2009 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Review

Specifications

The Highlander Hybrid took an adequate SUV and made it extraordinary. Toyota has always maintained that Highlander does an excellent job doing what it was designed to do - comfortably accommodate families on highway based road trips and still be zippy enough to handle driving conditions back in the city. However, with the Hybrid and Hybrid Limited, Toyota has created a vehicle that can do all that as well as easier on fuel and environmentally friendly.

For 2008, Toyota gave Highlander a much needed facelift. Never a head turner, the new body styling is more refined although it remains the plain cousin to the Volkswagen Tiguan and the Volvo XC90. In a world of extreme flavors and choice, the Highlander is vanilla without any added whip cream in a can or even a cherry.

Nor did Toyota fix the unresponsive handling, the chief concern amongst Highlander owners. Still on the same Camry platform, the Highlander gives the thrills and excitement you would expect in a sedan carrying 1600 extra pounds along with SUV height and space for eight passengers and their cargo. Add to that the mechanical assist on low speed braking to compensate for the electric engine on the Hybrid models and you have a lackluster driving experience and not much knowledge of the road beneath your tires.

That is where the negative ends and the positive takes over though as the Highlander Hybrid is exceptional in all other ways.

Under the hood lies Toyota’s impressive Hybrid Synergy Drive system. This hybrid engine is a 3.3-liter double overhead cam (DOHC), 24-valve VVT-i V6 that offers the same horsepower, torque and acceleration as the gas only 3.5-liter engine in the conventional Highlander. With an improved fuel consumption of over 35% in the city, the Hybrid is an ideal commuter and family vehicle. On economy mode, acceleration is lethargic but if needed, stepping hard on the gas pedal will quickly bring the gas engine to life to get you out of a bad situation in time.

Part of the new generation of Toyota’s Hybrid Synergy Drive is a ‘drive-by-wire- system meaning that the accelerator and the gear shift are not mechanical in nature but instead send only commands to a central computer. Part of this system is the ECVT transmission - Electronically-controlled Continuously Variable Transmission. Because the transmission must continuously switch between the two engines, the normal direct mechanical gear train will not work so a computer program runs the system and directs the power flow between the two engines and the transmission. Also part of the Synergy Drive is the capture of energy lost during braking. This regeneration system attached to each wheel, recharging the battery each time the brake pedal is depressed.

Both the Toyota Highlander Hybrid and the Limited Edition models are available in 2WD and 4WD with the innovative 4WD-I system employing a separate electric motor that offers up another 96 ft-lbs of torque depending on the driving conditions.

With all Hybrids, safety is an issue as it is easy to leave the vehicle on accidentally and when approaching intersections, pedestrians and cyclists will not hear the vehicle in the ’stealth mode’ and if not paying attention, can step out in front of a Highlander Hybrid.

Inside, the Highlander Hybrid takes luxury one-step farther with the Limited Edition taking the cake (with real whip cream, a cherry and candy sprinkles!). Beautifully appointed with rich wood trim, leather seats, back-up camera, nav system and a JBL sound system that surpasses much of the competition.

The Toyota Highlander Hybrid is an exceptional crossover SUV. It employs the latest green technology and is classed as a super low emissions vehicle although with its impressive horsepower and acceleration capabilities, you will never know you are in a hybrid until the gas engine shuts off. Remember, beauty comes from within so when looking for your next SUV, do not walk past this plain vehicle for her flashier cousins, you may be disappointed in the end.