BonzoAPD

My uncle has the Highlander. I drove it and enjoyed it very much. It handles great. It is not underpowered. I had 5 people in it and it was supringly quick. Very comfortable seats and ride. It is a in essence an RX300 without the Lexus ammenities and price tag.

BonzoAPD

My chouce would be split. I like how the Pilot looks inside and out. I cannot make a judgement till I drive it. I can say that I have drivcen just about every other SUV in this poll. My parents just got their 2nd Durango. I absolutly love that thing. It is very powerful. It has that awesome V-8 sound. Looks incredibly strong and very distinctive in a market that everything looks so similar. It's road handling has been greatly improved from how it use to be. The Piolot would have to impress the hell out of me for me to switch my vote from the Durango to the Pilot.

Troopa-R

My vote went to the Nissan Pathfinder, imo the best midsize SUV on the market, bar none.

Now, I'll give Honda credit for creating a good SUV for the masses. But, in the impossible scenario that I would ever choose to own a SUV, I'd demand the Japanese quality, Nissan-power, and truck based durability that the Pathfinder offers.

Honda's single entry in the segment is too fragile. Simply put, it's just a big soccermobile - even Honda can admit to that. (opposed to Porsche, who's claiming it's Cayenne can out "off-road" the Hummer H2. Yeah right...)

Toyota's offerings are all either too wussy (Highlander), too weak (4Runner), or too expensive (Sequoia).

And while I recognize that the Americans make some great trucks, and if I wanted a pickup the Silverado would be at the top of my list (or maybe the Colorado, if I wanted something smaller), with the Japanese aggressively attacking SUVs, the Americans have simply been outdone here.

AcuraFanatic

Actually, it can. Even though the Cayenne has a whopper of an engine and a Porsche badge, it definately has a forte for off-roading. In combination with it's AWD system and ground clearance, not to mention the credentials such as skidplates, the Cayenne will need to be pushed far before getting stuck.

The Hummer H2, while still very offroad capable, doesn't compare to the OG H1 in terms of off-road potential. It's based off the Suburban/Yukon platform, and admittedly, you'd have to do something pretty blatent to get either of those stuck.

But in terms of off-road ability, the Porsche has the advantage over the Hummer. Who would have figured?

And yes, this has been tested.

kazi

I definitely understand where you're going. But what really sells me on the Pilot is the interior. Compare:




I don't care for "truck based durability". If I did, I would go for a Jeep, preferable a used 5.9 Limited Grand Cherokee. In a recent MT or C&D comparison, the Pilot did achieve the second best sprint in its class. What's really cool, as said in the article, is the Pilot's Navi system intergrates a camera in the hatch to see what's behind you.





I really wished Honda would've used a floor shifter, like the MDX, instead of the column location. Also, I "need" a sunroof. Wished Honda would've offered it.

jaje

actually the jeep grand cherokee has one of the worst reliability records of modern suvs...so bad my in-laws just bought a pilot and traded in a grand cherokee ($4k trade in on a 1996 laredo with 90k miles...that's some poor resale) and my neighbors are getting rod of their grand cherokee too b/c of all its problems and looking at a honda product b/c i'm always playing with my rex (in fact when their jeep or saab would break they would borrow our honda!)

jeeps strength is a capable off roader and not reliability or durability...i'm sure you meant durable in its off roading prowess

kazi

I heard about Jeeps problems. But I also heard the best G.Cherokees were the last year of that model, which included the 5.9 Limited. A friend of mine has one and has held up with very little problems. The resale value of the 5.9 Limited has been very high in comparison to the other trims. In fact, a lot of Jeep enthusiast will say the 1998 5.9 is better than the current Jeep GCs.

But yes, I did meant if I wanted an off-roading SUV, I would get that Jeep over most SUV.

yianni64

The only other vehicle that I can think of that has the rear camera is the Q45. Anyways, the Pilot also offers the rear back up beeping sensors for $578, while for $218 more you can get the camera.

Anyways, my parents are going to be done with payments on their Accord in about a year, and they did not plan on buying a vehicle for a few years after that. But they are now strongly considering getting a Pilot. They went to go check one out last weekend and were very very impressed. These are the same people who swore never to get an SUV. I think the Pilot has that kind of power on people.

kazi

Yeah, tell me about it. I'm torn between the new Accord and the Pilot next year when the Saturn is done in its lease. :thumbup:

yianni64

My parents are going to test drive a Pilot today but sadly I cant go with them. I would have loved to go and take pics for yall but oh well. I'll tell you what they thought as far as driving impressions and everyting goes.