Honda Pilot

[superme80]

Anyone have one? DH and I are looking into getting a car with a 3rd row in the near future. The Honda Pilot seems to fit my needs. Anyone have one and love it Anyone hate it? Thanks!

 

[okeydokey]

We have a 2007 we bought new and love it. It currently has 165,000 miles on it and I expect to have it another five years. We used it a lot for carrying kids and friends when we needed to do that, the third row seating was great. It's tight for adults and big teens but was awesome for younger kids.

 

[mom2rb]

I loved mine. I would have driven forever except someone rear ended my husband and totaled it. It had 160,000 miles on it and was still running perfectly.

 

[Vicki926]

I love mine(2015). Not a lot of room behind the 3rd row if you need to pack for road trips or anything like that, but other than that I absolutely love it. It’s leased- I have to hand it in in May and I’m so bummed.

 

[beavismom]

I have a 2016. The transmission is a typical Honda, and doesn't always shift as smoothly as I would like. My other complaint is with the HondaLink system. It doesn't work as well as some other car makers systems. Other than that, I am fairly happy with mine. The 3 row set up is nice. The second row leg room is what sold me on the car to begin with, but the third row is comfortable even for my son who is 6' tall. I also like the fact those seats are split so you don't have to use the full row if you don't want.

 

[bcla]

It's a big vehicle - that's for sure. My brother-in-law has one and we rode around in it while we were visiting. Kind of made sense because it was three of us and four of them, so having 8 seats helped a lot. But I don't know if I could park a vehicle that big. Whenever I borrowed their car it was a sedan.

If you're talking used, I thought that they had some issues with their first generation variable cylinder management system and lubrication/sludge issues. However, the latest versions all use 0W-20 motor oil, which is only achieved by something marketed as "synthetic".

 

[superme80]

Thank you everyone! We are a family of 3, but do not have a vehicle large enough to cart my kids AND their friends around in. Also 3 growing boys cramped in 1 row makes for some obnoxious fights! Thank you again!

 

[Klayfish]

I have a 2016. The transmission is a typical Honda, and doesn't always shift as smoothly as I would like.

Not sure where you're getting that. Honda uses some self designed transmissions, which are among the best in the business. For other ones, they outsource them to a company such a ZF...so it's the same transmission found in many other brands...Jeep for example. The Pilot will use either of these, depending on trim level you purchase.

The Pilot is one of the best mid-size SUVs on the market. Having said that, SUVs are not the best way to haul a family around. They may be trendy, but they're not space efficient and really aren't great at doing anything. If you've got the need to haul kids and their stuff around, your one and only answer is minivan. The Odyssey...which is built on the exact same platform as the Pilot...is a darn good minivan. Move beyond the "stigma" and get what will really work for your needs.

 

[DisneyHardin]

The Pilot is one of the best mid-size SUVs on the market. Having said that, SUVs are not the best way to haul a family around. They may be trendy, but they're not space efficient and really aren't great at doing anything. If you've got the need to haul kids and their stuff around, your one and only answer is minivan. The Odyssey...which is built on the exact same platform as the Pilot...is a darn good minivan. Move beyond the "stigma" and get what will really work for your needs.

I was getting ready to post something very similar. We have an Odyssey and looked at the Pilot too when we bought ours. I just like the feel of the Odyssey better and it seemed a lot roomier without the actual vehicle being bigger.

 

[Tattylou]

I have a 2007 with 124000 miles on it. I love it. It is awesome in the snow and I like the the 3rd row.
I think the new ones have the option of captains seats for the 2nd row, which I would get if I was planning to use the 3rd row regularly. My 2nd row is a bench and it does make getting in and out of the 3rd row kind of a pain. I only have 2 kids though so we only use the 3rd row occasionally if we have extra ppl with us.
@DisneyHardin I agree the Odyssey does seem roomier inside. In the Pilot there is basically no rear storage with the 3rd row up. It is definitely worth looking at the Odyssey too. Sometimes I did wish I had gotten that instead...until it snows bc I do not think the minivans have AWD. Not sure when OP lives, but the Pilot has been awesome in the snow....said as I sit here watching a snow storm out my window.

 

[pxidst119]

We always want to switch to the Pilot but everytime we check it out, we just can’t beat the space and comfort of the Odyssey. We are on our 2nd one in 15 years and the amount of people and stuff we’ve been able to fit comfortably always amazes us. We have 3 kids and are always driving other kids and their sporting equipment too. After getting used to that, the Pilot seems small on storage. We live in New England and I agonize over the snow storms. It isn’t good in snow but with snow tires it’s not bad. They clean the roads up fast and for the 10 or so days a year the roads are actually snow covered I think it’s still worth it for the rest of the year. Now, my sister has the Sienna and that has AWD and is pretty good in the snow so that may be a better minivan option if you get a lot of snow.

 

[tvguy]

I have a co-worker who is debating whether to replace the transmission in her Accord, but it has 200,000 miles on it! Other than that, i can't think of a single person I know that has ever had an automatic transmission repair on a Honda.
Now, Honda automatic transmissions do have a distinctive "whine" that to me sounds like a bearing going out, but clearly that is not the case. Drives my family nuts because if a car is coming up from behind me if I am out walking and I can tell it is a Honda from the whine.....and I will say "here comes a Honda"....and it is always a Honda.

 

[mumto3girls]

I drove an odyssey for about 10 years. The interior room and particularly the cargo space cannot be beat. The downside was it was awful in the snow. We tried different tires and nothing helped. We live in southwestern PA and don’t get crazy amounts of snow, but it was terrible with any slickness to the roads. My husband drives a Honda Ridgeline and never has issues. When we replaced the odyssey we were between a pilot and the highlander. We went with the highlander because we got a bit better of a deal. I love it and not worrying about going in the snow is huge for me, but I very much miss the cargo space of the odyssey.

 

[Klayfish]

The snow thing really doesn't have a lot to do with the Odyssey, it's about the tires. The Odyssey is a FWD vehicle with a lot of its' weight on the front wheels. This is a good thing for snow. But if you have regular all season tires on it, you're going to struggle in deep snow. This is especially true once all the electronic controls kick in when they sense tire slip and prevent further motion. Proper snow tires, or even snow biased all seasons, make a world of difference. AWD certainly isn't a bad thing, but again it's about rubber meeting the road. I'd take a FWD vehicle on snow tires over AWD on all season tires any day. Of course, AWD and snow tires make for winter dominance, but unless you live in Syracuse, it's probably overkill. Very thankful to live in Atlanta now where we very rarely get snow, but spent decades driving in mid-Atlantic snow. Our minivan with good tires was nearly unstoppable. With bad or worn out tires, it was...uh...adventurous.

Yes, the Odyssey...and all minivans...have a huge packaging efficiency over SUVs.

 

[BOST99]

Following along...

Just starting our search with a plan to to buy in the next 1-2 yrs and debating between Pilot, Traverse or VW Atlas.

 

[mjkacmom]

Not sure where you're getting that. Honda uses some self designed transmissions, which are among the best in the business. For other ones, they outsource them to a company such a ZF...so it's the same transmission found in many other brands...Jeep for example. The Pilot will use either of these, depending on trim level you purchase.

The Pilot is one of the best mid-size SUVs on the market. Having said that, SUVs are not the best way to haul a family around. They may be trendy, but they're not space efficient and really aren't great at doing anything. If you've got the need to haul kids and their stuff around, your one and only answer is minivan. The Odyssey...which is built on the exact same platform as the Pilot...is a darn good minivan. Move beyond the "stigma" and get what will really work for your needs.

We currently own three Honda odyssey’s, only because dd21 totaled the fourth. So easy for kids to hop in and out of, and we’ve been carpooling for everything for so many years. I end up with seven teenagers in the van very often.

 

[RN2003AZ]

I was in the market for a new SUV last fall. I had a 5 year old Ford Explorer that I was looking to upgrade. I drove every 7 passenger SUV option available including the Pilot. I was not impressed with it at all. Felt very sluggish and honestly cheaply made. I loved my first Explorer and decided to upgrade models and got a second one! My 2017 Explorer Platinum is amazing!

 

[Klayfish]

Following along...

Just starting our search with a plan to to buy in the next 1-2 yrs and debating between Pilot, Traverse or VW Atlas.

If you must have an SUV (again, IMO they're not good at anything), I'd run away from the Atlas as fast as I can. "VW" and "quality" are two words that should never be in the same sentence. Traverse is OK.

Car shopping is a lot about perception and wants. For example, PP mentioned loving the Explorer and that the Pilot felt sluggish and cheaply made. Fantastic that they love their Explorer...Ford sells boat loads of them every year, so they're doing something right. I've driven a bunch of them and find them decent transportation. But objectively, those statements aren't totally accurate (only the top trim Explorer Titanium is quicker than the Pilot, and barely).

Sorry to keep jumping in, I'm a car geek.

 

[DisneyHardin]

I have a 2007 with 124000 miles on it. I love it. It is awesome in the snow. Sometimes I did wish I had gotten that instead...until it snows bc I do not think the minivans have AWD. Not sure when OP lives, but the Pilot has been awesome in the snow....said as I sit here watching a snow storm out my window.

I’m in KY, so I don’t deal with a ton of snow. It seems to do pretty well because it is a nice solid, heavy vehicle.

 

[RN2003AZ]

If you must have an SUV (again, IMO they're not good at anything), I'd run away from the Atlas as fast as I can. "VW" and "quality" are two words that should never be in the same sentence. Traverse is OK.

Car shopping is a lot about perception and wants. For example, PP mentioned loving the Explorer and that the Pilot felt sluggish and cheaply made. Fantastic that they love their Explorer...Ford sells boat loads of them every year, so they're doing something right. I've driven a bunch of them and find them decent transportation. But objectively, those statements aren't totally accurate (only the top trim Explorer Titanium is quicker than the Pilot, and barely).

Sorry to keep jumping in, I'm a car geek.

I drove the Atlas, Pilot, MDX, XC90, QX60, Q5, Acadia and Explorer. I upgraded from a 2013 XLT Ex to the Platinum Ex. Significant difference. The only others I would have seriously considered were the Acura or Volvo. I will say my sister loves her 2016 Pilot. To each his own...