2026 Honda CR-V TrailSport Review: More TrailLite than TrailSport
I’m a sucker for an off-road or soft-road trim for a vehicle, but does the 2026 Honda CR-V TrailSport deserve the TrailSport badge?
In my review video of the 2025 CR-V, I begged Honda for a TrailSport trim since the other offerings were some of my favorite off-roader/soft-roader offerings. With the other trims offering an incredible package, I was hoping the TrailSport would improve the CR-V even further. Starting on the outside, its unfortunate that not much changes. The differing items to the other trims include the front and rear badges, the wheels have a TrailSport exclusive Shark Gray color, all-terrain tires, and the black door handles. You won’t get a different bumper design to help with approach or departure angles, the suspension won’t have a lift, and you won’t get a 360-degree camera system. It’s a shame because I feel like it could’ve been a great opportunity for Honda to include all of those. With that being said, I’m still a big fan of the exterior design, and the Ash Green Metallic is the color you’ll want to pick.
Getting in, the interior of the CR-V had touches of TrailSport. You’ll get the logo on the seats, along with the orange stitching on them, the doors, shifter, and steering wheel. The floor mats are the rubberized kind to help keep the carpet clean when you go beyond the pavement. Be careful getting too dirty, as the seats are cloth and not leather offered in the other trims. Inside felt rather spacious for the size of the CR-V. The biggest surprise was how well the standard audio system sounded playing my Apple CarPlay connected iPhone.
Under the hood, the 2.0L inline 4-cylinder hybrid engine, delivered 204 horsepower and 247 lb.-ft. of torque. You can only get the TrailSport in AWD configuration but unfortunately you don’t get any different drive modes compared to the other trims. When I drove it on our unpaved back roads, I did put it into Sport mode to get the most aggressive throttle response. I was impressed that I was able to feel a rear biased power deliver on turns which required me to counter steer. If you decide to take the CR-V on off-road trails, you’ll want to be careful as there is no underbody protection. Remember you have to drive home!
Overall, the 2025 Honda CR-V TrailSport felt more like a TrailLite. It barely can be considered a looks package since only a couple of items differ. That doesn’t mean that the CR-V isn’t an incredible package, because it is definitely an exceptional CUV for everyday use. My recommendation, purchase the better equipped Sport Touring Hybrid trim, and build your own TrailSport worthy model.
