Honda Hid a Picnic Table in the CR-V, and Some Owners Never Found It

Open the back of an early Honda CR-V and the cargo area looks ordinary enough. There is room for shopping bags, a muddy pair of boots, perhaps a cooler. Then you lift the floor panel and discover that Honda gave the car its own picnic table.

It was a proper removable table, with legs folded beneath the top. The same panel served as the floor of the luggage area when everyone was ready to go home. This is the sort of feature an owner might use every weekend or overlook for years, depending on whether anyone thought to lift the carpet.

For U.S. buyers looking for one today, the model years to search are 1997 through 2006. Honda introduced the table with the first-generation CR-V, sold from 1997 to 2001, and kept it for the second generation, sold from 2002 to 2006. Its 2006 features list shows the removable folding table across all three listed trims. 

Honda made the space beneath it useful, too

The table was only half of the idea. Under the first CR-V’s removable floor sat a plastic storage area suitable for wet or dry things. That gave sandy shoes and damp swimming gear somewhere to go without sharing the carpet with the rest of the luggage. Honda’s description of the 2002 redesign calls the compartment a waterproof bucket. 

The redesigned CR-V got a bigger table, measuring about 30 by 33.5 inches. Its folding legs also stiffened the panel when it was back in the car doing its everyday job as a cargo floor. There was even a groove at one corner where a small bag could hang. It is a tiny detail, but a thoughtful one when the table is covered with lunch. 

Honda changed the cargo arrangement for the redesigned 2007 CR-V. Its press material describes a two-level cargo shelf on certain trims rather than the removable picnic table. Be careful with listings that simply say “CR-V table,” though: some models also had a small folding tray between the front seats. That is a different feature and cannot be carried out to a picnic spot. 

If you are viewing a 1997–2006 CR-V, lift the cargo mat and check the panel itself. Make sure it can be removed, that its legs are present and secure, and that it sits properly when returned to the car. A previous owner may have taken the table out for a trip and never put it back.

Finding an intact one will not tell you whether the engine has been maintained or the underside has rusted. It will, however, give you one more reason to take a good look inside the cargo area before the test drive. Honda built a small outing into the floor, and it would be a shame to buy the car without noticing whether it is still there.