Might depend on how old your kids are, but we just mount one of the seats in the rear to allow the seat to fold down when needed but it's far easier to do with toddler seats than baby seats.
Good suggestion. We leave row two full because we frequently use one seat of the third row for carrying gear. My son also does best in a row by himself;-)
Have you test driven anything yet? We looked at a new escape before we got our highlander, and it seemed smaller on the inside than our old toyota matrix. The new versions seem quite small, the older rav 4 by comparison had way more room. As much as online reviews of cargo volume and such let you know, the actual useable space seems night and day between domestics and the import brands.
It is small, drives like a car. Thats primarily whats held us back.
Never thought to check out a Highlander or Pilot. Will look into that.
As boring as they are, it's hard to stray from Toyota for reliability and fuel economy.
I think we're down to highlander vs highlander hybrid vs sienna AWD.
Might be nice to have a cavernous vehicle for the odd time when we need it.
I considered the Highlander before getting my 4Runner. The main sticking point was that the back seats of the Highlander didn't fold down in a way that is best for our dog; 4Runner is better: i.e.. lower seat first; back rest sits flat, thereby no gap for the dog to "fall" into. Also, the Highlander is more car like and has more glitzy "city" finishings. The 4Runner seemed more truck and sport based styling. In retrospect, I am so glad I have the extra interior space of the 4Runner. We can put 2 small (enduro/trail whatever) bikes easily into the back with the seats folded down and otherwise have tons of space for passengers, our dog, and sporting gear etc. We live on a hill so our mileage will reflect that at 12.7L/100km. It drops down significantly on the flat and especially with highway driving. It's pretty similar to the Toyota Tacoma for fuel mileage.
I considered the Highlander before getting my 4Runner. The main sticking point was that the back seats of the Highlander didn't fold down in a way that is best for our dog; 4Runner is better: i.e.. lower seat first; back rest sits flat, thereby no gap for the dog to "fall" into. Also, the Highlander is more car like and has more glitzy "city" finishings. The 4Runner seemed more truck and sport based styling. In retrospect, I am so glad I have the extra interior space of the 4Runner. We can put 2 small (enduro/trail whatever) bikes easily into the back with the seats folded down and otherwise have tons of space for passengers, our dog, and sporting gear etc. We live on a hill so our mileage will reflect that at 12.7L/100km. It drops down significantly on the flat and especially with highway driving. It's pretty similar to the Toyota Tacoma for fuel mileage.
Not sure what you mean by the back seat gap, my 2013 highlander has flat folding seats so the whole back area is flat, I sleep back there at bike races, and the cubic feet comparison shows 94 cu ft for the highlander with back seats down vs 89 cu ft for the 4 runner.
I agree the 4runner has a more truck like feel and burlier frame, but the highlander has pretty good ground clearance and even hill assist descent, so it's been pretty good on the forestry and logging shuttling roads with much better fuel economy and same hp numbers as the 4 runner.
Are you talking about the older style highlander, or the new 2014 model?
It is small, drives like a car. Thats primarily whats held us back.
Never thought to check out a Highlander or Pilot. Will look into that.
In 2007 I wanted to buy the Highlander, but went with the Pilot because it had a lot more capacity and a usable 3rd row seat. The next year Toyota increased the size of the Highlander by quite a bit. The new models of both have a lot of interior room. A six foot adult could ride in the third row of a Pilot. Pilot feels a bit more planted, Highlander feels smoother.
If you are going to tow 3000 pounds, a small SUV will struggle. A mid size will work but will struggle a bit on hills. Mileage will definitely suffer.
As for regular driving mileage, AWD SUVs suck driving around the city, especially if the terrain is hilly like in North Vancouver.
It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities.
- Josiah Stamp
Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race.
- H.G. Wells
Not sure what you mean by the back seat gap, my 2013 highlander has flat folding seats so the whole back area is flat, I sleep back there at bike races, and the cubic feet comparison shows 94 cu ft for the highlander with back seats down vs 89 cu ft for the 4 runner.
Are you talking about the older style highlander, or the new 2014 model?
I was looking at the 2012s. Yes the whole back area is flat but if the seat portion folds forward first it creates a sort of "wall" for the back portion which becomes the flat surface. It keeps the dog from sliding forward and provides a handy headrest for him, lol.
I find it hard to believe the useable interior space of the highlander is more than the 4Runner.
Anyway, both good vehicles. It depends on whether you want more car feel or more truck feel.
4Runner is bigger inside. It's similar to the Pilot.
GMC Acadia also has a lot of room inside. It's pretty nice.
It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities.
- Josiah Stamp
Every time I see an adult on a bicycle, I no longer despair for the future of the human race.
- H.G. Wells
So there's some snow left for the kids?
NSMBA member.
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