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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday June 18, 2008 - 21 FAMILY OWNED & OPERATED You'll Love Our Service! 905-335-4080 BURLINGTON LINE Honda tackles a swiftly changing SUV segment with the 2009 Pilot By Jim Robinson OAKVILLE BEAVER The conundrum facing manufacturers of CUV/SUVs now is how to continue to offer the utility and towing capacity of the CUV/SUV as we know them, but make them affordable to maintain in a world of $1.30/litre gasoline as this is being written. Honda may have found a way in the 2009 Pilot SUV now on sale across Canada. While the 2008 was nominally an eight-seater, the 2009 adds more foot and knee room in the second and third row, large enough for the 95th percentile male passenger. In terms of fuel economy, the 3.5-litre V6 engine in the Pilot can run on six, four or even three cylinders depending on load. Estimated fuel usage numbers are 12.7/8.7L/100 km city/highway for the two-wheel-drive (2WD) version on 13.1/9.1L/100 km city/highway for the four-wheel-drive (4WD) version, which is an improvement over the 2008 model. But what Honda has done is markedly improve the towing capacity of the 4WD up to 2,054 kg or about 4,500 lb. That means a person can cut back on fuel used by judicious use of cylinder deactivation, but still have the power to haul something like a big boat trailer when needed. The 2WD model has a towing rating of 1,590 kg (3,500 lb), which still includes most boats and U-Hauls. With the 2WD model representing only about five per cent of anticipated sales, most 2009 Pilot buyers will opt for the big tow ability of the 4WD system Honda bills as VTN-4. Honda calls its 4WD but it is really an advanced form of allwheel-drive (AWD). Unlike simple all-wheel-drive systems that only come into play after wheel slippage is detected, VTM-4 proactively routes torque under acceleration with up of 70 per cent that can be shifted to the rear wheels. There is also a lock-up function for use in extremely low traction situations like snow or mud. Activated by a button on the dashboard, it only works in first or second or reverse gears and disengages at speeds above 30 km/h. You won't use this very often, but in the near record snow conditions we had last winter, you'll be glad you had it. Part of the ride-and-drive press introduction of the 2009 Pilot took place on a dedicated off-road course in a sand pit north or Montreal. Sand and gravel is the toughest surface to deal with in off-roading, so one would normally avoid a The 2009 Honda Pilot mid-size SUV is larger than the 2008, offering towing power of up to 4,500 lb and a V6 engine that can run on six, four or three cylinders depending on load. place like that unless the vehicle was rated for extreme traction conditions. In normal AWD my co-driver and I tackled the heavy ruts and gullies carved by rains the day before. Bucking and grinding our way up and down was pretty uneventful until we came to one ledge with what looked like a near vertical drop-off. Believing what we had been told that the Pilot could handle it, we gingerly edged over and headed down. I was not so worried about getting to the bottom as what would happen when we got there. Peering down at the ground below, the sand pit floor looked like a solid wall that we were going to do a nose plant into. Thankfully, Honda has not forgotten some owners will go into places like this and designed in a 27.8 degree angle of approach at the front so we didn't Continued on Page 22 The interior of the 2009 Honda Pilot is noticeably bigger on the inside than the 2008 due to a wider track front on rear and longer wheelbase, resulting in improved ride quality.