2022 Toyota Highlander Review
Toyota Highlander in Mesa, AZ
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New Toyota Highlander Review | 3 Row SUV | 7 or 8 Seater SUV
The all new Highlander is a Toyota SUV with a mission. It is designed to handle the needs of larger families or frequent carpoolers while offering the tech toys and safety features that parents value most. There’s a long list of tech for personal connectivity, entertainment, parking, and active driver assistance. You can stick to a budget and get every essential. Or, you can choose leather seats on Limited or Platinum trims. In this Toyota Highlander review, we’ve got information about the specifications, trim levels, value proposition, performance, colors, and just about everything. There’s also specific information here about the 2022 Toyota Hybrid Highlander.
Value
Every year the value of a Highlander just keeps getting better. The base price nets a long list of the most essential features for families. WiFi availability is on every model, beating many rivals. Even climbing the trim level offers ways to keep costs down. For instance, the XLE has standard captain's chairs but it doesn’t cost extra to stay with the center bench seating. JD Power gives the Toyota 3 Row SUV a Great rating in terms of reliability. Resale values are high for its class although initial pricing for new models is not considered high. You don’t have to wait for a Toyota Highlander sale to get the right price at our Toyota dealership, serving Phoenix AZ.
Specs
As for size and spaciousness, the Highlander got bigger in 2020 and has stayed that way. That’s always a plus for families. The larger vehicle still seats 8 with a bench seat or 7 with captain's chairs. That’s a 2-3-3 or 2-2-3 layout. The bench slides and reclines for great comfort. There’s 84 cubic feet behind the first row and 48 cubes behind the second. The standard cargo hold measures over 16 cubic feet. A power liftgate is upgraded to hands free on the Limited.
Highlander Interior
The trim level L Is such a valuable package that many shoppers don’t need more. Taking care of the family driver, standard features include a power-adjustable driver’s chair. The family has three-zone automatic climate controls. Parents will appreciate being able to regulate air on the second row. Ample dash tech, an available digital instrument screen, and a suite of driver assistance add to the modern vibe. Material quality is excellent, since Toyota recognizes that this is a 3 row SUV that families may drive 150,000 miles before trading.
Highlander Trim Levels
The XL starts you up the ladder with favorites such as a power liftgate and additional driver assistance. The 2022 Toyota Highlander XLE is another big winner due to its SofTex upholstery, power passenger chair, moonroof, and heated front seats. Teens appreciate the standard XLE captain’s chairs. Parents will like the sunshades to protect toddlers and babies. The XSE is especially sporty and it adds some more tech too. The Limited has ventilated leather seats to help parents handle the heat. The Platinum takes the honors with its state of the art 12.3 touch screen and a sizable panoramic moonroof.
Available Color Schemes
Interior upholstery colors include graphite or black woven cloth or graphic, black or Harvest Beige SofTex. There’s an optional red leather interior or a black SofTex interior with cloth inserts on the XSE. With the Platinum, there are more color choices including a Glazed Caramel brown. Hybrids offer a special edition with Bronze accents in interior stitching and accent lighting. This 8 seater SUV is proof that you can enjoy style while getting the spaciousness your family needs.
Toyota Dash Tech
The 8-inch touch screen has ample connectivity. Amazon Alexa, Apple CarPlay and Android auto are part of the system. Kids will appreciate the extra USB ports on their two rows, and everyone will benefit from the available WiFi. With the XSE, a navigation system becomes standard. The digital instrument cluster adds a second screen to the dash of the XLE and higher trims. These editions also have wireless charging for smartphones. The top two trims have a JBL audio system and a larger touch screen with navigation.
Parent Friendly Features
A few years ago, Toyota created a real favorite for parents. It’s called Driver Easy Speak, and its standard on the 2022 Highlander Limited. This PA system allows drivers to speak to their kids through a cabin microphone. There is a new rear seat reminder on all models. The alert will prompt a caregiver to check the second two rows for kids, pets and packages. To make the ride more pleasant, Highlanders have advanced materials that dampen noise and/or soundproof the cabin. The top two trim levels add acoustic side glass as well as the standard acoustic windshield.
Exterior Colors and Features
With up to nine Highlander color choices, the Toyota SUV can be dressed in Opulent Amber, Blueprint, or Ruby Flare Pearl. Handsome metallics include Midnight Black, Celestial Silver, and Magnetic Gray. Other exterior colors include Moon Dust, Cement, and Wind Chill Pearl. Technology is everywhere, starting with standards like automatic high beams. These raise and lower with the level of light. Parents will find nighttime travel is less stressful with this helpful driver assistance. LED fog lights are added to the LE editions. The Platinum edition gets rain sensing wipers and Toyota’s adaptive headlights.
Standard Performance
With its potent V6, the Highlander is well positioned to own the road. Its 295 horsepower is controlled by an 8 speed automatic transmission. You will be hard pressed to find any 3 row SUV with this much horsepower for the money! Front wheel drive is standard with all wheel drive options for those who need it. The Highlander towing capacity is a whopping 5,000 pounds when properly equipped. To help out, a vehicle sway warning system is a new standard. The XSE is especially fun to drive with its sport tuned suspension. The whole look is aggressive with its specially styled grille, large lower air intake, light-strip DRLs, and rocker panels. This is the first Highlander to earn twin exhaust pipes.
2022 Toyota Highlander Hybrid Trim Levels
The Highlander Hybrid LE is the entry level trim. The ladder continues with XLE, Limited, Platinum and Bronze. What is the Highlander Bronze Edition? This exclusive hybrid-only package adds exciting accents to the interior including bronze stitching on its dual fabric (SofTex/cloth) seats and padded surfaces. In addition to the gorgeous bronze-colored wheels, the SUV has LED-strip daytime running lights . For nighttime arrivals and departures, there are puddle lamps that project the Highlander logo. Plus it includes premium features such as in-dash ambient lighting and illuminated bronze door sills. In terms of the trim ladder, it slots between the XLE and Limited.
Highlander Hybrid Performance
The hybrid edition combines the benefits of two electric motors and hybrid battery system with a fuel-efficient four-cylinder engine. This performance package allows the Highlander hybrid SUV to earn 36 mpg fuel economy in combined driving. That’s really remarkable for any 8 seat SUV. A predictive system learns regular driving habits and can pace the vehicle’s fuel efficiency for the road ahead.
Toyota AWD
A standard all-wheel drive system can be added to the L, LE, or XLE models. This can move torque to the rear wheels as needed for slippery conditions. Dynamic Torque Vectoring takes AWD even further on the top three trims. This allows the Toyota SUV to go off-road. (Please see the SUV manual to know how much your Toyota can do.)
If you choose the Hybrid, Toyota AWD doesn’t need a mechanical connection between the transmission and the rear wheels. Instead it has a rear electric motor that can distribute force to the wheels as necessary. The system also is able to reduce driving force to the front wheels. Drivers will appreciate this system when cornering and when rolling off road!
Safety
With 8 airbags and good https://www.nhtsa.gov/ratingsNHTSA safety ratings, parents can feel assured that this Toyota SUV works hard to protect its passengers. However, drivers today can expect more, and the Highlander delivers. The whole suite of defensive driving systems that have alerts and active features. The Pre-collision system keeps getting better. It now includes insection support that can warn you about vehicles or people in the way during a lefthand turn. Toyota has emergency steering assist as well as automatic braking to help drivers out in difficult situations.
Toyota Parking Technology
All Highlanders have a rear view camera with guidelines to help ensure safe movement. The second tier XL adds a rear cross traffic alert. This warns you if traffic is coming from either side when the Toyota SUV is in reverse. The front and rear parking sensors are standard on the XSE, and a new clearance sonar is available. Limited editions can now get automatic braking capability for rear cross traffic situations.
The surround view camera is a Platinum standard. It shows everything around the vehicle. The driver gets a live rotating view with this Birds’ Eye Camera. The Perimeter Scan shows everything that could be a problem when moving into or out of parking spots.
Most new vehicles include Dealer Installed Accessories such as a “Protection Package” (sometimes referred to as the “No Bull Protection Package”) inclusive of highly-demanded, popular items designed to protect your investment such lifetime window tint, door-edge guards & handle-cup guards. Price/cost of the “Protection Package” is {$999 at this dealership} for Cars, Vans, CUVs and SUVs. Actual vehicle sale price and payments may vary for various reasons - including but not limited to - applicable manufacturer rebates, special limited time offers, dealer incentives, taxes, fees, and buyer's credit qualifications, dealer installed accessories, market product (or vehicle) scarcity. Financing on approved credit. Must qualify for some offers. Some offers may not be available with special financing, lease and some other offers. Excludes $599 dealer doc fee.
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Max payload/towing estimate ratings shown. Additional options, equipment, passengers, and cargo weight may affect payload/towing weights. See dealer for details.