2009 Toyota Highlander Walkaround Review at Automotive.com
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Toyota
Highlander
2009

2009 Toyota Highlander Review: Exterior

Below is a full, detailed review and road test of the 2009 Toyota Highlander written by either the experts at New Car Test Drive or by one of Automotive.com's very own. A full evaluation of the driving experience, price, equipment, and specs are here ...     read more
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2009 Toyota Highlander Review

Recently redesigned SUV is comfortable and convenient.
Walkaround
The Toyota Highlander is in the heart of the midsize crossover SUV market, and is about the same size as the Honda Pilot. Highlander's 95.4 cubic feet of cargo room is more than all but a handful of competitors in the popular midsize class.

The Highlander fits in the middle of Toyota's four-pronged midsize SUV lineup. It features softer styling than the 4Runner midsize SUV and the retro-styled FJ Cruiser. Truck-based platforms, rugged suspensions and low-range transfer cases make 4Runner and FJ Cruiser highly capable off road. The Highlander is based on the same architecture as that of the Camry and Avalon sedans. Highlander's all-wheel-drive systems are designed for taming slippery pavement and wintry conditions, not for climbing rocks and traversing rough terrain. Likewise, the Toyota Venza is a mid-size vehicle that further blurs the line between wagon and SUV. (Whether you call these vehicles SUVs or wagons seems like a specious argument to us, and we could argue either side. The point is whether the vehicle meets your needs.) Also based on the Camry platform, the Venza is even more carlike than the Highlander.

The design of the Highlander is clean, and accented on each side by a character line that leads into pronounced wheel arches. The look is more SUV than station wagon, and the available 19-inch alloy wheels add to the muscular stance.

Alloy wheels come standard, so every Highlander looks well-equipped. Hybrid models are differentiated by blue-tinted lighting, a special grille, and unique alloy wheels. Next Page


2009 Toyota Highlander
  
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