- Mid-size SUVs are in all places, however when you’re attempting to resolve between the Honda Pilot and the Toyota Highlander, we have rounded up a number of key ways in which they’re totally different.
- The Highlander will get much better gas financial system when you spring for the hybrid possibility, which is not accessible on the Pilot.
- There are various similarities, although. Each SUVs can tow as much as 5000 kilos, provide all-wheel drive, and begin at nearly the identical value: $37,645 for the Pilot, $37,955 for the Highlander.
There’s loads of competitors within the three-row family-SUV market. Two of the preferred, the Honda Pilot and the Toyota Highlander, won’t provide the intense off-roading capabilities that the competitors has, however they’re succesful machines that fortunately do the repetitive job of shifting youngsters and households from place to position.
Exterior
Toyota and Honda discovered a number of sparks of design inspiration within the well-trodden mid-size SUV phase. The Highlander and Pilot share a cookie-cutter SUV form, however every has distinct notes. The Pilot is an all-new era this yr, and Honda’s designers added a thick, body-colored C-pillar as a part of the Pilot’s new, extra trucklike look. The present-generation Highlander was launched in 2020, and the 2023 model seems to be just like final yr’s mannequin with its engaging entrance finish.
Inside
The Highlander will get improved supplies all through the cabin this yr, together with SofTex and leather-based. On the upper trim ranges, Toyota has launched a brand new 12.3-inch infotainment show (an 8.0-inch display screen is commonplace on decrease fashions) and a brand new 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster. Different accessible options embrace an 11-speaker JBL audio system.
Inside of Honda Pilot TrailSport.
2023 Toyota Highlander Platinum AWD.
The Pilot’s all-new inside options intelligent seat methods, together with a middle part between the non-compulsory second-row captain’s chairs that may fold into the flooring. A 12-speaker Bose stereo system and a panoramic moonroof can be found. Infotainment on the Pilot comes with a 7.0-inch touchscreen on the 2 lowest trim ranges and 9.0 inches on the EX-L and up.
Each SUVs can seat both seven or eight folks. There are 16 cubic toes of area behind the third row within the Highlander and as much as 22.4 within the Pilot.
Powertrain
Every of those fashions function upgraded commonplace powertrains for 2023. As a substitute of the V-6 present in final yr’s mannequin, the brand new Highlander will get a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine that produces 265 horsepower and 309 pound-feet of torque with an eight-speed transmission. Mixed gas financial system is 24 mpg. The 2023 Pilot, then again, retains the three.5-liter V-6 from the earlier yr, however it has been tweaked to supply 285 horsepower, 5 greater than final yr, whereas nonetheless providing 262 pound-feet of torque. The Pilot has a brand new 10-speed automated transmission, yet one more gear than final yr, and gives 22 mpg mixed.
The Pilot gives extra off-roading functionality with the TrailSport trim, however each SUVs can tow as much as 5000 kilos and could be ordered with both front- or all-wheel drive. The Highlander has a hybrid powertrain possibility that the Pilot lacks, giving the Toyota a lot better gas financial system, as much as 36 mpg mixed.
Value
The almost equivalent beginning costs ought to make it clear how intently these two fashions compete. The 2023 Honda Pilot begins at $37,645, whereas the 2023 Toyota Highlander begins at $37,955. As quickly as you begin including hybrid powertrains or all-wheel drive, the numbers rise, however these SUVs no less than begin on almost equal footing.
Contributing Editor
Sebastian Blanco has been writing about electrical automobiles, hybrids, and hydrogen vehicles since 2006. His articles and automotive evaluations have appeared within the New York Instances, Automotive Information, Reuters, SAE, Autoblog, InsideEVs, Vans.com, Automobile Speak, and different retailers. His first green-car media occasion was the launch of the Tesla Roadster, and since then he has been monitoring the shift away from gasoline-powered automobiles and discovering the brand new expertise’s significance not only for the auto trade, however for the world as an entire. Throw within the current shift to autonomous automobiles, and there are extra fascinating modifications occurring now than most individuals can wrap their heads round. You could find him on Twitter or, on good days, behind the wheel of a brand new EV.