This. I went from just about buying a Type S Advanced to putting a deposit down on a Pilot Elite.
Like Hogan said, if you read a few of the threads comparing the two - there is a few on MDXers board and Hogan has a thread here, you’ll get some good back and forth. It’s just happens to be a bit more objective and civilized on this board.
I’m an Acura / Honda fan. We’ve had 4 Hondas / Acuras over the years and at least one in the garage since 2007. We currently have two Acuras - wife drives a 3G MDX and I have a TL. When we started to look for a new car to replace the TL, my natural thought was to get a new MDX which I almost did as noted above. But when the new Pilot was released, I really loved the design. So I started to look at the Pilot and realized that I could be saving over 20k compared to the Type S Advanced. To get all the features on the Elite, you’d need to step up to the regular Advanced and even at that level, it would still be a 14k increase. 14k to sacrifice space for the sporty aesthetics and a bit more fit and finish? I can’t make that jump.
You’ll also have the argument from some that the front suspension is superior (double wishbone vs a standard strut / shock layout) and gives you better handling. While that is all true, the reality of it is how much “handling” do you want out of 4,500lb SUV? People who claim that there is this massive difference and they are selling that as a huge feature, probably bought the wrong car and are just justifying the purchase. My TL has a double wishbone front suspension and I really think it’s more noticeable on smaller vehicles that have a lower center of gravity and that are more geared towards aggressive driving. Obviously, we own a 3G MDX and I’ve driven a 4G and the handling isn’t a game changer by any means.
So essentially, I think Honda really closed the gap between the two with this new design. The MDX is a great vehicle and adds on a few more niceties with a decent increase in price while sacrificing interior space.
