Article Comments - 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Full Test

57 messages, Last post on Feb 25, 2008 at 7:34 PM

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What is this discussion about? Toyota Highlander Hybrid, Hybrid Cars, SUV

Article comments for Full Test: 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid - Sybil isn't the only one suffering from multiple personality disorder. The 2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid is schizophrenic, too. But unlike Sybil, whose 13 personalities could make people, uh, a bit uncomfortable, the all-new Highlander Hybrid's characters work together to put an attractive face on a hybrid sport-utility. (more)

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#48 of 57 HH OffRoad and Snow by robertcbernard Sep 12, 2007 (12:12 pm)
The post on the experiences offroad are fantastic. I am trying to get more information on the performance in snow. I currently have a Volvo XC90 and it handles incredibly well in the snow. We spend a lot of time on Forest service roads in summer and winter and we want to move to a hybrid experience and are trying to figure out why HH is not recommended to take offroad and whether it handles well in uphill snow conditions? Replies to this message: cdptrap (Sep 15, 2007 9:38 am) skimom (Oct 03, 2007 9:39 am) cdptrap (Oct 07, 2007 11:42 am) cdptrap (Oct 07, 2007 12:10 pm) monte8 (Nov 27, 2007 8:55 pm)
#49 of 57 Re: HH OffRoad and Snow [robertcbernard] by cdptrap Sep 15, 2007 (9:38 am)
Replying to: robertcbernard (Sep 12, 2007 12:12 pm) On paved and plowed surfaces with slushy mess, no problems. On dirt road covered with some hard packed base (no ice) and anywhere from 4 to 6 inches of new stuff on top, no problem yet. I emphasize "yet" because we know these dirt roads well and can read the snow pack conditions through the same area. We exercise great caution getting through such areas. When in doubt, we get out to walk the pack and shovel some if we must. This is all with Goodyear SA Fortera SUV tires. We have Nokian SUV WR for winter use now. On rainy muddy surfaces or during spring melt, it gets really tricky because heavy rain and melting snow can create sheets of moving mud on dirt roads and makes it hard to discern what is deep, what is hard and what is a hole waiting to swallow a tire. Worse, some banks can give way when wet with moisture so drive too close to one of these, at best the car will tilt and at worst, we have a roll-over. So when it rains, we generally drive on surfaces that we know for sure have hard packed base. When in doubt, we park on high ground and wait out the rain. Often, we just avoid working during a heavy rain storm. We did experience two instances of VDIM activating when we were climbing a muddy patch at 25+ MPH and there was a traction-loss somewhere. The system kicked in, beeped & blinked but we could not feel anything except the car was able to finish the climb. That was nice. I believe the HH is well designed to handle most situations on paved surface and it is fine for hard-packed unpaved surface in moderate rain and moderate snow as long as we exercise caution and common sense. I will not take it onto soft unpaved surfaces in rain or snow. Good luck w/ your research! Replies to this message: skimom (Oct 03, 2007 9:39 am) cdptrap (Oct 07, 2007 11:42 am) cdptrap (Oct 07, 2007 12:10 pm)
#50 of 57 Re: HH OffRoad and Snow [cdptrap] by skimom Oct 03, 2007 (9:39 am)
Replying to: cdptrap (Sep 15, 2007 9:38 am) Thanks for the good info on the HH's performance off-road. How do you think it would work as a ski vehicle? We frequently drive from the Bay Area to Tahoe, mainly on highways and secondary roads, which can be covered with several inches of snow overlying ice in the winter. Do you think the HH could handle this on an uphill climb? What about the AWD's performance when stuck in a foot or so of snow? Handling a skid on ice? I am hoping to replace my Acura MDX with a cleaner, more fuel-efficient SUV, and would really like to get a hybrid. Obviously, we need a high-clearance, 4WD vehicle. Do you think the new HH would be a good choice? Thanks so much for your advice! Replies to this message: cdptrap (Oct 07, 2007 11:42 am) cdptrap (Oct 07, 2007 12:10 pm)
#51 of 57 Has anybody seen one of these vehicles yet? by roqdoc Oct 03, 2007 (9:08 pm)
So far, none of our dealers in So Cal can even tell me when they are going to be available, let alone how much they are going to cost or what kind of a lease deal I can get. I am coming off a 2004 Acura MDX lease, but I guess I will have to extend the lease for an extra month or so, until Toyota can get their act together...
#52 of 57 Re: HH OffRoad and Snow [skimom] by cdptrap Oct 07, 2007 (11:42 am)
Replying to: skimom (Oct 03, 2007 9:39 am) Bay area to Tahoe! About the same route we take every year! For most roads in this region, the HH should have no problem at all. It is mostly rain from Bay Area to the foothills and even then, we rarely encounter flurries until 5000-ft and up. By then CALTRAN is already plowing with CHP watching over things. We have it good around here . Our '06 HH has had no problem on paved road from Bay Area into Yosemite, Dodge Ridge, areas above Strawberry and Tahoe, some of our favorite winter get-aways. We almost always pull into Yosemite late in the day before the plow comes through so we always encounter light slush (4-6 inches ?) surrounded by 6+ inch whites. When we drive to trail heads, there are parking areas that are not plowed early in the AM and they often have 6+ inch of slush or overnight snow and no problem either. We have driven over paved road with fresh falling snow over (4+" ?) hard packed base and no problem. We have never encountered pure ice yet, so no experience with that. I really believe that a dedicated set of snow tires or all-season tires that carry the "Snowflake on the Mountain" severe service emblem will provide extra safety. Having grown up in Michigan, I prefer serious preparations when traveling in Winter. Be prepared, drive within our limits, use lots of common sense and never hesitate to turn around so we can live to ski another day, that is our family motto . Happy Skiing!
#53 of 57 Re: HH OffRoad and Snow [skimom] by cdptrap Oct 07, 2007 (12:10 pm)
Replying to: skimom (Oct 03, 2007 9:39 am) Our HH has never been stuck in a foot of snow. Hopefully someone else have and can share. We carry two small foldable shovels and two small ice picks in our trunk. In Tahoe and Dodge, we often park long enough to have the car covered and surrounded by snow. If it is a downhill driveway or if the snow is "high" enough, I just shovel the snow to clear a path. I have had experience where the base is ice but melting where it touches the road so the ice is lubricated. On top, there is so much snowfall, the tires cannot break through the slush and ice to get to the road surface. When there is no pressure on this layer of snow over ice, it looks good until we drive on it. The bottom ice layer detaches from the road surface and begins to slide with tires sitting on top of the ice sheet. It is like the car have skis on . No tires, chains or anything man-made can prevent a slide down the hill. Very bad experience. So if it is a short & steep downhill driveway, I automatically shovel and break up the snow and ice to reach road surface. If it is flat, I just shovel enough to get rolling. The VDIM system is really very nice, and it has handled traction loss on water and mud and snowy condition very well. I have never encounterd solid ice. Power is not the problem when climbing, exactly how the VDIM behaves is the question. Another owner posted that on icy surface, with no chain and with stock tires, he was moving too slow up his driveway and upon traction loss under all 4 tires, the VDIM shut down the drive system so his HH's tires won't spin and his HH started sliding backwards. He had to let it slide to the bottom of the driveway, gun the engine and charge up the driveway. Unlike normal car that allows us to spin the tires a bit, the VDIM judges that to be "bad". UGH! I think snow tires will definitely help. If that fails, and if I ever encounter a slow slide backwards, I will pulse-step on the accelerator as fast as reasonable. Hopefully, this will give power to the tires and as soon as the VDIM senses that there is traction, power will come to some of the tires and keep the car from sliding back too far. At that point, I will give it continuous power to get it moving up. This is all theory, will see if it works in a real situation. Happy Skiing!
#54 of 57 Re: HH OffRoad and Snow [robertcbernard] by monte8 Nov 27, 2007 (8:55 pm)
Replying to: robertcbernard (Sep 12, 2007 12:12 pm) I have had my 2008 HH for just under 2 weeks now. For the last week we have had light snow (northern North Dakota). This morning it was -11 F. I have been trying to find the handling limits in vacant areas. Of course, there is not continuos ice or packed snow yet. Traction has been very good. So far I have not been able to find the handling limit (or the electronic stability control was so smooth, I could not feel it limiting things). There is very good ground clearance, so snow up to about 1 foot should not be a problem. I think that good snow tires would really improve winter performance, but so far the stock tires are adequate. I have not had the chance to try it on snow covered up-hill driving.
#55 of 57 Handling in snow by monte8 Dec 05, 2007 (7:32 pm)
We had a major snow storm in our area (North Dakota) yesterday. I had to drive 90 miles for a Dr. appointment. With the standard tires on the 2008 HH, it did just fine. Handling on icy roads was great. The only problem is that the rear defroster/wiper combination was not able to handle the wet snow. I ended up with a sheet of ice on the rear hatch under the window. I also find it difficult to use the front wiper electric defrost. The button is hidden by the steering wheel. During daylight, the indicator light can be hard to see. This would benefit from an indicator light in speedometer, like the cruise control.
#56 of 57 Re: DIESEL [cdptrap] by gasser Feb 25, 2008 (7:25 pm)
Replying to: cdptrap (Jun 26, 2007 5:30 pm) How about this...combine a diesel and hybrid technology like BMW did in their X5 concept car. Now we're talking!
#57 of 57 Re: Growing up? [markvanh] by gasser Feb 25, 2008 (7:34 pm)
Replying to: markvanh (Jul 24, 2007 2:55 pm) While I agree with many of your points, I will say this. We live in the suburbs surrounded by giant Escalades, Yukons and Suburbans. With a growing family and the need to regularly seat 2-3 adults plus 1-2 car seats we needed a bigger vehicle and chose the HH. If getting good fuel economy is important, there aren't many options out there, especially if you live in a cold/icy midwestern climate and will likely benefit from AWD. The HH was just about the only vehicle out there that met our needs. That being said, getting 28mpg around town (most of our driving) is a LOT better than getting 10-12mpg in another big SUV. I think the HH is a good compromise of mpg/room/AWD/space etc for a lot of families out there.