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Miss The Mark? TTAC Grills The Toyota Highlander Sport
Sir Isaac Newton had a ninth law: all vehicles must gain mass with each passing generation. I know, I know: safety regulations, usable third row, American tastes, yada yada yada. And it’s true that the new, bigger Toyota Highlander exacts no fuel efficiency penalty for its extra height, width, length and weight. Even so, has the new Highlander lost something, as Toyota moves further and further away from cheap and cheerful towards pricey and pulchritudinous?

The original Highlander’s bland sheetmetal made the Camry-on-stilts a sort of anti-Xterra for urban worriers. For reasons lost in the mists of machismo, the new Highlander has morphed into a CUV with a ‘tude. Not only has the model gained mass, it now bristles with malice. “Angry eyes” headlights combine with a Tundra-like raked windshield and bulging hood to create a vehicle that dares you to call it a cute ute.

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Miss The Mark? TTAC Grills The Toyota Highlander Sport



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RupertRupert - 8/8/2007 9:49:56 AMView My AgentSpace
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"The soft-roader’s fit and finish is simply appalling. Some of the Highlander’s door panel's plastic pieces were so badly misaligned I assumed they were an homage to cubism."
"Other than some handsome buttons on the dash that embody [what we traditionally think of as] Toyota quality, the Highlander is a riot of impoverished thinking AND execution."
"The Highlander’s plastics all look decent enough; some even boast fake grains and sophisticated textures. But they're harder than microwaved pizza. You could cut your hand on the sun visor’s plastic flange".

Hard plastics, poor fit and finish and bad use of materials, plus a terrible ride, sloppy handling...what happened Toyota?

The reviewer thinks they have tried to become too American...stuff it with features, cupholders and make it bigger, thereby loosing Toyota's core values.
And that fake wood is absolutely horrible.

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M53RM53R - 8/8/2007 10:36:49 AMView My AgentSpace
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Good question... what happened Toyota?


david989david989 - 8/8/2007 10:48:19 AM
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First of all this article is very biased. The review clearly has a grudge against Toyota. Toyota made this baby to become the class leader and it is one in my book.

Toyota interiors are some of the best in the world. It is embarrassing for companies like Rolls Royce when a simple Toyota Corolla or a Scion has a better interior (materials and build quality) than their top models for example.

I have driven the Toyota Highlander Sport and the handling rivals that of a Cayenne and the build quality is class leading. The interior materials are superb and the opposite of what this guy said. I have also driven the new BMW X5 and the interior is a nightmare. Cheap materials here and there, a total rip off for such an expensive car. A 1980s Toyota Corolla has a better quality interior than that thing.

This article shouldn't be taken seriously. It's very biased and clearly hates Toyota for something.

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RupertRupert - 8/8/2007 11:43:11 AMView My AgentSpace
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Don't be silly, you can't drive.

And I suppose the Highlander can't be had in FWD either?


Agent009Agent009 - 8/8/2007 12:24:45 PMView My AgentSpace
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david989 ROFL!!

You compare a Corolla as a equal to a Rolls Royce in any area? This simple comparison just underscored the fact you probably have never seen a Rolls much less sat in one.

Maybe a more correct statement could be that Rolls puts more labor in crafting an engine than Toyota uses in assembling the whole corolla.

The Corolla takes 24 hours in canada
http://www.investincanada.com/en/977/Productivity.html

The Rolls takes 350 hours plus time to build the engine

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0KJI/is_3_119/ai_n18770106

I might suggest you educate yourself a bit more before you put such simple blind faith in a comment.


Will_Will_ - 8/8/2007 12:44:10 PM
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Agent009,

Might I suggest to you, humbly, that you educate yourself on the motives behind "david989's" existance here on your website before you take him seriously ever again...


Will_Will_ - 8/8/2007 11:56:20 AM
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It's an economy CUV. The problem here is that Toyota as usual is held to a higher standard than everyone else. This vehicle is fine. And since when are we heavily quoting TTAC and stating it as fact? Keep in mind these are the same people that said the leather in the BMW 5-Series was "rougher than roadkill" or however they worded it...

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Agent009Agent009 - 8/8/2007 12:29:52 PMView My AgentSpace
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no doubt the vehicle will run forever. But the reviewer was leaning to "what will it look like after those years".

This is a problem with lots of Japanese cars. They run reliably forever. But the look like heck after 6 or 7 years.



1970toyotamarc1970toyotamarc - 8/8/2007 12:11:19 PM
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TTAC never met a Toyota that it didnt want to bash. The interior is gorgeous, I dont know what they're talking about. MotorWeek reviewed it last week and heaped praise on the interior. TTAC reviewers are so angry at the world. They dont like anything, so they find ridiculous areas to fault. And their lemming like bloggers just eat it up, agreeing with each nonsensical point like sheep following the flock.

And I am so sick of people complaining when a Toyota grows in size. This argument against increasing size during model changes is so disingenuous. How many comparos over the past few years faulted the RAV for being undersized compared to the Escape or CRV, how many times was the Highlander berated for being smaller than the Pilot? And have you seen the new GM trio of massive CUVs? This is what the Highlander has to complete with. So do you really think they will remain the little guy on the block? I mean get real.

THe 08 Highlander is bigger, more powerful, more sylish, and it is set to rule the mid sized CUV class that it created.

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Agent009Agent009 - 8/8/2007 12:27:40 PMView My AgentSpace
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Well they have posted several Toyota reviews that are quite favorable. But they also are not hesitant to slam any model that they don't like.

Actually they are currently banned from all BMW demos in the US because of their commentary. LOL I guess the truth can be brutal.


1970toyotamarc1970toyotamarc - 8/8/2007 4:14:08 PM
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It depends on who is reviewing. You can look up reviews by make, and it just shows which authors like which brands.

When reading a review like that, you have to look at what they objectively found, vs what they subjectively chose to dislike.


zorbeezezorbeeze - 8/8/2007 1:01:29 PM
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The truth hurts doesn't it

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