Compare 2017 Toyota Highlander vs Honda Pilot

2017 Toyota Highlander vs 2017 Honda Pilot

Serving Suitland, MD, Alexandria, VA, and Washington, DC

Featuring eight seats, the 2017 Toyota Highlander and Honda Pilot are family-friendly SUVs that are designed for daily cruising and off-road trips. Offering three powertrain systems, three transmissions and two all-wheel drive systems, the Highlander delivers better performance than the Pilot. This Toyota also boasts the 8-inch Entune infotainment system that's loaded with applications, including GPS navigation. The Toyota Safety Sense P and Star Safety System also make the Highlander a class leader in active safety.

Performance

The Toyota Highlander offers a 3.5 L V6 engine that's capable of whipping out 295 horsepower at 6,600 RPM and 263 pound-feet of torque when the tachometer reaches 4,700 RPM. If you want an economical powertrain, then select the 2.7 L I-4 engine that's rated at 185 hp and 184 lb-ft of torque. Additionally, the Highlander is available with a hybrid system that yields a net output of slightly more than 300 hp. An electric motor and nickel-metal hydride battery work in sync to deliver efficient performance for daily drives. You can set the hybrid system to run on the Eco, EV or Power settings. All of the engines in this Toyota SUV are managed by the Variable Valve Timing-intelligent Wide and Variable Valve Timing with intelligence technology. The Honda Pilot only offers the 3.5 L i-VTEC V6 engine that has a peak output of 280 hp and 262 lb-ft of torque. This signature engine comes with the Variable Cylinder Management and Eco Assist System. The Pilot's Idle Start function serves the same purpose as the Highlander's Stop and Start Engine System.

Handling

The six-speed Electronically Controlled Automatic Transmission with intelligence (ECT-i) is available in the Toyota Highlander. For more gear options, select the Direct-Shift-8AT automatic transmission system that also has an electronically controlled mechanism. Both transmissions include the Sequential Shift Mode and Snow Mode. Additionally, the eight-speed automatic transmission includes the Dynamic Rev Management and Uphill/Downhill Shift Logic. The hybrid Highlander models are equipped with the Electronically controlled Continuously Variable Transmission (ECVT) system that offers an infinite number of gear combinations. In the Honda Pilot, only two trims have a nine-speed automatic transmission system. The other three models come with a conventional six-speed automatic transmission. When equipped with the Dynamic Torque-Control AWD or Electronic On-Demand AWD with intelligence (AWD-i) System, the Highlander gets good traction on any surface. Similarly, the Intelligent Variable Torque Management (i-VTM4) AWD System is available in the Pilot.

Technology

The Entune infotainment system in the Toyota Highlander includes an 8-inch touch screen. HD Radio Predictive Traffic and Doppler Weather feeds are delivered to the built-in GPS navigation system to guide you on the road. The Honda Pilot also offers an 8-inch multimedia platform with navigation software and Honda HD Digital Traffic. Both SUVs are connected to music on SiriusXM Satellite Radio and HD Radio. Accessible through the Entune App Suite, Pandora and iHeartRadio are some other entertainment options in the Highlander. Featuring 12 speakers, the JBL GreenEdge audio system produces better acoustics than the Pilot's 10-speaker sound system.

Contact us to reserve a test drive in the 2017 Toyota Highlander. Our large inventory includes the LE, XLE, Limited and other trims of this full-size SUV. We also want you to compare the Highlander with the 2017 Honda Pilot.