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My Personal Road Test.

7K views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  greatdane68 
#1 ·
Alright. We've had my wife's C-HR for over a month now, and I promised an unbiased road test. This may get long. I'm gonna break this down into different areas.

Drivetrain:
For what it is, to me the little 2.0 isn't bad. This isn't a sports car by any means, so if you want something that will pin you to the seat, buy something else. But it you want something that's peppy enough to get out of it's own way, and to carry you through the day to day, then this is the car for you. It's not fast, but it's not slow either. It gets it's job done well. It's gotten great gas mileage, and even though I haven't did any math on it yet, I'd say on a good highway ride it's good for about 31mpg. Around town, realistically, 26 or 27mpg isn't that far off. As I said, this is undocumented.
I'm not a fan of CVT, but this one isn't too awful bad. It's tolerable at best. And since this is pretty much the way that the oems are going, we'd all better get used to it.
I'm waiting for an air intake to be introduced to the market as we speak.

Suspension:
Here's where I was pleasantly surprised. I drive pretty spirited anyway, so I was very impress with the way that it handles the backroads. Like with all cars, it understeers at the limit, but it's predictable. For most people, it's good the way it is. The brakes are excellent for this car. The ABS is great, and the stability control does it's job well.
I've got some wheels that I'll be putting wider tires on, and I'm also waiting on a rear sway bar to hit the market.

Interior:
It's a comfortable place to drive. Seating is good, in about the right position for a CUV. Rear seat room isn't bad, but if there's a tall driver (like me), a little more space would be nice. We don't need to worry about that though, because it's just me and my wife most of the time. If we need more rear seat space, my Camry's in the driveway.
The radio SUCKS!!! It has this thing about kicking phones off bluetooth sometimes. I would take it back to the dealer and complain, but I have a better option in the works (hint: I install high end stereos as a hobby). The back up camera's small but it's useful. My only real complaint is that there's only one 12v outlet in the car, and it's in the center console.

The other stuff:
I didn't think that I'd like the Radar Cruise Control, but it's actually pretty cool, along with the blindspot monitors in the side mirrors. There are back up sensors on the car also, even though their not in the bumper. Anyone can feel pretty safe driving this car, that's for sure.

Future modifications:
I've already had the windows tinted, and I have some 18x8" wheels ready to go on it. I just need to get some TPMS sensors and some 245/45 tires to put on 'em.
As soon as they hit the market, it'll get a rear sway bar and an air intake. It'll also get an exhaust weather one comes out or if I have to design my own. A stereo's a must, and I've already got an amp and a 10" subwoofer for it, along with some components for the front doors. I need to get a good head unit and some speakers for the rear doors to complete it. Then I'll install it. I've also got some H.I.D.s for the head and foglights, and I also plan on replacing the other bulbs for L.E.D.s. Cross drilled and solid rotors along with ceramic pads are on the list too, even though the stock brakes are more than adequate. I'm always trying to improve something though. There will be other small things also, but I haven't thought of them yet.

Final thoughts:
All and all, it's a good car. We both love it. It does what it's suppose to do, and it does it well. It's not perfect, but it's pretty **** close to it in my opinion. Sure, it could be offered in AWD, and maybe it will be later. It could have more power. But why? It'll track through the snow with it's front wheel drive. And once again, it's not meant to be a hot rod, so I feel like it has enough power to do what it's suppose to do. You can't beat it for the price, and I doubt that anything else on the market has this many features at this price point. I could be wrong though.
 
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#2 ·
Thanks for the in-depth overview of your impressions thus far. I would agree that there certainly isn't anything wrong with the powertrain in the C-HR, its just its styling that gives the impression that it should be faster aha. I am sure that Toyota will improve upon the options/trim levels in the next gen model.
 
#3 ·
Great review! The initial reception of the C-HR's powertrain options from those online reviews weren't that favorable, but for people like you and me it's honestly good enough. The radio does suck, and I may be old school but an Aux cord is still the way to go for me even though I have to plug it in and out every time I get in the car. At least a cable won't drop a signal when I'm listening to music.
 
#4 ·
Great review Greatdane! I couldn't agree more with your assessments. I would love an AWD system, but I've found I really haven't need it. I've driven mine through snow with no problems and I've climbed a grassy muddy hill without any problems. I've been waiting for an air intake myself. Dear lord the stereo does suck in regards to connectivity but the performance is not bad. I wish they would have had a JBL system available but the stock system is easily upgradeable.


My daughter is learning to drive and feels much more comfortable and confident in my CHR then her moms Highlander.
 
#12 ·
Me personally, I'm glad that they put the backup camera in the mirror. Leaves plenty of room for stereo modifications. Unlike in my Camry, where I had to keep the stock radio because they still haven't made an adapter for me to run my back up camera through a compatable deck.
 
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