My wife and I are in the market for a new mid-size SUV. It will be her daily driver and replace her current Mitsubishi Endeavor. We are considering the Hyundai Pallisade, Kia Telluride, Toyota Highlander, and Honda Pilot. One of the main things she wants is 3rd row seating, while still having cargo space behind it. It looks like the Hyundai and Kia make the top of a lot of lists from websites and magazines, but I’d love to know what real world experience people are having with the above mentioned vehicles, or others in the same size.

No GMC Acadia?

My wife test drove most of the models you mention. Ride on the Acadia beat them all. It’s been a great vehicle, no issues.

I have the 2018 Pilot.

The only time it has been in the shop is for Oil changes and other scheduled services.

It has third-row seats but I have never used them, I Keep them folded down.

Mitsubishi Outlander. Three row seats, lots of other goodies.

In my work I get to see a lot of cars' strengths and weaknesses. The Highlander and Pilot have a much better track record for reliability than any Hyundai or Kia. Ten or so years ago I'd have rated the latter almost equally, but Hyundai and Kia are having too many engine failures for my liking. To the best of my knowledge, Honda still uses a timing belt on their V6, but it can wait until after 100K.

Our new 2021 Kia Telluride SX-Prestige didn't drive or handle any better than our 2012 Honda Odyssey with 75,000 miles on it, so we replaced the Telluride at 6,500 miles with a new 2022 Ford Explorer ST. My wife is much happier.

The Kia or Hyundai wouldn't be my first choice of the ones you listed.

A year ago, we found a 2019 Highlander with 18,000 miles on it. Would have bought new, but that was almost impossible.
My opinion, if you want a dependable, nice riding, long lasting vehicle, give Toyota a hard look. They’ve got the reputation.
I’d also stay away from hybrids. We get 25-27 mpg on trip.
My only disappointment is I wish it was a limited. I love those a/c seats!

I believe this summer Toyota is releasing a Grand Highlander which will be a little large with a bigger 3rd row. Might be worth a look.

Highlander and Pilot are the only two I would
consider and the Highlander beats the Pilot.
We had the Highlander as did the in-laws. Great vehicle enjoyable to drive and maintenance free.
Brother has the Pilot, nearly maintenance free great vehicle, but not as enjoyable to drive and not nearly as good in the snow.
Our Highlander was one of the best vehicles in the snow I have come across. I was amazed.

However being a former Highlander owner if you think you get 3rd row usage and decent cargo space you are sadly mistaken.

If she really needs this the Expedition Max is what you seek currently.
We went with the Suburban when we got rid of the Highlander ONLY because it does not offer 3rd row seating AND useable 3rd row cargo space.

But if you wait a few more months you will be in luck as the Grand Highlander will be released! Which does have a larger 3rd row and actual useable cargo space!!
I can’t freaking wait. When we travel we will still have to use a roof top cargo carrier (we already do in the Suburban) but will likely have to get a hitch mounted one as well.
But this Suburban has been a nightmare so our 2 trips I year I can deal with adding the hitch mounted cargo carrier.



I’ll disagree on the above post to stay away from the Hybrids. That is not true in the Toyota as they have dumped their naturally aspirated V6 (horrible idea but not their fault) for the turbo 4 cylinder.
Their Hybrid (non max) is still naturally aspirated and Toyotas Hybrid’s track record is excellent!

Pilot or Subaru Ascent are the ones we are considering. Some of the Hyundai and Kia offerings we have looked at over the years had terrible visibility, particularly looking behind left and right.

Honda pilot owner here and I put parents in a Highlander. Both trouble free. Pilot has lots more room. Not a fan of the Koreans, depreciation, reliability, parts availability.
3rd row seats in any of these ok for occasional adult use or for kids. Kids grow. If 3rd row is full time use you can't beat a mini van for utility. Sorry. Pilot has been called a mini van for people who don't like mini vans.

We have a 2019 Pilot EXL. Could not be happier. We like all the glass no blind spots. The ride is great. When on the road I drive 3-4 hours without breats it is that nice. Good luck in your search.

No love for Mazda? The CX-9 and the new CX-90 would have to be on my list.

We are also in the ‘due diligence’ process of shopping around to replace our 2005 Honda Pilot with almost 220K on the clock. It’s been a great vehicle for us.

We are looking at / test driving pretty much everything in this class.

We test drove a VW Atlas which landed very high on my wife’s list (it’ll be her daily driver) but I am a bit wary of VW reliability. I like how it drove as well along with its features.

As others have stated, I would lean towards Honda and Toyota. We still need to test-drive the offerings from Ford and Chevy/GMC.

In my area of PA there is very little new and used Toyota inventory.

Keep us posted!

quote:

Originally posted by doublesharp:
No love for Mazda? The CX-9 and the new CX-90 would have to be on my list.

Those would be great options for 3rd row SUVs in general. However, like Black92LX described with the Toyota Highlander, they don't have a ton of cargo space without folding down the third row, and that sounds like it's going to be a primary deciding factor for the OP. In fact, the CX-9/90 have even less space than the Highlander, at 14.4/14.9 vs. 16 cubic feet.

The Subaru Ascent is a little better at 17.6 cubic feet, while the Hyundai Palisade is slightly better at 18 cubic feet, and the Ford Explorer and Honda Pilot both do even a bit better at around 18.5 cubic feet each.

The GMC Acadia and Mitsubishi Outlander do much worse at 12.8 and 11.7, respectively.

So it sounds like the OP may actually be looking for a full-sized SUV, like the Kia Telluride, Toyota Grand Highlander, or Ford Expedition, all of which have around 21 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row. (The Expedition Max has a whopping 36 cubic feet, but is a pretty ginormous vehicle!)


Considering reliability alongside cargo space, I'd probably be looking at the Honda Pilot if that 18.5' is going to be enough rear cargo space, otherwise likely the Toyota Grand Highlander.

if reliability, ease of ownership and peace of mind are high on yourlist i'd go with toyota, honda or mazda.

Of the OP options, I'd go for the Kia or Toyota
If the Pilot has the 9spd auto, I've not heard anything good about it. The 10spd has a much better reputation, from what I've read.

As a non-OP option, I love my Explorer. Not a ton of cargo area with the 3rd row up, but a good amount with it folded, similar to our Expedition Max with its 3rd row up.

300hp with the 4cyl, and I'm averaging around 24mpg in Houston commuting daily driving duty.

We've been very happy with our 2019 Pilot after having a 2013 Pilot. We went with the Touring edition. Occasionally wish I'd - gone with the AWD option - I like that option in heavy rain in my truck.

I drive a 2021 Highlander Platinum Hybrid. This is the best car I have owned out of 38. Well, maybe my Honda S2000 is the best. Anyway, I get 36-38 mpg with comfort and all of the safety features. It's quiet - especially after ditching the factory tires. There is nothing I dislike about the car. I've owned a Nissan Pathfinder and a Honda Passport, both in top trim levels Both of those 2 were a definite step below my Highlander. At 32,000 miles the car drives like I just bought it. I will buy this again in a year or two. No brainer for me.

All good choices, all good brands, Toyota and Honda are still having inventory problems, finding what you want at a reasonable price may be difficult.

KIA is excellent, lots of room and a lot more features than a comparable Honda or Toyota for the money. You get more for your money, and you get a much longer warranty.