2004 CR AUTO ISSUE -ask me anything-

[74PILOTMOM]

The top picks are in!
I must add, this is THE magazine to buy for unbiased test results, they've never steered me wrong. I've been reading this for car ratings since I was TEN years old!!! I've been a car nut since I can remember.

Pilot owners take pride in the TOP PICK ranking for our PILOT in the 3-row SUV category!

I can't scan the pages in, my scanner is a pile. So ask me anything if you're doing research...i have all kinds of info in front of me.

Ask away!

Jay, you should be proud too in your midsize SUV top pick ranking ...Mr. Moneybags

[florida_guy]

Originally posted by 74PILOTMOM
ask me anything if you're doing research...i have all kinds of info in front of me.

Ask away!

When will Honda being adding the Hover Craft option to the Pilot?

[74PILOTMOM]

Planning a trip through the Everglades are you?

[74PILOTMOM]

Our gorgeous silver pilot is sitting there in the winners circle, and here's the blurb below it:

"The eight passenger Pilot ($31,000) blends the qualities of an SUV and minivan in one package. Its smooth V6 delivers spirited performance and respectable fuel economy. A comfortable ride; secure handling; impeccable fit and finish; and a fold-away, split third-row seat make it an all-around excellent choice."

[jay]

Originally posted by 74PILOTMOM
...snip

Jay, you should be proud too in your midsize SUV top pick ranking ...snip

Cool. So what blurb did they use for it?

[74PILOTMOM]

Originally posted by jay
Cool. So what blurb did they use for it?

Here you go, and the photo is of your color too

Lexus RX330 Midsized SUV Top Pick

"The RX330 (about $40,000 well equipped) is an excellent overall package. It blends a smooth, responsive 230 hp V6 and secure handling with a very comfortable ride. Its well-detailed interior is as quiet and plush as those of many luxury cars. The Toyota Highlander (about $30,000) is similar but costs much less."

[jay]

Originally posted by 74PILOTMOM


Here you go, and the photo is of your color too

Lexus RX330 Midsized SUV Top Pick

"The RX330 (about $40,000 well equipped) is an excellent overall package. It blends a smooth, responsive 230 hp V6 and secure handling with a very comfortable ride. Its well-detailed interior is as quiet and plush as those of many luxury cars. The Toyota Highlander (about $30,000) is similar but costs much less."

Thanks very much for that. Guess I hafta pick up a copy. I do love that quiet Ivory interior.

[florida_guy]

Originally posted by 74PILOTMOM
Planning a trip through the Everglades are you?

Just want to get above the Florida traffic on the highways.

[RipRocK]

Originally posted by 74PILOTMOM
The top picks are in!

Pilot owners take pride in the TOP PICK ranking for our PILOT in the 3-row SUV category!

I can't scan the pages in, my scanner is a pile. So ask me anything if you're doing research...i have all kinds of info in front of me.

Ask away!

Jay, you should be proud too in your midsize SUV top pick ranking ...Mr. Moneybags

Hey PILOTMOM, can you please kindly tell us how our Pilot's competitors did, such as the Explorer, Highlander, Murano, Trailblazer, and etc? Oh, and does it have anything on Buick's new Rainier? Thanks a bunch!

[74PILOTMOM]

First of all:

Buick Terraza, Chevy Uplander, Pontiac Montana SV6, Saturn Relay:

"The company line: GM will market these minivans as crossover vehicles, combining the versatility and features of a traditional minivan with the styling of an SUV. Each will have unique interior and exterior styling. They use the same 3.5 liter, 200hp V6 engine found in the Chevrolet Malibu."

(Here's what I like)"CR's take: GM disguised these seven year old minivans with an suvlike front end. Performance and crashworthiness must improve for these four to be competitive."

[osteome]

GM disguised these seven year old minivans with an suvlike front end. Performance and crashworthiness must improve for these four to be competitive." [/B]

Not a very good "disguise". It does take a very long look to see that these vehicles are just minivans....and a typical GM effort at that. Perhaps Honda will be selling more Pilot engines to GM once they find out that 200HP is prety good in a Malibu, but is probably asking a lot in a 7 passenger vehicle.

I think that a lot more than safety will have to be improved to be competitive....

[74PILOTMOM]

next; the competition:

There are all kinds of charts in here, I'll give you reliability first.

Misized and large SUV's:
1. Land Cruiser (kicked butt!)
2. Highlander
3. Infinity FX
4. Lexus rx330
5. MDX
6. 4runner V8
7. Pathfinder
8. Montero
9. Montero Sport
10. PILOT
11. Murano
12. Sequoia
13. Rendezvous
And to start the worse than average end of the scale are the:
14&15. Tahoe and Yukon
16.Lexus GX470
17&18. Burb and Yukon XL
19. Explorer
20. Mountaineer
21. BMW X5
22. Excursion
23. JGC
24. SHOCKING: Toyota 4runnerV6 !!!
25. Escalade
26. H2
27. MB Mclass
28&29. The infamous Trailblazer/Envoy twins
30. Blazer
And at the bottom of the pile, with rating so terrible that they didn't even have room on their crap end of the chart:

31. Volvo XC90 with -83%
32. Ford Expedition -91%
33. Land Rover Discovery -100%
and LAST place goes to
34. Lincoln Navigator with a whopping -119% worse than average reliability.

Sure wish my scanner worked!!!

[jay]

Originally posted by 74PILOTMOM
next; the competition:

There are all kinds of charts in here, I'll give you reliability first.

Misized and large SUV's:
1. Land Cruiser (kicked butt!)
2. Highlander
3. Infinity FX
4. Lexus rx330
5. MDX
6. 4runner V8
7. Pathfinder
8. Montero
9. Montero Sport
10. PILOT
11. Murano
12. Sequoia
13. Rendezvous
And to start the worse than average end of the scale are the:
14&15. Tahoe and Yukon
16.Lexus GX470
17&18. Burb and Yukon XL
19. Explorer
20. Mountaineer
21. BMW X5
22. Excursion
23. JGC
24. SHOCKING: Toyota 4runnerV6 !!!
25. Escalade
26. H2
27. MB Mclass
28&29. The infamous Trailblazer/Envoy twins
30. Blazer
And at the bottom of the pile, with rating so terrible that they didn't even have room on their crap end of the chart:

31. Volvo XC90 with -83%
32. Ford Expedition -91%
33. Land Rover Discovery -100%
and LAST place goes to
34. Lincoln Navigator with a whopping -119% worse than average reliability.

Sure wish my scanner worked!!!

Surprising that the GX 470 did so poorly too. It's the Lexus version of the 4Runner V8. Not surprised by the Highlander; the one I owned had a few small issues like the Pilot, but overall was solid.

[74PILOTMOM]

performance, safety, comfort, convenience, interior quality, fuel economy, cargo capacity, and more.

The next chart I'll just give top and bottom five rankings:

MIDSIZED SUV28 in all

Top 5

1. Audi Allroad
2. BMW X5 4.4i
3. Lexus RX330
4. Honda Pilot EX
5. Nissan Murano SL

Bottom 5

24. Chevrolet Trailblazer LS
25. GMC Envoy SLE
26. Chevrolet Trailblazer EXT LT
27. GMC Envoy XL SLT
28. Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo (6cyl)

[RipRocK]

Cool, very informative indeed. Thanks, PILOTMOM!