February 23, 2019
Island Ford/YouTube
This is a 2004 Honda CR-V. This specific one is not in Philadelphia.
Have you ever stumbled across something so innocuous, so disconnected from your day-to-day reality, that it almost feels make-believe?
This is exactly how I felt when I found @phillycrv, an Instagram account dedicated to photos of Honda CR-Vs around Philadelphia.
I should specify: not just any old Honda CR-V qualifies for the account. Only models between 1998 and 2006 count towards @phillycrv’s grand achievement.
(For reference, the CR-V made its debut in Japan in 1996, and the vehicle design entered its "third generation" in 2007.)
The account, which has 297 followers, began nearly one year ago, on Feb. 25, 2018.
Here’s the first-ever @phillycrv post:
View this post on InstagramKicking of the page with a beauty, 2003
A post shared by Cr-V (@phillycrv) on
I reached out to the account via Instagram direct message last week to try and find out more about what’s going on here — Who is behind the account? Why those specific models? Just a general why? — but unfortunately never heard back.
Here’s what we do know:
The account actually originated in Delaware, somewhere near the University of Delaware’s campus. Through December of 2018, the posts were almost exclusively Delaware-based.
In December, the account’s owner had their own red CR-V stolen in Philadelphia (because of course it was):
View this post on InstagramA post shared by Cr-V (@phillycrv) on
By January, it appeared the account’s owner had moved to the Fishtown area and the posts switched to a decidedly Philadelphia-based theme.
The account posted its 100th photo on Feb. 18, a white 2006 model in Center City just a few blocks from City Hall.
It might be the best social media account on any platform, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.
