Little Things Add Up for Honda Pilot

There were no “wow” factors for my family in the 2009 Honda Pilot, but there were a lot of little touches that were noticed and appreciated.

First off, the third row splits 60/40. While that may not seem like a big deal compared to the 50/50 split in the other third rows we tested, it was a huge help. We returned home in a 14-hour trip over two days, and giving the kid in the third row that extra 10% of space made things much more comfortable. In addition, as my 11-year-old pointed out (and his siblings agreed with him), the Pilot had the most legroom of any of the four cars we tested. That meant a lot more peace and quiet for my wife and I up in the front row, I can tell you.

Up next, my 11-year-old also noticed a certain lack of pain when he climbed in the Pilot. This was because it was the first car since the Flex where he didn’t smack his head on the DVD screen hanging down from the car’s ceiling. It was a marked difference: In both the Journey and the CX-9, the DVD screen hung down dead center in my rearview mirror, making it harder to look back (of course, in the Journey it was a moot point because our luggage blocked my view anyway). In the Pilot, though, it was recessed into the ceiling, so my 11-year-old avoided injury, and it stayed above my view out back. Additionally, like the Journey, we loaded the DVDs into the center stack, while in the CX-9 the DVD had to be loaded into the player in the second row. If I’d had young kids, I would have had to do that before leaving, and would have had to pull over to change movies for them. That’s inconvenient.

The Pilot also had a USB hookup for an iPod, which was great, but Honda could learn something from Ford. Ford splits up artists, songs and albums into groups (such as A-F, G-L, etc.), while in the Pilot you have to scroll through what can be an incredibly long list to find a particular artist, song or album. Picking a playlist is very easy, but sometimes my family was in the mood for something more specific.

Finally, my wife was pleased that the Pilot had a separate power control for her seatback on the passenger side. That was also true in the CX-9 and Journey, but the Flex inexplicably only let her rock the seat forward or back. She really hated that about the Flex.

While the Pilot’s boxiness continues to annoy me, it certainly is a comfortable-riding SUV. Check back to see how it fared for gas mileage and packing ability.

The Suburban Dad's Vacation blogging

Comments

[AUD]

i think the little differences in this suv that may not seem to important when your only using the car for a rather short period of time like in this trip, but when your family has to use this suv everyday the banging your head on the dvd console might get annoying, and especially if you have people who are not familiar with the vehicle banging their head everytime they get it, its the little things that can be a rather welcoming attribute. still stick with my Ford Territory though, more car like handling (seeing as it uses a sedan platform)

[slimfast godfather]

Having driven in a similar model of Pilot recently, what bothered me is the gulag-like front door locks. You have to be Houdini to figure those things out. A very quiet and cushioned ride, though.

[Cj]

I'm going to test drive one next week. Looking forward to it since it seems like a fine family vehicle

[Harry]

My wife and I recently cross-shopped several vehicles in the category and ended-up selecting the Pilot. What surprised us is how much smoother and quieter it was than the Ford Edge. Although the Ford was cheaper we firmly believe you get what you pay for. Our three kids love the new Pilot and it does a great job of towing my bass boat. This is our first foreign car purchase and we couldn't be more pleased.

[autobusiuku nuoma]

As it was said there is no "Wow", Honda exterior design is pure, I tried new subaru forester, it looks much better and price is good too.

[Jeff]

Thanks for posting the free car wash code. I don't know if the code will work in Michigan but, I'll have to look for a Texaco station with a car wash and give it a try.

I ran into a similar car wash debacle near Flint, Michigan about 6 months ago. Winter driving is dirty business in Michigan so, when I'm filling up my car on a trip back from my son's hockey tournament and when I'm prompted for a car wash I said yes.

After I completed my fill up, I circled to the car wash only to find it completely broken. I went into the convenience store and politely requested my money back and was told by the clerk that she wasn't authorized to refund me and that I was welcome to come back to the station later in the day after it had been repaired. I explained that I lived more than 100 miles from here and wouldn't be coming back. I should have done what you did and posted the code on a blog and told everyone that they could get free car washes. Good job!!