luvavacation
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Nov 23, 2006
Well Uromac, since you asked......
The hybrid system takes in air off the floor, under the 2nd row seats. If you toss something into the second row (your purse falls back there, or you throw something in a bag back there, or perhaps you have been plant shopping and then stopped at the grocery store and bought so much stuff, you need to place it in that second row since the back is all full), make sure it is not covering the intakes for the hybrid. You will hear the hybrid system whistle if partially covered, and if you fully cover it, the system will become too warm and overheat (or so I am told, I haven't covered it fully yet). I was used to just throwing stuff into the second row with my old van, with the hybrid I have to make sure I actually aim for the safe spot on the floor.
The dashboard readout is really neat! You can have mileage contests with it when you have two drivers, you can see your tire pressure, you can see if you are using hybrid power, battery, or both, and adjust the pressure on the gas pedal if you want to stay in hybrid mode. Also, the car is really, really quiet in hybrid mode, so at least you know if the car is still on.
Not having a key to insert into the steering column is interesting, you just need the key/sensor on you before you push the "on" button by the steering column. I still, at times, forget to grab the key/sensor when leaving the house, and will try to start the car without it. It won't start. I then have to go back inside, wasting precious time, and grab the key. I then have to accelerate quickly to whereever I am going, since I did not grab the key in the first place. See, it is the manufacturer's fault that my hybrid mpg is not as good as DH's. I always hand him the key when he is driving.
I kind of miss having a set of keys, because I had some nice Disney stuff on my keyring, but since I now carry the car key in my pocket, it was too cumbersome. I know, life is rough.
The sunroof is great! So is the sound system! At least, the sound system is a whole lot better than my van's was, so I am happy.
If you can, get the rubber mats that are usually extra (ours were thrown in because the car we bought was a dealer trade and the mats were included, but we did not want to pay for them, so they took off the price of the mats but let us keep the mats). The mats did a great job keeping the snow and yuck off the carpets this winter, and in the back, I can load up on plants and then just wash off the mats when I get home. Rubber mats are good.
If you have a tendency to rest your left leg on the edge of the door jam when driving, be careful you do not rest it on the emergency break. I figured that out when the car suddenly stopped while I was driving out of my block. Oops! The emergency break is a bit too close to where my foot wants to rest, so I had to rearrange my foot a bit. Not a major thing, but something I did not notice until I really started driving it.
The head rests did hit me in the back of the head when I first tried out the Highlander. Then I realized they adjust not just up and down, but forward and back. That helps alot. I had also looked at the Buick Enclave, and really liked it, but no back window opening and the head rests poking me in the back of my head cancelled the thought of buying that rather quickly! I need to be comfortable when I drive.
What I do not like about the Highlander is that there are no armrests on the seats. I really liked that my van had armrests that were attached to the seats. For me to be tall enough to see out and reach all the pedals and steering wheel, I need to adjust the power seat way up, and then can no longer rest my arm on the console or door. My husband and DD are both taller than me and do not have this problem.
On long rides, I now take a firm little travel pillow and place it under my right arm when I am driving. Yup, it looks strange, but it does the job. The lack of armrest is probably my biggest complaint about my Highlander.
The center section on the second row has two parts, one piece can be the third seat, the other piece can be a storage compartment, or just put nothing between the two 2nd row seats and it is a pass-thru to the third row with a hard surface to step on. I thought that was nice.
Hmm, can't really think of anything else, other than the Highlander has a nice, solid ride, feels solid and secure, oh but if you do speed too quickly into a turn, grab the steering wheel because it feels like you are no longer in control. I believe it is called torque steer, but I might be wrong on that. Or I am just used to driving a big old van and need more practice driving my Highlander fast in turns. Wonder if the police would be ok with that?
The hybrid system takes in air off the floor, under the 2nd row seats. If you toss something into the second row (your purse falls back there, or you throw something in a bag back there, or perhaps you have been plant shopping and then stopped at the grocery store and bought so much stuff, you need to place it in that second row since the back is all full), make sure it is not covering the intakes for the hybrid. You will hear the hybrid system whistle if partially covered, and if you fully cover it, the system will become too warm and overheat (or so I am told, I haven't covered it fully yet). I was used to just throwing stuff into the second row with my old van, with the hybrid I have to make sure I actually aim for the safe spot on the floor.
The dashboard readout is really neat! You can have mileage contests with it when you have two drivers, you can see your tire pressure, you can see if you are using hybrid power, battery, or both, and adjust the pressure on the gas pedal if you want to stay in hybrid mode. Also, the car is really, really quiet in hybrid mode, so at least you know if the car is still on.
Not having a key to insert into the steering column is interesting, you just need the key/sensor on you before you push the "on" button by the steering column. I still, at times, forget to grab the key/sensor when leaving the house, and will try to start the car without it. It won't start. I then have to go back inside, wasting precious time, and grab the key. I then have to accelerate quickly to whereever I am going, since I did not grab the key in the first place. See, it is the manufacturer's fault that my hybrid mpg is not as good as DH's. I always hand him the key when he is driving.
I kind of miss having a set of keys, because I had some nice Disney stuff on my keyring, but since I now carry the car key in my pocket, it was too cumbersome. I know, life is rough.
The sunroof is great! So is the sound system! At least, the sound system is a whole lot better than my van's was, so I am happy.
If you can, get the rubber mats that are usually extra (ours were thrown in because the car we bought was a dealer trade and the mats were included, but we did not want to pay for them, so they took off the price of the mats but let us keep the mats). The mats did a great job keeping the snow and yuck off the carpets this winter, and in the back, I can load up on plants and then just wash off the mats when I get home. Rubber mats are good.
If you have a tendency to rest your left leg on the edge of the door jam when driving, be careful you do not rest it on the emergency break. I figured that out when the car suddenly stopped while I was driving out of my block. Oops! The emergency break is a bit too close to where my foot wants to rest, so I had to rearrange my foot a bit. Not a major thing, but something I did not notice until I really started driving it.
The head rests did hit me in the back of the head when I first tried out the Highlander. Then I realized they adjust not just up and down, but forward and back. That helps alot. I had also looked at the Buick Enclave, and really liked it, but no back window opening and the head rests poking me in the back of my head cancelled the thought of buying that rather quickly! I need to be comfortable when I drive.
What I do not like about the Highlander is that there are no armrests on the seats. I really liked that my van had armrests that were attached to the seats. For me to be tall enough to see out and reach all the pedals and steering wheel, I need to adjust the power seat way up, and then can no longer rest my arm on the console or door. My husband and DD are both taller than me and do not have this problem.
On long rides, I now take a firm little travel pillow and place it under my right arm when I am driving. Yup, it looks strange, but it does the job. The lack of armrest is probably my biggest complaint about my Highlander.
The center section on the second row has two parts, one piece can be the third seat, the other piece can be a storage compartment, or just put nothing between the two 2nd row seats and it is a pass-thru to the third row with a hard surface to step on. I thought that was nice.
Hmm, can't really think of anything else, other than the Highlander has a nice, solid ride, feels solid and secure, oh but if you do speed too quickly into a turn, grab the steering wheel because it feels like you are no longer in control. I believe it is called torque steer, but I might be wrong on that. Or I am just used to driving a big old van and need more practice driving my Highlander fast in turns. Wonder if the police would be ok with that?
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