This is in response to an earlier post asking for a 4 cyl hybrid highlander. I'm starting it anew, as I need to vent. I enjoy my SUV. I despise a gas guzzling SUV (especially when there are other alternatives). I LOVE my HiHy. When I purchased a new vehicle, it was love at first sight. But I in fact bought my car with the idea that under the hood were 268 horses, 4-wheel drive, traction control, and 3,500 lbs of towing capacity. I work as a naturalist, and aside from my Husky who usually rides in the trunk, there animals and their cages, carcasses, boxes, more scratches on the exterior from driving through the woods and more rubberized mats to save my interior from all of my muddy boots. I've always felt that you should find the right car that meets your needs, which I (like everyone) else glares at that soccer mom driving that SUV, talking on the phone and putting on her makeup. The idea is, I use what this car was designed for, and my thoughts are that if you bought a HiHy, you should too.

 

I like to think of the soccer busses as UAV's, or Urban Assault Vehicles, because that's usually how they drive them. Are the laser turrets optional? I always have owned some sort of SUV in the past only because I would use it for camping, skiing, fishing, etc in the back woods, which is how it is meant to be used. Not for the daily commute in the left lane going 90...

 

These are crossovers - not trucks. They ride on car-based unibody chassis, so they're perfectly acceptable for around-town duty IMHO.

 

I'm not sure the vent needed its own thread since the one you're referring to is alive and well, and not that old itself.

PS: Not everyone's definition of utility requires more than 4 cylinders, so there's no need to knock those for whom a 4 cylinder version/vehicle meets their needs perfectly. You can have pride in your vehicle/choice without knocking someone else's.

/me (camper, hiker, mountain biker, photographer w/tons o' gear & soon-to-be mom... oh, and geek.)

 

I think this is a good "SUV" for driving only on the paved roads. It's not durable enough to go off road and stuff though. I have only been on a dirt road with mine and thats it. This is plenty enough for me, but I don't think it's a real SUV because it's based off a Camry not a truck. My 04" Tahoe is a real SUV based off the Silverado with real 4wd and a 5.3 liter V8. I didn't need that power though so I tradede for the Highlander and don't regret it. With the Highlander you don't need 268 HP because it's not a real SUV and is not designed to go offroad and does not even have a real 4WD system. It's meant for paved roads only. A 4CYL would be great for this vehicle.

 

LOL - I agree with the original poster. These are SUPPOSE to have power available to you (when you need it). However, we are seeing a number of people from the "prius" camp on here who are content with the engine of the prius but wanted more room in the vehicle. As someone on here stated, to them this is a cross-over (which is also a bad term) as the only way they really use it is as a modern station wagon (suttle kids to soccer, put a couple of 2x4's in on the weekend, etc). Such users never get off road AT ALL. Some don't even drive on the snow. One way Toyota could meet their need would be to take EVERY 2 wheel drive highlander and put a 3 cylinder engine in it (if 4 is good FE, then 3 is even better, right?) and let them drive those things around and claim "I got 1.3 gazillion MPG today" to their co-workers and neighbors.

Not certain who these guys are on here claiming that "since it's based on a car platform, it's not a SUV". Folks, that is NOT part of any SUV dictum out there. Granted, a car-based chassis won't have the ground clearance "some" truck-based SUV's can claim but that doesn't "dis-qualify" it from being catagorized as an SUV. Those who think it does can go argue with their insurance agent until you are blue in the face but the insurance agent isn't about to re-classify it "just because you don't think it's an SUV". Heck, some insruances probably list it as a "truck". Try argue-ing that one.. One, not, it's a car because it's built on a.... (sometime these forums are just SO funny)!

 

I love this place at times. The arrogance of many of us is over the top.

If I chose to buy a vehicle it is because it fits MY needs. Who is anyone to say how I should use it, when I should use it, or if I am even using it properly.

I don't care if it's a "SUV" a "Cross Over" or any other term you want to apply to it.

Bottom line is that it fits MY needs and anyone else perceptions of what fits my needs are irrelevant.

Why some of us feel like we need to justify how we use our vehicles doesn't make sense to me. If someone wants a 4 cyl Highlander it is because they see a space for it in their life. If we enjoy our 268 HP Highlander it is because fits a need in ours.

This back an forth between members on how an SUV should be used is rather comical. It should be used by the person who purchased it, however THEY see fit.

Rant over.

 

I love my Highlander Hybrid. I have never ever needed to floor it,but I like to know it's there if I ever need it.

 

And with these cars, it's THERE! More power than I'll ever need