Toyota's
contribution to the evolution of the SUV is the very car-like Highlander. Interestingly,
Toyota still sells the decidedly more rugged (read: truck-ish) 4Runner in the
same price range (mid-twenties to mid-thirties), and this allows the Highlander
to be positioned as a more civlized variety of SUV. The
most notable aspect of the Highlander is that it truly feels like a car. And that's
because it is, in essence, a car-it shares a platform and many mechanical bits
with the ubiquitous Camry. Don't expect it to perform like the Camry, however,
as it carries significantly more poundage and has a higher center of gravity.
Still, it handles and accelerates with much more composure than most truck-based
SUVs, with a silky-smooth ride and impressive gas mileage to boot. The
base 155-hp four-cylinder is something to avoid if you can afford to, as the only
engine up to the task of moving the heavy Highlander and its occupants is the
220-hp V-6; neither engine is terribly thirsty, with the four getting 19/24 and
the six earning a still respectable 18/22. Front-wheel drive is standard, but
a four-wheel-drive system (geared more for slippery roads than rocky trails) is
optional. The
Highlander's interior is uniquely laid out, and very spacious. Like the egg-shaped
Lexus RX300-another Camry-based SUV-the Highlander boasts a low, flat floor and
ample room for five. In fact, you can equip the Highlander so well (with leather,
moonroof, rear-seat DVD player, for example) that it does a pretty reasonable
impression of the pricier Lexus in terms of feature content and drivability. Furthermore
some would say that the crisply styled Highlander is the better-looking of the
two. Not a bad deal, we'd say. |