CD Article: 2006 Honda Pilot EX-L Navi

[CD_Editor]

Test Drive:

Despite a styling update for 2006, "Honda hasn't really addressed the fact that its mid-sized sport-ute blends too easily into the automotive landscape," says Haney Louka. But as a premium, high-quality family hauler "there's little to fault the freshened Pilot," he says.          More...

[Stuff]

Noticed the Competitors are listed as:

Ford Explorer
Hyundai Santa Fe
Jeep Commander
Toyota Highlander
Mitsubishi Endeavor
Mazda CX-7
Nissan Murano
Nissan Murano SE AWD
Nissan Murano SL AWD
2006 Subaru B9 Tribeca
2006 Suzuki XL-7


Isn't the Explorer considerably larger then most of these?

[mdxtasy]

Noticed the Competitors are listed as:

Ford Explorer
Hyundai Santa Fe
Jeep Commander
Toyota Highlander
Mitsubishi Endeavor
Mazda CX-7
Nissan Murano
Nissan Murano SE AWD
Nissan Murano SL AWD
2006 Subaru B9 Tribeca
2006 Suzuki XL-7


Isn't the Explorer considerably larger then most of these?

They are all competition...the Suzuki might be a tad small but the Pilot is the big one inthe midsize market.  They're pretty much  bang on.

[Leviathan]

Seems nice enough. Is "Navi" really worth $2800?

[mdxtasy]

Seems nice enough. Is "Navi" really worth $2800?

NOPE.  Our tech package in the MDX was significantly more....with a few other goodies. 

[Leviathan]

NOPE.  Our tech package in the MDX was significantly more....with a few other goodies. 

Hmm, poking around various forums there seems to be a lot of people that think a lack of "Navi" option for a vehicle is a "deal breaker".  I guess it is a toy like many other options on a car and if you can afford it, why not?

[mdxtasy]

NOPE.  Our tech package in the MDX was significantly more....with a few other goodies. 

Hmm, poking around various forums there seems to be a lot of people that think a lack of "Navi" option for a vehicle is a "deal breaker".  I guess it is a toy like many other options on a car and if you can afford it, why not?

It's a toy.  Totally.  Our toy was $5500 for the tech package.....was it a deal breaker?  No...but it was a good decision at the time.   

[pwcars]

how come the pictures show the non-navi when the title says: EX-L "Navi". lolz.

[grumbo]

We have an Ody Touring which has basically the same Navi system in it. I've heard the comments of people saying its not worth the extra cost, get a Garmin, get a hand held unit etc. IMHO the built in features of the Honda Navi are great. We use it often when going to our daughter's hockey tournaments and to new areas. On a trip to NYC earlier in the year it was invaluable driving to our downtown hotel. I'd probably still be driving around Manhattan as we speak  There was an accident on the Thruway enroute, and the Nav plotted a detour that saved us lots of time. The voice recognition, commands is nice, but I use it rarely in all honesty.
I know in the Ody to get the Nav you also got the back up camera, backup sensors, power tailgate and other items so the difference in price is more than just the Navi. I guess its all what you're "comfortable" in paying for.
We looked at the Pilot when we bought the Ody. I just couldn't get past the totally useless third row of seating. Good if I had a Yorkshire Terrier I wanted to take on tour, but otherwise why bother.

Cheers,
Grumbo

[The Mighty Duck]

how come the pictures show the non-navi when the title says: EX-L "Navi". lolz.

Because the review is about the EX-L Navi...  you would know that if you did more than look at the shiny pictures.   

[John Hasenack]

I noticed that this was compared to most other comptetitors and not ones that people in the SUV nirvana U.S.A are comparing it against.  The sales of the Pilot are up hugely in 2006 in the U.S. because gas is now (finally) a concern.  They are replaing Explorers, Yukons, Trailblazers and Durangos because they want something that is big, has three rows of seats and cargo to spare yet gets class leading fuel economy.  The Pilot is the answer and consumers are making the change. 

The sales of the gas hogs are down and that's great news for the earth, its people, its oceans and its atmosphere.

[johngenx]

how come the pictures show the non-navi when the title says: EX-L "Navi". lolz.

LOLZ?

[sirAQUAMAN64]

I thought the chromed grille treatment on the '06's looked rather tough and good, but at the Georgian CAI show noticed it has yet another grille for '07.

[prufrock]

I would like to throw in a few thoughts about the '06 Pilot now that I have about 6000 kms on ours.

First of all, the power moonroof is standard on the EX-L. We paid about $42K for ours and it is certainly there, so it's not an extra charge (I believe it is on the regular EX); as a matter of fact, I don't think the interior piece has ever been clsoed!

The options the author noted as being missing don't bother me. Here's what does: telescoping wheel, power pedals, better cupholders (won't hold a gatorade bottle for those long summer trips), temperature gauge not integrated into trip gauge, no auxillary input jack, and no heated wiper zone.

The biggest plus to this vehicle -- at least for us -- is its size. Trust me, we looked at many of the "competirors" on that list, and if you are looking for a roomy mid-sized SUV, the Pilot is the winner. The Highlander is a nice vehicle for sure, but it's being replaced soon -- and rightly so -- with a larger model. The Mazda is a greta looking vehicle, but the room is not there for our needs. The only other vehicle that came close was the Pathfinder, which we came very close to buying.

The third row seats are useless, and I wish they had an option where you could delete them. However, the ability to move the seocnd row forward is huge when it comes to storage. It made the deal for us, as those extra couple fo inches really change what can be put in the back without lowering the second row. There are a lot of handy tie-downs in the back as well.

One last note: it does not have a full size spare, which took me by surprise (I somehow neglected to notice that when doing research). You can put a full size one underneath, but it is difficult if you have a hitch installed.

If Honda ever makes this vehicle with cylinder deactivation, it would be the perfect vehicle for us. If they made the Odyssey AWD, I would have bought it instead.

[sirAQUAMAN64]

Prufrock, did you look at the Sienna AWD?

[prufrock]

Prufrock, did you look at the Sienna AWD?

We did, and it's a very nice machine. It felt a little bloated for us at the time though, as we were still adapting to the idea of a larger vehicle. Probably the greatest factor against it was price: the base model is quite a decent deal, but once you start climbing the trim levels it gets expensive -- especially with BC's lovely Access Toyota pricing meaning that there would be no dealing.

One of our friends has the AWD version of the Sienna and swears by it. Another has the base model and had horrible problems with the paint. I guess a few years ago the clearcoat and the paint were mixed togethre, making it really susceptible to scratches and chips.