The 2022 Honda Pilot Compromises in All the Right Places
The Honda Pilot is a perfectly OK vehicle for getting around despite its poor handling.
Written by Andrew Kidd
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
The
Honda
Pilot is a boring SUV—and that's perfectly fine. Consumer Reports recommends the 2022 Honda Pilot
, giving it an overall score of 76 out of 100 by its metrics.Consumer Reports
said in its road test report that the Honda Pilot—while an exceedingly functional and absolutely fine midsize SUV—is pretty boring.What makes the Honda Pilot a boring SUV?
The publication noted that the
Pilot
doesn't seem to honor or even hint at any sort of connection with what it calls the "nimble" Hondas of yesteryear. It knocked its cornering as "cumbersome" and its steering as muddy enough to make a driver lose some confidence in handling. It also has so-so braking on wet pavement, which other SUVs tend to do better, and is about average in terms of predicted
reliability
.While Consumer Reports concedes that you shouldn't expect an SUV to handle like a sports car, it notes that the Pilot's handling pales in comparison to competing SUVs like the Ford Explorer and Mazda CX-9.
Does this really hurt it?
Not enough to keep Consumer Reports from recommending it to buyers. SUVs like the Pilot—which has a base price of between $38,080 and $51,870—aren't meant to turn heads or burn rubber. Nor are they meant to be luxurious rides. It's a Honda, not a Porsche Cayenne.
They're meant to get you, your passengers, and your cargo from point A to point B, comfortably, and in one piece.
With some good ratings in five of six IIHS crash tests and a superior front crash prevention rating, it's decently safe—which is exactly what you want in a family ferrying grocery getter.
How does the Honda Pilot redeem itself?
It doesn't really need much redeeming as it has a pretty comfortable ride, which could make up for some of the compromises in handling. CR notes that the Honda Pilot's suspension—though somewhat noisy on impact—works exceedingly well to traverse bumpy roads.
And while potholes might make the Pilot sway a little, it's not enough to be memorable.
It's also full of sound-deadening materials in the cabin, which helps keep road noise, bumps and rattles to a minimum. Its engine—a 3.5-liter V6—is also relatively quiet compared with its competitors.
Should I buy it?
That's up to you. By all accounts, it's an absolutely OK SUV if you don't care too much about muddy handling. To be fair, a Honda Pilot isn't going to be showing up at any track days anytime soon unless the owner is doing it ironically (or is just a little delusional).
But it doesn't need to hit 60 in under 4 seconds, nor does it need to slalom through a line of traffic cones (unless you live in Michigan, where road construction has supplanted summer in many places).
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4.7
