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I'm in Florida, so not much snow , but we do get torrential rains. In fact, we've had days of it lately........blinding at times. The Pilot does not even blink - I feel very secure with its' handling.
It is All-wheel-drive with a low-lock option (I have yet to use it, haven't needed it).
I really feel it is a near-perfect vehicle. The interior is so flexible and so huge, it has never let me down. It is absolutely cavernous inside - I am continually amazed at what will fit in there.
We drove a Toyota Highlander for a week (it was a rental) and we were not impressed. The Highlander felt like a small sedan (tiny inside compared to the Pilot), did not feel substantial, and the pickup was poor.
I have an '04 Pilot and have had no maintenance problems, I fully expect to drive this vehicle for 10 years - it still looks nearly brand new inside and out (great paint job, etc.).
It may not be the sexiest SUV, but I think it's the most practical .
How does it handle snow?
What's your driving experience?
I had the opportunity to test drive one, liked to loved it.
I have one and LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!! Ours is 4wd though! I love everything about it! The only thing I wish it had was a gps which you can buy one with it but ours didn't have it! It drives awesome in the snow! And it's not a huge suv it's more compact so it's easy for me to park in small spaces etc. It seats 8 and it so wonderful with kids! Ours has leather int and is a breeze to clean up!!! Gas milage is ok..not great about 22/g but ok.
One more thing I forgot to mention and it really important to me is the Pilot has front and side airbags. I feel really comfortable in it and driving it. And comfort in knowing that if I were to get t-boned the Pilot would fill up like the pillsbury doughboy. This safety feature is wonderful to have.
My daughter and son-in-law just bought a pilot in June. They love it. Course, they haven't driven it in any snow or ice yet. Theirs is 4WD so I imagine it'll do just fine.
SIL drives about 32 miles, one way to work over top of a couple areas that hae their own atmosphere and can get pretty nasty in the winter. I'll be interested to see how it does.
I could be wrong, and maybe something has changed, but I believe all Pilots are All-Wheel-Drive, not true 4-Wheel-Drive.
When the Pilots first came out, they were offered in only AWD with a low-lock option (there is a button on the dash - like the automatic Jeeps - all the AWD Honda Pilots have this button).
Later, Honda added 2-Wheel-Drive Pilots to the line. So now you can choose between 2-wheel drive or All-Wheel-Drive (go for the AWD ).
I think most people will call it "4-wheel-drive" casually, but there is a difference......you cannot go four-wheeling in a Pilot .
AWD is what you find in BMWs and lots of other cars and it works great. If you get in a jam, you can use the low-lock feature to gain traction, but if you try to use a Pilot like a "true" 4-wheel-drive vehicle you will destroy it.
I could be wrong, and maybe something has changed, but I believe all Pilots are All-Wheel-Drive, not true 4-Wheel-Drive.
You are correct. This type of AWD system is basically a front wheel drive (FWD) vehicle with the AWD kicking in when the wheels start to slip. It's the same system Honda has been using for a long time (anyone remember the Civic AWD Wagon from the late 80's early 90's?). They called it "Realtime" and the system was reborn in the late 90's with the introduction of the CRV. I have a 1998 CRV and I just love it. It does perform very well, even in deep snow, but as riveree said, don't use it like a true off-road vehicle. It's not really meant for rock climbing and mud bogging. The same goes for the Pilot and Ridgeline. Same AWD system, FWD platform that operates most of the time, and when the front wheels start to slip, the AWD system engages the rear axle creating an AWD system. The power split is 70% front and 30% rear when activated, I believe.
Pilots are great vehicles. I plan on getting one when the CRV gets long in the tooth (that may be a while, it runs too good!!).
Again, my bad, please continue on with "Your" discussion. I won't interrupt or offer words anymore.
Jeez, lighten up. Nobody was picking on you. The point is that there is a vast difference between 4WD and AWD, that's all. There was just clarification needed for people not in the know.
Bryfry is right Jgussler, it was simply a clarification.
Also, if you read my post again, you'll see I was also inquiring if something has changed recently with the Pilot - I'm not an automotive expert by any means, and Honda could have introduced a 4WD Pilot and it might not have registered on my radar. If Honda did offer 4WD, that would be a very different vehicle and I'd be interested in knowing about it.
No need to take it personally.......by the way, you were not the first one in this thread to refer to it as "4WD" .
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, but we do get torrential rains. In fact, we've had days of it lately........blinding at times. The Pilot does not even blink - I feel very secure with its' handling.
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Awd
