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Honda Pilot vs Mazda CX-9 vs Toyota Highlander

549 messages,  Last post on Feb 11, 2013 at 8:48 PM

You are in the Mazda CX-9 Forum.

What is this discussion about? Mazda CX-9, Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, Car Comparisons, SUV

Messages Page 51 of 55

#501 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [sixth_gear] by luckyseven

Jun 15, 2011 (2:10 pm)

Replying to: sixth_gear (Jun 15, 2011 12:58 pm)
The reality is that Highlander is very competitive vehicle and gets on average 2MPG better fuel economy then CX9 which is major plus with today's gas prices. I'm not going to go over advantages or shortcomings since this is endless topic. Make sure that you test drive one before making any decisions. I live in Ohio and noticed that Highlanders almost never have been advertized by the Toyota dealers in the auto section of the local paper, that makes me believe that they do sell like a hot cakes. I got my base AWD 2008 model with 3 row seats back in 2007 for $26K+ tax and recently friend of mine bough used 2008 FWD with 2 row seats and 25000 miles for $24.5K and considers himself lucky.

#502 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [luckyseven] by valdemar

Jun 15, 2011 (3:55 pm)

Replying to: luckyseven (Jun 15, 2011 2:10 pm)
2MPG advantage? We are talking about ~$300 savings per 15k annual miles or $25/month. Would not be enough for me to consider a car that 5 of my neighbors already have, but surely there is enough people who don't care about that.

#503 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [valdemar] by luckyseven

Jun 15, 2011 (8:00 pm)

Replying to: valdemar (Jun 15, 2011 3:55 pm)
$300 a year makes $1500 for 5 years and so on, not a chump change. And this is just one of the decision points , there are obviously plenty more, just count HLs at your neighbors garages. If you want to be different and have extra cash burning your pocket then buy something else in spite of. When I bough mine, new generation just came out and no one had it, my decision was based only on practicality and dependability. Now after 4 years owning a HL I have no regrets.

#504 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [luckyseven] by valdemar

Jun 15, 2011 (10:10 pm)

Replying to: luckyseven (Jun 15, 2011 8:00 pm)
It was a smart choice, and it sounds like that was what you were after.

#505 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [sixth_gear] by oldburbnewcx9

Jun 16, 2011 (1:34 pm)

Replying to: sixth_gear (Jun 15, 2011 12:58 pm)
Let me start off by saying I have a 2009 CX-9. Summer of 2009 I test drive a Ford Flex, GMC Acadia, Chevrolet Traverse, Hyundai Santa Fe, Hyundai Veracruz, Honda Pilot and Toyota HIghlander. My priorties were smoothness, power, performance and handling and comfort. CX-9 won hands down. Following were Honda Pilot (noisy and weak brakes) Ford Flex (wierd styling for me), Hyundai Santa Fe (value leader but too small), GMC Acadia/Chevrolet Traverse (too exepnsive and no inventory as GM was shut down) and finally the Toyota Highlander (too bland and too isolated from driving experience).

#506 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [oldburbnewcx9] by wdhyte

Jun 16, 2011 (2:13 pm)

Replying to: oldburbnewcx9 (Jun 16, 2011 1:34 pm)
wow, that's funny...wife and I hit almost the same batch of vehicles during the summer of 09 too. I really wanted to get the Ford Flex until I drove it...loved all the roominess (my being 6'1 250# and wife being 5'11 (quite a bit lighter ) was GREAT BUT, it had all the cornering and zoom of a cinder block. I was seriously bummed. The GMs were all the same, the Saturn was the same (and closed up shop about 45 days later) so we added the Mazda in the mix and were amazed and still are. I love driving it and for trips it's fine. W/the 20" wheels its noisy around town and you don't get the best ride as we all know but it was (IS) the best of the lot IMHO. My only disappointment to date is the number of squeaks and rattles it has developed rather quickly. Oh yeah, and the crappy BOSE sound system...BOSE just isn't as good as it used to be (we have the grand touring w/NAV or back seat stuff). I'd but it again.

#507 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [wdhyte] by circlew

Jun 16, 2011 (5:37 pm)

Replying to: wdhyte (Jun 16, 2011 2:13 pm)
We bought the '10 GT in November. I agree the Bose sound system is poor as the '03 Yukon Denali Bose system blew it into the weeds. My wife asked me why I didn't upgrade the sound system!!!!
 
The drive is the best in the category, period, the End! Since I didn't get the GPS and RE system, I was wondering if the audio quality would be any better.
 
Regards,
OW

#508 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [circlew] by ceric

Jul 01, 2011 (6:16 pm)

Replying to: circlew (Jun 16, 2011 5:37 pm)
Why not many CX9 on the road?
 
Many people are obsessive with "reliability".
They choose among Toyota/Honda exclusively.
I got asked many times, "Why did you buy Mazda?"
For the record, I only had two very minor issues (taken care of at oil changes)
from 3 and half yrs of ownership. That is decent reliability in my book,
though my wife's Prius is issue-free, but it had more than THREE recalls.
 
On the Highlanders. True, it is probably 2mpg better than CX9. However, consider how much more you pay for the Highlander, comparably equipped.
If you drive 12000/yr, assuming 20 vs 18mpg, the difference is only 67gallons,
i.e. 67x$4 = $260 yr. If you pay $2000 more for your Highlander, that is enough to cover 8 yrs of mpg differences, w/o considering interest....
Not to mention that Toyota charge more for comparable parts and maintenance. I know because my wife has a Prius. I receive coupons from both all the times.
 
Oh, did I mention the trashy/cheapo 1-piece 3rd row seat of Highlanders?
It is a joke, really.

#509 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [ceric] by luckyseven

Jul 04, 2011 (5:52 pm)

Replying to: ceric (Jul 01, 2011 6:16 pm)
Price difference between cx9 and HL is a moot point. Depends on timing, location, your negotiation abilities and trim/features you want. In 2007 I paid $26K+tax for 2008 Base with AWD and 3 seat rows. I don't think you can get comparable cx9 for this much. HL also has higher resale then cx9 so don't forget to include it in your math. BTW starting from 2011 model year HL has split 3rd row. 2011 model started to be produced back in august of 2010.

#510 of 549 Re: If CX-9 is so great, how come.. [luckyseven] by citivas

Jul 04, 2011 (6:06 pm)

Replying to: luckyseven (Jul 04, 2011 5:52 pm)
The Honda's resale value has been awesome so far. I am coming off of a three year lease next month and my '09 Pilot Touring will is worth at least $6-8,000 more than my residual payment and only $6K or so less than what I paid new. Amazing.

Messages Page 51 of 55

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