Hello, everyone!
I'm looking to buy a gen 1 CR-V in the next 3-5 years or so as a 2nd car for the family. My father may be retiring during that time and will be using our first vehicle to get around. The CR-V I'm looking to buy will be sort of a semi-project vehicle and worst case (?) a daily driver because my father almost always goes out and uses the first vehicle. Given this possible scenario, will it be a good move? What should I look out for when buying and maintaining the CR-V? I've been searching mainly in Facebook Marketplace and observed that the seemingly good ones cost around PhP 200,000-250,000 (USD 4,000-5,000) with a mileage range of 150,000-180,000 kms.
Hope you can help me make a good decision. May we always be productive here! 😀
Mabuhay from the Philippines!
For a project car, yes. For a daily driver, no.
The car may require too much to be repaired for you to use it reliably as your daily driver.
@inthrustwetrust
Would you say the same for a gen 2?
@inthrustwetrust
My sister drives a 2nd gen crv 2003 2.0 se to be specific. It has 110k miles on it. If you can find one with low milage - relatively speaking around 60-70k and can know for sure that nobody has fiddled with its car locking system it is a really good daily car. Just be sure its electronics are not fiddled with. Also check for rust in fenders and structural members in the back of the car. It is a naturally aspirated engine and quite easy to work on if I may say, there is not so much that can go wrong with it. The biggest issues are the window regulators and car locking unit. That's why I said to check that electrical issue as it might drain the battery overtime.
@inthrustwetrust
Also forgot to mention that transmissions are another weak point of these cars. Personally I had not any problems with my sister's car. Because she don't rev the heck out of it. But if you are buying from an owner that might've abused the economical vtec that is on the 2.0i engine you might see some vibration and sluggish gear changes in the car. I'd walk away as it means the converter is not doing its job and you are looking at a transmission build in the future. But some people baby the car and sometimes drive them that way for years.