welcome to the motormouth YouTube channel I'm Zach I'm Andrea and we do a lot of car reviews each and every week and at the end of the year we come up with our top fives in different categories this one is three row midsize non-luxury SUV it's a very big category a lot of people shop in this space and we don't go 54 3 2 1 and why do we do that well everyone has different needs and wants they're buying a vehicle for different reasons sometimes they need a three row SUV but they don't need a large one others wanted as a big family hauler hauling a lot of people so we decided that we would list five but just in alphabetical order and then after that we do our honorable mentions so let's get into it uh first in alphabetical order is the Honda Pilot all new bigger more power updated technology much improved and quite comfortable and they have the new trail version right Trail the trail sport that's the one we had with the fun looking blue color uh the suspension of that was a little bit softer for doing off-roading but Honda with the CRV the smaller vehicle and this pilot they do a lot of things really well do they excel in any one part I'm not quite sure but boy they if you just wanted to get a vehicle and drive it and go n this does the job perfectly fine a pilot would be it new updated infotainment screen new Dash but all of the functionality that we come to expect from Pilot is all still here and a lot of it are around the second row right yeah well the second row every single model except for the trail sport gets a bench seat so it's an eight passenger vehicle and that middle seat can be removed in the second row and you can store it in the cargo area how great is that there are not many three row SUVs that are eight passenger on the top trim with all the bells and whistles also a V6 power train the hood is the good old 32 L V6 just under 300 horsepower 10-speed automatic transmission this is tried and proven technology uh you're going to see a trend through the other vehicles towards turbo four-cylinder engines Honda still has uh this tried and true and that's that's a major selling feature some cons you know on the lower trims it's kind of basic it comes with a 7inch touch screen even on the top trim it's 9 in you do get Wireless Apple carplay and Android auto but on that 7in touchscreen it's wired you're not getting a deal on the pilot the base models compared to other models in this class that offer more features yeah so you're paying a Honda premium all right let's get into the specs there's just one powertrain option it's a 3.5 L V6 with a 10-speed automatic transmission 285 horsepower and 262 lb feet of torque in Canada standard all-wheel drive in the US front wheeel drive and all whe drive options are available JD Power gives the pilot an overall score of 84 out of 100 and Consumer Reports 77 out of 100 here's the price spread in Canada we'll do the US in just a second the base model starts at just under $54,000 and the most expensive version is the Black Edition at just under $66,000 Canadian in the United States the base model is $37,000 and the most expensive Elite all-wheel drive is just over $52,000 here's the fuel economy for this 32 liter it's 12.4 L per 100 kilm in the city 9.3 on the highway that's 19 m per gallon City 25 MP gallon highway up next is the Hyundai Palisade remember this is in alphabetical order all right and there is going to be a new one coming they've teased that it's going to be revolutionary and very different so this one oh we have we haven't seen it but that's what they keep saying uh so this one is in its last year as this current model uh it has a lot going for it on size it's not the biggest but it is very roomy it's got an elegant and stately design on the outside it's got a sophisticated and Upscale Interior with a large center console kind of like you're flying an aircraft or cruising along in a big ship um it's got a V6 as well it does a lot of things well comfortable spacious plenty of storage in it um I I actually like the the way it handles it offers a lot of power you're never going to find a lack of power whether you're in the city or you're accelerating on the highway and the Palisade offers a lot of value it's actually priced less than some of its competitors some cons it doesn't offer a bench seat on the top trim so if you want all those bells and whistles you're going to get Captain's chairs it's just the way it is also has wired Apple carplay and Android auto it doesn't get Hyundai's Next Generation infotainment system but you know that this new model will and by the way it's not going to look anything like the Santa Fe it's going to be revolutionary they say it's going to be totally different so there you go oh one thing it has the cousin the Kelli ride we found a big difference in the seats we found the Palisade seats were more comfortable than the Kia y so there you go let's get into the specs there's just one powertrain option it's a 3.8 L V6 with an 8-speed automatic transmission 291 horsepower and 262 lbet of torque standard all-wheel drive in Canada in the US front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive options are available JD Power gives the Palisade an overall score of 81 out of 100 and Consumer Reports 83 out of 100 here's the price range in Canada will to the US in just a second the base price is $52,000 and the most expensive $61,000 in the United States the base model is $365,000 and the most expensive ensive model is $535,000 here's the fuel economy for this large 3.8 L V6 12.2 L per 100 kmet City 9.7 on the highway that's 19 m per gallon City 24 m per gallon highway up next in alphabetical order is the K tell ride yeah it's the cousin to the Palisade built on the same platform same engine transmission platform and all-wheel drive system so it really comes down to packaging and styling uh for me I like this look more traditional rugged looking SUV versus the more sophisticated Palisade but that's what they have they have a they have more traditional SUV look versus that which one do you prefer well I also like the toride has a traditional shifter whereas the palate has a button shifter I'm a big fan of just going with a regular shifter I like the rugged good looks of the tell you ride um you know they're the same powertrain so they both offer great power refined drive now as we mentioned the Palisade seats are a little more comfortable the Kia Telly ride seats are quite firm so definitely check that out but everybody has different Comfort levels so it's important that you test drive it yourself so that you know for sure also we had a specific trim with the Quilted seats and all that so maybe other trims might have slightly different foam padding so that's something you need to try but essentially the same vehicle it comes down to styling so it it also comes down to packaging and how do they stack up yeah well again the tell you ride on the top trim if you want all those bells and whistles you cannot get a bench seat you have to get Captain's chairs and also for 2024 surprisingly the Kia tell ride pricing is a lot higher than the Palisade and some of these other competitors one thing about the tell ride ever since it was introduced it's had a long wait time to get them it's just a vehicle people really like I think it's the styling that we talked about already and uh I think there's just more demand for it and so maybe they're putting the price up because of that the tell you ride is a 3.8 L V6 with an 8-speed automatic transmission 291 horsepower and 262 lb feet of torque standard all-wheel drive in Canada front wheeel drive and all-wheel drive options in the US JD Power gives the tell you ride an overall score of 83 out of 100 and Consumer Reports 84 out of 100 here's the price spread in Canada we'll do the US in just a second the base model in Canada 53 ,000 the top trim is $655,000 in the United States the base model is $36,000 and the most expensive model is just over $53,000 here's the fuel economy for this 3.8 L V6 12.8 L per 100 kilometers in the city 9.8 on the highway that's 18 m per gallon City 24 m per gallon highway up next in alphabetical order is the Mazda cx90 some good powertrain options there all right so this one made the list because it's offering something really quite unique it's got an inline six-cylinder it's got a new 8-speed automatic transmission brand new platform brand new all-wheel drive system so that's the gas model which is quite intriguing a lot of people are excited about the inline 6 and also you can get a phv yeah you get a plug-in hybrid I mean that's really terrific we just went through the list in alphabetical order and none of them have a hybrid or a plug-in hybrid option but wait there's another one yes but those three didn't and now we're here at Mazda so I think it's great that they have come to the table with a three row SUV that's a plug in hybrid now you've got different powertrain options you've got that high output in line sticks with terrific power you can put premium fuel in it or regular um it handles I would say it handles well it's more engaging than some of the others that are on the list but a con is that the transmission is a little bit slug is on the gas model better on the plug-in hybrid so I think this is a calibration issue from them and it's something they could probably fix with software um we drove it initially at the launch didn't notice we drove them at home here for a full week and we both found that it was sluggish to downshift uh hopefully that's something they can remedy uh the other thing is the top trims are the ones they showed at the launch with all the beautiful hanging stitching and the cloth and all of that then we drove a rather basic PL and it's not as fancy and Andrea found out if you want those big fancy screens they're only really in the Canadian Market available on the top trim that's it and also that top trim is a six passenger vehicle so if you're hauling a lot of people that may not work and also this is not one of the biggest in this class third row legroom is probably better for children rather adults squish an adult in there um and cargo space uh behind that that third row isn't uh the biggest either so some things to consider if you don't need a really large family hauler you might find the cx90 to be a good size there are two gas powertrain options both with an 8-speed automatic transmission the high output 3.3 L inline 6 Turbo has 340 horsepower and 369 pound feet of torque with premium fuel you can use regular fuel in this model but you'll get a little less horsepower torque number stays the same there's also the standard engine it's the same 3.3 L inline 6 Turbo but with less power 280 horsepower and 332 lb feet of torque standard rear biased all-wheel drive the plug-in hybrid a 2.5 L 4 cylinder with an 8-speed automatic transmission and a combined 323 horsepower and 369 PB Fe of torque on premium fuel you can use regular fuel in this model but it drops it to 39 19 horsepower the torque number stays the same this plug-in hybrid gets 42 km of range 26 miles which is not a lot for a large plug-in hybrid we're going to give you the price range for the gas models and the plugins first Canada then the US the base gas model starts at $48,000 in Canada and goes to $655,000 in the United States the base gas model is $395,000 and goes up to just under $60,000 in Canada the base plug-in hybrid is $57,000 and goes to $665,000 in the United States the plug-in hybrid starts at just under $50,000 and goes to $575,000 here's the fuel economy for the base inline 6-cylinder 9.9 L per 100 km in the city 8.4 on the highway that's 24 m per gallon City 28 m per gallon highway the plugin earns a combined City and Highway rating of 4.2 L equivalent per 100 km or 56 m per gallon equivalent when the battery is fully charged when the batter is depleted the fuel economy drops to 9.4 L per 100 kilomet combined or 25 mes per gallon combined stay tuned for our honorable mentions coming up after this last vehicle in our top five it goes to the Toyota Highlander and Grand Highlander so it's actually two vehicles in under the Highlander name PL so the Highlander has been around for many years as we know and it's available with a gas engine a new turbo four-cylinder which we thought was fantastic in that it's got the good old trusty Synergy drive hybrid system and so that's been around for a long time and then this year they came out with the Grande Islander the big boy and what does that come available with oh my goodness three powertrain options gas hybrid hybrid Max which is a great combination of performance and fuel efficiency the Highlander gets updated technology standard Wireless Apple carplay and Android auto um it really is a terrific vehicle it is smaller than the grand Highlander so if you need a three row SUV where you're only using that third row for small children and want something a bit smaller the Highlander is a good option it's priced really well whether you get the gas model or the hybrid and then the grand Highlander is there if you want a third row that will fit an adult yeah the biggest right we have another vehicle coming up in our honorable mentions that's kind of tied for space with this one but this Grand Highlander is very big to Andrea's point you you may be or over buying saying I'm going to get the grand Highlander and there might actually be a gut check and you say do we really need to have that vehicle and the other thing is there going to be long lineups to get the grand Highlander the regular Highlander you might be able to get MH now some cons about the Highlander and Grand Highlander kind of Toyota grade interior um um some feel that Toyota Interiors are quite Bland um you know I would agree with that I think that the technology is very good in both of them if you spend more and you get the grand Highlander Hybrid Max powertrain that interior is very Lexus like you've got the Lexus shifter you can tell that the quality of materials are better um than what you would get in the grand Highlander gas model in hybrid which is more Toyota light that hybrid system on the regular Highlander the smaller one is also available in the grand Highlander and you might think to yourself well that couldn't possibly be any good we drove it in Hawaii and we were like you know what it's a that's the one you want for just cruising around town taking the kids to school and to activities the highway Cruiser it wouldn't be my choice that would be the hybrid Max yeah I agree with that but the fuel economy on that 2.5 L hybrid is terrific for such a large vehicle um so I think that if your main goal is to just have a more fuele efficient vehicle the 2.5 L hybrid for the Highlander or the grand Highlander is really the way to go in my opinion also there's so much to talk about with these two now one combined Highlander brand is the base engine the gas if you just want a gas you know forget about the hybrid stuff just the gas the new 2.4 L turbocharged four cylinder I was shocked in the regular Highlander about how good it is calibrating CU it has to work with the transmission really well and it does that and when we drove it at the launch the grand Highlander in Hawaii I even said to Andrea that's the one I would pick is the base model yeah he really liked that I think it's a good one as well now we've gone through all the pricing of the vehicles before and when you look at the pricing of the grand Highlander as well as the Highlander you know you'll say to yourself wow there's some pretty good value here for a three row SUV I mean you don't have to get the hybrid Max which is one of the most expensive in this category but you get a large vehicle you get a Performance Based hybrid system with some pretty good fuel economy and it ends up being about $3,000 Canadian more than some of these vehicles like the T ride or the Honda Pilot which are gas models no hybrid so one thing about this hybrid Max is it's got a six-speed automatic transmission the regular hybrid the one that's in the Highlander and available in the grand Highlander is the CV based system so that's one of the reasons why they give you the performance aspect it's kind of replacing what you would get with a V6 I don't know there's a lot to unbox there so what I would do is I would back this video up and listen to it all again so there's Highlander there's Grand Highlander there's some shared engines and a special one the top term of the grand Highlander now of course it's the same thing with some of these other models Captain's chairs once again on the top trims which is frustrating for many people who just want a bench seat but want all those bells and whistles so we have talked to Toyota about it you know we keep saying to them bench seats across all trims please well we're still waiting all right let's get in there's a lot to unbox with all the specs as well so let's get into it the grand Highlander and Highlander have a 2.4 L turbocharged 4 cylinder with an 8-speed automatic transmission 264 horsepower and 310 lb feet of torque standard all-wheel drive in Canada in the US front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive option are available the second powertrain option is a 2.5 L 4 cylinder hybrid matched to an ecvt with a combined 243 horsepower standard all-wheel drive the grand Highlander also has that more powerful hybrid Max model we've been talking about a 2.4 L turbocharged 4cylinder it gets the six-speed automatic transmission with a combined 362 horsepower and 400 lbet of torque standard always wheel drive GD power gives the Highlander an overall score of 80 out of 100 and Consumer Reports 79 out of 100 the grand Highlander has not been rated yet so we're going to go through the pricing for the Highlander then move on to the Grand Highlander the base gas Highlander in Canada starts at $495,000 and goes up to just under $58,000 the hybrid model starts at $525,000 and goes up to just under $61,000 in the United States the gas Highlander starts at $39,000 and goes up to $495,000 the hybrid model in the US starts at just under 41,000 and goes to just over $51,000 now we switch to the Grand Highlander the base model in Canada the gas model starts at $535,000 and goes up to just under $61,000 the hybrid Grand Highlander starts at roughly $577,000 and goes to 64 ,000 the hybrid Max in Canada is $685,000 in the United States the base gas model for the grand Highlander is $43,000 and goes up to $535,000 the hybrid starts at 445,000 and goes to 51,000 and the hybrid Mac starts at $54,000 and goes to $58,000 to save some time I put all of the fuel economy for the Highlander models on the screen you've got gas and Hybrid models in metric and US miles per gallon and here's all of the fuel economy for the grand Highlander for the gas the hybrid and the hybrid Max in metric and US miles per gallon wow that is a lot to unbox I mean that is a ton of information this is such a competitive category so many options to choose from holy smokes and now honorable mentions if you've made it this far isn't it great this video let's get into it up first in alphabetical order is this Chevrolet Traverse it's all new with excellent cargo capacity it seats up to eight passengers it's one of the biggest in this class the interior is all up to date with a standard 17.7 in diagonal infotainment display and a new 2.5 L turbocharge 4 cylinder we look forward to driving it soon a and one of my favorites the Dodge Durango and I love this vehicle because it's one of the best handling three row SUVs you can buy on the road plus it has amazing quality scores that's right amazing quality scores it's not the biggest but it has good cargo space the UK connect touchcreen is very intuitive and it has excellent towing capacity in fact the best towing capacity in this class fuel economy not so good this super scent it's compelling because it offers a lot of value it also has trim options where they off for Captain's chairs or a bench seat so there's a good variety there it's comfortable the cabin feels open it has a comfortable seating position fuel economy isn't great on this model and some complain about the engine matched to a CVT and it can be a bit noisy and our final honorable mention goes to the newly updated Volkswagen Atlas it has a lot of space it's almost exactly the same size as the grand Highlander the big news for this model year is is the V6 is gone replaced with just one turbo 4 cylinder engine it has an updated interior with all the new connectivity we find there's still a lot of hard plastic but a lot better than the previous model well that's it that's our final list type below let us know what you think and what your top pick is well it's kind of like we got a top six because Highlander and Grand Highlander in there we got lots of honorable mentions this is a huge category there's a lot of really good competition in there and there something in there for everyone so let us know which one you like thanks for watching bye-bye
