Introduction

The Pilot is the Honda of sport-utilities, and its strengths should please anyone shopping for a mid-size SUV. It delivers efficiency in packaging and operation, first-rate build quality and Honda's reputation for reliability and durability. The Pilot packs eight seats into an overall package so short that the EPA considers it a compact SUV. Yet its competition is the world's midsize SUVs. The Pilot offers more cargo space than the Ford Explorer, Chevrolet Trailblazer, and Toyota Highlander. The Honda Pilot also sets the pace dynamically, with a smooth 240-horsepower 3.5-liter V6 and the same crisp, predictable handling that have made the Honda Odyssey minivan and Acura MDX SUV hits. It also delivers class-leading EPA mileage ratings. In the Pilot's second full model year, Honda has already begun expanding on its impressive flexibility. The second-row seat is now adjustable fore and aft, and its slide feature has more travel for easier access to the three-place third-row seat. 2004 models ordered with the leather interior come with heated front seats and side mirrors.

Walkaround

The Honda Pilot gracefully borrows key styling cues from Honda's smaller, more familiar CR-V sport-utility. The grille and headlights are a careful enlargement of the CR-V's fluid wraparound face. The wheel arches are aggressive enough to offset any impression that this is a toy truck, but subtle enough to be consistent with the Pilot's likely hangouts in upscale neighborhoods and suburban mall parking lots. Large Honda badges on the grille and liftgate make it clear that the company is proud of the Pilot, and expects customers to feel the same way. The Pilot looks smaller than it is. Its styling belies the cavernous space inside. Honda has limited the amount of matte-black plastic bodywork that seems to be increasingly popular on sport-utilities, and we appreciate that. Body-colored moldings give the Pilot EX a more refined, upscale look. The Pilot's only nod to this allegedly rugged SUVness is the step on the rear bumper (a good thing) and rubberized plastic guards under both bumpers. Roof rails are standard on the EX, but if you want the crossbars that actually turn them into a true cargo rack, you'll have to get them as an accessory from your dealer.

Interior Features

The Honda Pilot packs an amazingly large amount of interior room into its small overall package. The middle seats are comfortable for adults, but when legroom is maximized for the second row, the third-row seats are strictly for young children or short trips. On the other hand, few SUVs offer seating for eight. Those that offer seven don't often include the rear seats as standard equipment, and many mid-size SUVs don't offer the extra seating at all. Moreover, the Pilot's seating/cargo arrangements are exceptionally versatile. Both rows of rear seats split 60/40 to fold, for a mix of people and stuff that suits the moment. The second- and third-row seats are slightly higher than those ahead, theater style, improving forward visibility for passengers. The second-row seatbacks recline, albeit with limited range, and this year the second row can slide forward or backward in its locked position, allowing leg room for the second and third rows to be adjusted according to the size of the passengers. The pass-through to the third seat, already one of the easiest going, has also been improved. With one motion, a lever on the seat edge allows the second seatback to pivot forward while the entire seat slides forward (further than before). The seat returns to its original position by pushing on the seat back. The second seat folds away easily with one lever accessed through the rear passenger doors. A four-bar linkage automatically drops the seat flush to the floor. There are no gaps to limit the ease of sliding cargo, and there's room for a lot of cargo. With both rear rows folded flat, the Pilot offers 90.3 cubic feet of cargo space. That's considerably more than the GMC Envoy or Chevy Trailblazer (80.1 cubic feet), Ford Explorer (81.3) or Toyota Highlander (81.4). Moreover, the Pilot's load floor is four feet wide, allowing full sheets of building materials to fit inside. The Pilot's front seats are spacious, with two comfortable buckets and a versatile center console. The seats give excellent access to all the controls and the view out is excellent in all directions, with as little obstruction as you'll find in an SUV. The LX model's manual seat adjustments are simple but effective. In a particularly clever move, Honda made the largest dial in the center of the instrument panel a switch to shift the audio controls from front- to rear-seat audio. Several observers with young children immediately recognized this as the control they would use most, and they appreciated its large size and central placement. The other instruments and controls will be familiar to anyone who has driven a Honda. The company seldom varies much from the layout that for decades has proven to be a model of ergonomics. Most of the Pilot's switches operate with a satisfying, positive action. All is not perfect inside the Pilot, however. The minivan-like column shifter is spindly and moves in an ovoid path, like that of the Odyssey. The thin, sliding plastic lid over the center console works fine, but is not aesthetically appealing and sounds cheap when you drop a set of keys on top of it. Buttresses on the sides of the center console look like they'll collect detritus. The fold-out cell-phone holder with a power outlet seems at first a nice feature, but blocks the two cupholders in front of it. Nonetheless, the console provides plenty of storage space in a compartment behind the cell-phone holder (where our cell phone ended up most of the time). A covered compartment located below the Pilot's center stack provides more storage in the space between the console and the instrument panel. The Pilot is loaded with kid-friendly stuff. There's a cupholder for every seat and pockets on the seatbacks in the first two rows. The EX includes a second-row fold-down activity tray with more cupholders and storage for pocket-sized electronic games or fast food, including a little spot that cradles sau