Toyotas and Hondas You Shouldn’t Buy

today we'll be looking at two competing mid-size crossovers in america the toyota highlander and the honda pilot we'll drive through and see how each crossover evolved in technology and style we'll also see which model years are the best to consider and which ones to avoid if you want to buy used and more so hop in and let's go for a ride they say a well-maintained toyota highlander can run up to 300 000 miles so if you drive an average of 15 to 20 000 miles a year then this means your highlander could last you some 15 to 20 years in fact almost 19 of owners hold on to their highlanders for at least 15 years so let's say you bought one when your son was an infant well it'll last for most of his childhood youth and teens up until he's ready to use it for his first car for college the highlander's longevity comes as no surprise since toyota has a long-standing reputation for dependable cars if you haven't seen my video on why toyota's are so reliable check it out it was 2001. at that time most large suvs in the u.s were truck based toyota already had the forerunner in the u.s market a midsize suv based on the truck with a full frame they also had the rav4 but it was just a compact crossover now toyota wanted something in between so toyota started building a new line at the toyota miata plant in fukuoka japan they were creating the first highlander it's set on a modified camry platform the unibody structure and four-wheel independent suspension the highlander was well received in the us and toyota sold almost 87 000 units in its first year not bad for a brand new line of vehicles honda had also been eyeing the u.s market they too already had a compact crossover in the u.s market the crv so just a couple years after the highlanders launched honda two introduced a midsize crossover the honda pilot pilot was designed specifically for north american market in mind the original pilot was built at the honda plant in ontario canada it shared the same platform with the acura mdx and three rows of seats and claimed that it could fit up to eight people in its first year honda sold 52 000 pilots in america just over half of the highlanders first year sales the honda pilot didn't start off as strong as a highland which already had a head start but a few years later in 2005 pilot overtook the highlander in sales 143 000 pilots versus 137 000 highlanders or so it seems at first glance but if you dig a bit you will see that toyota had been keeping this in 2005 toyota introduced the highlander hybrid version the world's first 7 passenger hybrid suv if you include the highlander hybrid sales numbers well then you see that the highlander actually won over the pilot that year not long after toyota released the second generation highlander it was still based on the camry platform but it was bigger and more powerful than the first generation it was almost three inches taller four inches longer three inches fatter and had an extra inch more in ground clearance some people said it looked a bit more like a station wagon toyota replaced the four-cylinder engine with the v6 initially although the four-cylinder engine did return the following year so honda followed supanda moved its manufacturing from ontario canada to alabama where the second generation pilots were born this generation was larger and came with a v6i vtec engine redesigned the headlights and other new features the vehicle had limited off-road capability and could wade through 19 inches of water but during this time america was in a crisis turmoil had started a few years back when the u.s housing bubble burst that an excessive risk taking by banks contributed bringing that global financial crisis and the great recession this led to the automotive industry crisis in the u.s from 2008 to 2010 rising fuel costs discouraged consumers from purchasing suvs and pickups with low fuel economy vehicle sales took a nose down including that of the toyota highlander and the honda pilot 2009 was the hardest hit for both models it was a tumultuous and unpredictable time period towards the tail end of the crisis the pilot took the highlanders total sales in 2010 and 2011 and not just in combustion engine sales but also including the highlander hybrid sales eventually the crisis passed famine was over and it was time to feast the highlander pulled forward and gained ground again in 2012 the highlander exceeded the pilot sales and that's not even including that's hybrid sales toyota then beefed up the highlander introduced a third generation this crossover was almost three inches longer and a half inch wider than the previous model it now stayed eight passengers not seven the grill grew larger that this generation was bigger and bolder conveyed that they were back in business meanwhile honda 2 launched its third generation pilot it was sleeker smoother and less boxy this generation pilot was larger than the previous one yet weighed 300 pounds less had less noise vibration and less harshness the new exterior shape also meant better aerodynamics because it reduced drag area by 10 in recent years toyota recognized that its consumer base was primarily families they wanted to expand their customer base and also capture the young active buyers and mature empty nesters to appeal to these additional slices of the market they fully redesigned and streamlined the highlander for its fourth generation and upgraded it with more power and cargos in fact 2020 highlanders interestly were the only vehicle in the toyota family to receive a redesign that year you can see toyota's new strategy for the 2020 highlander which looks more modern youthful stylish this new generation is also larger in size this time 2.5 inches longer in length and 2.4 inches wider in the wheelbase and more cargo space yet it weighs 225 pounds less than its predecessor this current generation is built on the toyota new global architecture which makes extensive use of high strength steel this gives the vehicle a stiffer unibody structure while also decreasing its weight the new platform also has independent strut front multi-link rear suspension which means better vehicle dynamics few people know that the 2020 highlander was manufactured exclusively in the u.s at the toyota's plant in princeton indiana contrast that to versions which were built in multiple locations including the us japan and china meanwhile the current honda pilot is at the tail end of the third generation the 2021 pilot currently boasts more passenger space and leg room than a highlander it is however nearing the end of its life cycle industry expectation is that honda is due to kick off a new generation pilot the rumor on the street is that honda will debut the 2022 pilot later this year and thereby unveil the start of the fourth generation so you can see why anticipation is high for the upcoming redesign so what are the highlander and pilots position in the us these days well last year toyota sold more than 212 000 units and that's not including their hybrid sales compared that the honda which sold almost 124 000 pilots so just 58 of toyota's value as far as hybrids go interestingly enough the honda pilot still doesn't offer a hybrid version yet the toyota highlander is still added with its hybrid in fact it's worth noting that the highlanders hybrid sales jumped nearly five times last year in 2019 toyota sold over 10 000 highlander hybrids but a year later in 2020 they sold more than 48 000 hybrids so if you're buying a used model which ones are worth considering which one should you avoid let's start with the toyota highlander the highlander is one of the most reliable mid-size crossovers on the market which remain pretty consistent with high reliability rankings with consumer reports so overall you can't go wrong with buying a used one for the toyota highlander a few good years to consider include the 2007 model which had the least number of complaints and even then the issues were minor also the 2017 and 2018 highlanders are worth considering since they also have only minor issues nevertheless even the best the cars have the good and bad years so as far as used highlanders are concerned it's probably best to avoid 2001 to 2005 model years those years had the most engine and brake problems the 2003 highlander was reportedly the worst year in terms of having the costliest repairs usually at 125 000 miles the engine block bolts give way due to strip threads in the engine and this isn't a cheap fix it's a severe problem and not all mechanics are willing to fix it so many owners are forced to replace the entire engine the cost to fix it was around 3 300 out as far as brake problems the average cost to address was around five to six hundred dollars also nhtsa reported four crashes and injuries due to breakdown the 2008 highlander had the most number of recalls 13 in fact also probably good to reconsider 2019 highland it didn't have many complaints but a few were reported to nhtsa largely due to the fuel system engines and brakes also avoid the 2015 highlander because it received the most customer complaints the most common complaints included uncomfortable front seats and also wind noise when the vehicle is going over 25 miles an hour which evidently was caused by the oversized side mirrors another complaint was about the navigation screen freezing and rebooting what about used honda pilots well the 2015 pilot is reportedly a good year worth considering that year stood out reliability ratings affordability and comfort in fact the 2015 model had the highest reliability rating compared to all pilots since 2005. that said there were three nhtsa safety recalls in that model all having to do with potential issues with the airbags it's wise to confirm that the auto dealer already addressed these actions just use your vin number and call up the dealer they can tell you if it's been fixed or not the 2008 pilot is another good year to consider it had an impressively low number of complaints but which pilot model should you avoid the models that received the most customer complaints included the 2003 2005 and 2016. the 2003 pilot received the very most complaints compared to other cars its worst complaint was around transmission failure which cost an average of three thousand dollars to repair and also ignition switch problems but now what do you think what's your take on these two crossovers please comment below and share your thoughts and if you enjoyed this episode please subscribe to my channel thank you for your support

Channel: Scotty Kilmer

Views: 911,442

Keywords: auto, auto repair, car, car diy, car repair, cars, diy, how to, mechanic, repair, scotty kilmer, car review, car advice, suv comparison, honda review, car buying, car comparison, new car review, which is better, Toyota Highlander, 2021 toyota highlander, highlander, 2021 highlander vs pilot, 2021 honda pilot, honda, toyota, honda pilot, honda pilot vs toyota highlander, new highlander, new pilot, new suv review, suvs, suv, best suv, highlander review, pilot review, mid sized suv

Id: yqX4zgPq8H8

Length: 10min 10sec (610 seconds)

Published: Sat May 15 2021

Reddit Comments

[u/StarsandMaple]

Does anyone even take anything scotty says seriously...

He's probably the most bat shit crazy guy there is...

[u/[deleted]]

Rev up your engines!!!