Until today, we were dependent on "spy shots" to clock the new Honda Pilot. Taken by apparently very bored spy photographers lying in wait in parking lots for a glorified Accord-on-stilts (I guess the Camaro was not out testing that day), it seemed to be 10 percent less ugly than Honda's concept Pilot. As of today, the review embargo has expired. Pilot reviews are springing up like… are Eliot Spitzer jokes out of style yet? Honda appears to have forgotten to invite TTAC to the Pilot's launch, but other more "traditional" folks joined the junket. Edmunds says driving the Pilot is not "particularly memorable," but that the car/truck/minivan does its job. Los Jalopniks report that the refreshed Honda SUV is "not very exciting" but still the sensible car they ought to buy (life is too short for sensible, my friends). Car and Driver calls the Pilot "brilliantly packaged." I call it sorta weird looking, though given the current Pilot's core competencies, I'm confident that most folks will find this two-boxer more than merely adequate. TTAC will bring you a review of the new Pilot as soon as it's available to everyday folks.
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According to C/D: “customers clamored for some additional space”. Really? Maybe they should stop listening to those idiots. What do they move around? Pianos? Every time I see a new vehicle it’s bigger and you’d think in this climate it would be like shooting yourself in the foot. And that is the most boring looking truck I’ve seen since the Jeep Commander. Lastly, who drank the LSD Kool-Aid at Honda’s styling studios? There can be no other explanation for the current Acura and Honda grill direction.
Yeah even as a Hondaphile, I’m going say this is the most unexcited I’ve been about Honda news since the last Pilot restyle/introduction.
Think the grill is bad? I think the wheel well styling is more appropriate for leggoland versions than cars designed to appeal to sensible adults.
Another Transformer from Honda.
Looks like a huge Jeep Patriot. Criticisms about the Pilot’s lack of excitement baffle me. Excitement applies to the S2000, Civic Si, and if you really want to stretch the definition, the Fit Sport. It’s a crossover/SUV, not a canyon carver. It’ll take you from a to b and not break inbetween. What kind of excitement are you expecting from this vehicle?
quasimondo :
What kind of excitement are you expecting from this vehicle?
Ask Jalopnik…
According to C/D: “customers clamored for some additional space”. Really? Maybe they should stop listening to those idiots. What do they move around? Pianos? Every time I see a new vehicle it’s bigger and you’d think in this climate it would be like shooting yourself in the foot.
Yes, I get tired of every vehicle having to be bigger each time it gets updated. Enough is enough.
John
Maybe Honda has hit upon the solution to get Americans to kick their SUV habit – make them this ugly so no one in their right mind will buy it unless they really need one.
Folks, folks. I’m sure this really is a decent car for the right demographic. There is plenty of space, optional AWD (and while this isn’t suited for offroading, it is nice to have that level of grip in a vehicle this size), and probable car-like driving dynamics.
Would I buy one? No. If I had to get a vehicle in this approximate category, I’d get an Explorer. But still, we all know it’s going to be another Honda Hit.
time for a snoopy dance
Yes, it’s another bland minivan alternative. Yes, the pinnacle of mid-size SUV evolution is the Explorer.
Want one? Buy one. Let’s move on. Nothing to see here.
Yes, people always want a little more room. Right up until they get enough, then they want to go back to having a lot less. It’s natural.
I suppose it’s also natural for the car companies to give folks what they ask for, so I don’t see it ending soon. Still, would it not be better to suggest to people that if they want bigger, they should buy the more expensive bigger model?
I don’t have the data to suggest the best course, but I think Pilot is Honda’s biggest vehicle so I suspect it will keep getting bigger.
I’d rather have the current Pilot. They’re going for 3500 below invoice with the rebates and what not. It looks better anyways, a bit Range Rover-ish.
It kind of resembles the first-gen Saturn Vue
Hey…at least it has heated 2nd-row seats and a power tailgate…:-P….
… and dual exhausts! Sporty!
Don’t they have the third-row delete option for an extra 100-gallon fuel tank yet? I figured that was the next logical step. At least until the EPA wakes up and approves LPG conversions or something.
Horrendous!
It has a decent amount of room behind the third row and the 2nd and 3rd row fold flat. Important stuff fro it’s customers.
ash78- the 100 gal fuel tank would be a great idea if they could pull it off safely.
At least it doesn’t have a sloping roof. Stupid useless styling garbage those are.
I expect fit and finish will continue to drop like the trim in our ’04 Pilot. The bright point is the ERG will die at 60k-80k miles VTM4 problems will rear it’s head as well. Perhaps the slush box is improved. I vote for ugly and uninspired. Honda needs to take note from Toyota’s errors… To big, to fast… not to make the errors multifaceted or slab sided.
This makes GM’s Three Lambda Amigos look stylish, 21 century and exciting in comparison. Inside and out. I never thought I’d say that comparing a Honda appliance to a GM appliance.
And the interior shots I’ve seen of the new Pilot make it look downright Godawful inside.
I found this comment on Autoblog:
Carguy @ Apr 15th 2008 9:05AM
I drove a brand new RDX last night. It was a loaner from the dealership where my MDX is getting repaired FOR THE THIRD TIME. The fit and finish in the RDX is absolutely appalling. Cheap plastics, things falling off…I was blown away at how bad Hondas have become. With Honda’s back end processes in America already being awful (dealers, financing, gotcha fees and poor warranties) the loss of product quality is the beginning of the end for Honda as we know them.
—-
This is a surprise to me. Could Honda’s interior materials, fit and finish have gotten that bad? Or is this guy just blowin off steam about his ride’s troubles? I would be very interested in any comments form those who actually seen and touched Honda’s recent new vehicles, Accord, TL, and Pilot.
windswords in any parking lot, look for a Honda over the past 4 years… the gaps are often irregular or large. Honda is flaunting past triumphs and building mediocrity.My comments are based on a ’04 pilot and the “07 Element I saw in a parking lot Friday. I was appalled.
Windswords: This is a surprise to me. Could Honda’s interior materials, fit and finish have gotten that bad? Or is this guy just blowin off steam about his ride’s troubles? I would be very interested in any comments form those who actually seen and touched Honda’s recent new vehicles, Accord, TL, and Pilot.
What I’ve noticed is that, first, other car makers are getting better, particularly the domestics. So the gap between the Honda and the best of the domestics isn’t as big as it used to be.
Second, buying an Acura doesn’t necessarily get you a better level of fit-and-finish than you get with a Honda. Even GM has figured out that a Cadillac needs a higher level of fit-and-finish than a Chevrolet, or even a Buick.
Edmunds.com liked it. They said the interior packaging was really good. I used to hate the looks of the Honda Fit and now I am the proud owner of one, so I’m not counting this Pilot out on styling alone. If it’s a good vehicle, people will buy it regardless.
The majority of Pilot drivers around here are 30-something moms. It is a Honda. It is an SUV. It is big, but not “too big”. It is a Honda. They know two other moms at the PTA that drive “a Honda SUV”. What kind? Oh Mason’s mom has the Green one, and Karlee’s mom has this dark gray one…
It is a Honda. It is an SUV. They will buy it.
I gave my number to one dealers at the local honda dealrship early in 2007 before the concept photos came out. Man I hope he doesn’t waste a call. Could be worse I guess.
Fitz
Why oh why is Honda using the ugly stick so much? I love the engines, enjoy the chassis, but give me something pretty to look at when I walk toward the damned things.
# Joshvar :
Why oh why is Honda using the ugly stick so much? I love the engines, enjoy the chassis, but give me something pretty to look at when I walk toward the damned things.
Because this vehicle’s biggest market is America – and for some reasons, the American market doesn’t seem to value “pretty” that much. If the size and the badge are right, they don’t seem to punish mere ugliness – unless it is transcendent hideousness like the Aztek.
It is not that Americans as people don’t appreciate pretty cars – we do – just that the market seems to not know the difference.
It may be bland, or perhaps ugly, and will stay that way till the wheels fall off of it about 20 years down the road.