Compare the2024 Honda CR-VVS 2023 Toyota Corolla Cross

The Honda CR-V has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the CR-V deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The CR-V’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The Corolla Cross’ side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

Both the CR-V and the Corolla Cross have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive, blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

For its performance in IIHS driver-side and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, updated side impact, headlight, daytime pedestrian crash prevention, and nighttime pedestrian crash prevention testing, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the CR-V its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2023, a rating granted to only 30 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Corolla Cross has not been fully tested, yet.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Honda vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Honda above average in initial quality. With 4 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated below average.

The CR-V’s standard 1.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 21 more horsepower (190 vs. 169) and 28 lbs.-ft. more torque (179 vs. 151) than the Corolla Cross’ 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder. The CR-V Hybrid’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid produces 35 more horsepower (204 vs. 169) and 96 lbs.-ft. more torque (247 vs. 151) than the Corolla Cross’ 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Honda CR-V is faster than the Toyota Corolla Cross:

On the EPA test cycle the CR-V gets better mileage than the Corolla Cross:

Regenerative brakes improve the CR-V Hybrid’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The CR-V has 1.6 gallons more fuel capacity than the Corolla Cross FWD’s standard fuel tank (14 vs. 12.4 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

The CR-V has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

For better stopping power the CR-V’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Corolla Cross:

The CR-V stops shorter than the Corolla Cross:

For better traction, the CR-V has larger tires than the Corolla Cross (235/60R18 vs. 215/65R17). The CR-V’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Corolla Cross (235/60R18 vs. 225/55R18).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the CR-V Sport Touring Hybrid has standard 19-inch wheels. The Corolla Cross’ largest wheels are only 18-inches.

For superior ride and handling, the Honda CR-V has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Corolla Cross 4x2 has a rear torsion beam axle, with a semi-independent rear suspension.

The CR-V has standard front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the CR-V flat and controlled during cornering. The Corolla Cross 4x2 suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the CR-V’s wheelbase is 2.4 inches longer than on the Corolla Cross (106.3 inches vs. 103.9 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the CR-V is 1.8 inches wider in the front and 2 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Corolla Cross.

The CR-V EX-L AWD handles at .84 G’s, while the Corolla Cross XLE AWD pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The CR-V EX-L AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.2 seconds quicker than the Corolla Cross LE (27.4 seconds @ .61 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .56 average G’s).

The front grille of the CR-V uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The CR-V uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The CR-V has 11.1 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Corolla Cross (106 vs. 94.9).

The CR-V has 1.4 inches more front headroom, 3 inches more front hip room, 5.2 inches more front shoulder room, 9 inches more rear legroom, 8.8 inches more rear hip room and 3.5 inches more rear shoulder room than the Corolla Cross.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the CR-V’s rear seats recline. The Corolla Cross’ rear seats don’t recline.

The CR-V has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Corolla Cross (39.3 vs. 26.5 cubic feet).

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the CR-V. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

To make loading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the CR-V Sport Touring’s liftgate can be opened and closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a hands-free gesture to open its liftgate, forcing you to put cargo down if your hands are full.

The CR-V uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Corolla Cross uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

When two different drivers share the CR-V EX-L/Sport-L/Sport Touring, the memory seats make it convenient for both. Each keyless remote activates different, customized memories for the driver’s seat position. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer memory seats.

The CR-V EX-L’s standard easy entry system glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The CR-V’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Corolla Cross L’s standard fixed intermittent wipers only have one fixed delay setting, so the driver will have to manually switch them between slow and intermittent. The CR-V Sport Touring’s standard wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically according to the amount of rainfall on the windshield. The Corolla Cross LE/XLE’s manually variable intermittent wipers don’t change delay with speed.

Consumer Reports rated the CR-V’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the Corolla Cross’ headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

The CR-V has a standard automatic headlight on/off feature. When the ignition is on, the headlights automatically turn on at dusk and off after dawn. When the ignition turns off, the headlights turn off after a delay timed to allow you to securely get to your front door. The Corolla Cross has an automatic headlight on/off feature standard only on the LE/XLE.

On extremely cold winter days, the CR-V Sport Touring’s standard heated steering wheel provides comfort, allowing the driver to steer safely and comfortably before the vehicle heater warms up. The Corolla Cross doesn’t offer a heated steering wheel.

The CR-V Sport Touring’s standard GPS navigation system has a real-time traffic update feature that plots alternative routes to automatically bypass traffic problems. (Service not available in all areas.) The Corolla Cross’ available navigation system doesn’t offer real-time traffic updates.

The CR-V was chosen as a Car and Driver’s “5Best Trucks/10Best” for 2023 and 3 more times in the last 22 years. The Corolla Cross has never been chosen by Car and Driver in their “10Best” issue.

Motor Trend selected the CR-V as their 2018 Sport Utility of the Year. The Corolla Cross has never been chosen.