The 2016 Honda Pilot AWD Elite. |
If we're not in a certain car one year, we'll probably see it the next. Worst case, the year after that. So how is it possible that our last review of the Honda Pilot was seven years ago this week? So much has changed since that review....most of all, the Honda Pilot itself.
2016 Honda Pilot AWD Elite. |
The Pilot proved to be the perfect vehicle for a quick weekend-before-Christmas trip to Mendocino County for Navigator's mother's birthday. We both had to work that day, so we made plans to get on the road about 2 and arrive at the dinner by 5:30. Nature and other drivers had other plans. We got a late start (mostly my fault) and traffic through Metropolitan Sacramento on U.S. 50 and Interstate 5 was brutal.
Then the rains came.
Folsom to Ukiah via I-5 and CA 20 (source: Google Maps) |
There were three features of the Pilot that proved invaluable that night.
One: Adaptive cruise control. This maintains a pre-set distance between you and the car in front of you. Set the cruise for 65, and if the car in front of you slows to 20, so do you. In the dark and in the rain, that reduced stress enormously.
Two: Auto high-beam headlights. This is a feature that goes all the way back to the 1960 Buicks and has been offered on some cars, somewhat inconsistently, ever since. The old ones were pretty simple light sensors. When a car's headlights hit your car, the sensor would dim your lights, then put them back on high beams when the light was gone. The system in the Pilot is infinitely better, sensing changes in the light ahead of the car. On curves, it senses the headlights of the oncoming vehicle before it is in your lights and dims so the oncoming driver isn't blinded. Yet, unlike others, it doesn't dim when your lights are reflected back by road signs and guard rails. Absolutely the best system I've ever experienced.
Three: Heated and cooled front seats. Ever had one of those days (or nights) where no matter how you set the climate control, it was always just a little too hot or a little too cold? This was one of those nights. Navigator considers heated and cooled seats to be right up there with the invention of the automobile (and perhaps the wheel) itself.
Ultimately, we were about 45 minutes late to dinner, but arrived far more relaxed and unruffled than we would have without those features and the Pilot Elite AWD's all-wheel-drive system, which made the Pilot feel surprisingly nimble on those rain-slicked curves and hills.
2016 Honda Pilot Elite AWD interior. |
In short, a very nice ride. Smaller, less expensive and more economical than, say, a Chevy Tahoe, but feeling none less capable or commodious. Navigator's cousin, also from Sacramento, was also in Ukiah that weekend. He owns an Acura MDX and was impressed by the Pilot.
Even if I'd had yearly exposure to the Pilot rather than driving one as often as Vulcans mate, I'd be impressed. This is a very good SUV.