2021 Toyota Highlander Hybrid is more fun than you’d think
2021 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Platinum L4 AWD: Just another efficient people mover?
Price: $52,033 as tested. Floor mats, $318; paint protection film, $395.
Marketer’s pitch: “Do it all in style.”
Conventional wisdom: Car and Driver liked the “unrivaled fuel-economy ratings, impressive range between fill-ups, truly refined road manners,” but not that the “third row isn’t very comfy, non-hybrid Highlander tows more, aggravating centerconsole
Reality: When you want some fun with your family hauling efficiency.
What’s new: The Highlander Hybrid continues with the redesign from the 2020 model year, when it made the Hybrid available in both allwheel-drive (tested) and front wheel-drive models.
Up to speed: The 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine married to the electronic, on-demand, all-wheel-drive system gives the vehicle 243 horsepower and motivates the three-row SUV nicely. It gets to 60 mph in 7.3 seconds, according to Car and Driver.
On the road: Well, well, Toyota does read my columns. How else would they have known how bulky and unsettling their trucks used to be and then worked these problems right out?
The Highlander is one of a series of large Toyotas that have shown great improvement in handling on country roads and curves. It’s still a big, three-row SUV, but the handling is much nicer. The only place I found the Highlander to be a less-than-enthusiastic companion was on country roads with sharp drops and dips; there, it would want to bottom out like a 1974 Chevrolet Caprice.
Shiftless: The CVT offers no gears but performs admirably. It does sound rather like a golf cart under hard acceleration, but other than that, it did whatwas asked of it.
Driver’s Seat: Driver and second-row passengers all enjoy some delightful accommodations, in heated captain’s chairs trimmed in leather. The seats are roomy and offer the right blend of support and cushion.
For drivers, gauges and controls are easy to see and logically placed.
Friends and stuff: Though second-row passengers get nice accommodations, whoa betide anyone facing a visit to Mr. Third Row. It’s not the worst I’ve seen, but it’s getting there. The thin, uncomfortable leather seat might distract passengers there from the absence of legroom, footroom or headroom, but it’s doubtful.
For a smallish three-row SUV, though, there’s plenty of storage up front.
Play some tunes: Further proof that Toyota reads Mr. Driver’s Seat: They have taken all the suck out of their stereos as well. Well, out of the higher-end-stereos, at least.
The premium audio with 11 speakers, subwoofer and amp has delightful sound, about an A minus. One downside: The range is only clear with the volume-cranked.
Operation is also simple, with big dials for tuning and volume and a clear and easy 12.3-inch touchscreen.
Keeping warm and cool: Here’s a bit of downside. Buttons control all the functions that can be controlled outside the touchscreen — temperature and even defrost. But anything more complex requires the touchscreen, and finding this function is not easy. Took me a while.
Fuel economy: The Highlander Hybrid was averaging a high-for-the-category 33 mpg before I got my mitts on it. It dropped a little with my heavy-footed driving. Feed the Toyota whatever.
Where it’s built: Princeton, Ind.
How it’s built: Consumer Reports predicts the Highlander gas and hybrid models together to garner a 4 out of 5 for reliability.