to adapt to a more economical driving style either.

While my commute is long, most of the time is spent sitting in traffic on the highway or freeway, which the Honda CR-V hybrid seems to love. Using Econ mode most of the time seems to offer the best balance of good fuel economy without zapping too much power.

You can also use B mode, accessed by shifting the gearstick down a notch, to maximise efficiency around town, but for freeway driving, you’re better off swapping to D because you can’t access the cruise control in B.

If traffic is free-flowing, normal mode is perkier, and good for overtakes but will use more fuel.

In comparison to the Honda CR-V hybrid, the Toyota RAV4 claims 4.7L/100km, Nissan X-Trail 6.1L/100km, and Hyundai Tucson 5.3L/100km.

Meanwhile, the plug-in hybrid Mitsubishi Outlander reduces its figure to 1.5L/100km, and the BYD Sealion 6 to 1.1L/100km.

Honda’s smooth and refined hybrid system makes for a quiet and enjoyable driving experience, with no noticeable clunks or jolts when transitioning between petrol and electric, whether you buy the CR-V, Civic or any of its other models.

The regenerative braking works well, recharging the battery quickly without feeling awkward or invasive.

The model on test here, in particular the Honda CR-V hybrid, is a premium-feeling car with excellent dynamics, it’s safe, spacious, has a user-friendly infotainment system, and its steering and handling are among the best in its segment.

It uses a naturally aspirated 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, which acts as a generator for a small battery to power two electric motors providing combined outputs of 135kW/335Nm.

And of course, as mentioned, the 5.5L/100km claimed fuel economy isn’t bad either, considering it is larger than a RAV4, although similarly sized to an Outlander or X-Trail, and it offers the most boot space at 581L.

Add to this that Honda has the cheapest capped-price servicing costs for five years of any car maker in Australia right now (not withstanding Genesis, which covers the cost of the first five years for owners), and it shapes up to be an enticing package.

There are some downsides to the hybrid performance in the CR-V that I’ve found, however, that are worth taking into account, so you know what to expect from everyday use.

On cold Melbourne winter mornings, the windscreen, front windows and side mirrors struggle to demist for several minutes (more time than I have rushing out the door), because it starts up in EV.

But it doesn’t stay in EV for long, losing the function when encountering any kind of gradient, even at low speeds and with barely any throttle input. 

On a flat road, it can manage a couple of kilometres in EV, depending on the speed you’re travelling at or traffic conditions, but hit even the most modest of inclines and responsibility is handed back to the engine.

If the e:HEV RS is too much of a stretch of the budget, you can access a Honda hybrid for less money, albeit also less space, via the Civic or HR-V.

The Civic hybrid, Drive's 2025 Best Urban Car under $50K, starts from $49,900 for the e:HEV L, or for $55,900 you can get the e:HEV LX.

Or the HR-V now gets hybrid power for its entry-level grade, with the e:HEV X costing $39,990, and you can also get the e:HEV L for $42,990.

For the next update, I’ll hand over to another member of the Drive team to examine how the Honda CR-V hybrid performs on a shorter commute.

Until then, catch up on my introduction to the Honda CR-V e:HEV RS, or find out how it went through its first service experience.

A born-and-bred newshound, Kathryn has worked her way up through the ranks reporting for, and later editing, two renowned UK regional newspapers and websites, before moving on to join the digital newsdesk of one of the world’s most popular newspapers – The Sun. More recently, she’s done a short stint in PR in the not-for-profit sector, and led the news team at Wheels Media.

Read more about Kathryn Fisk