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Walkaround
Freshened for 2006, the Honda Pilot's styling remains conservative, yet greets the world with a good deal more authority than before. The front fascia is beveled and blunt, with more definition than the 2005 model's mug and much more than the smaller CR-V's fluid wraparound face. These changes are designed to make the Pilot look more like a truck. New complex headlights, a wide, chrome-bar grille and clear-lens taillights raise the bling factor a couple of notches.
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.
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 SUV-ness 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.
The Pilot shares its platform with the Acura MDX sport-utility and Honda Odyssey minivan, both highly successful vehicles. The Pilot shares its engine, transmission, all-wheel-drive system, and brakes with the Acura MDX.
Interior Features
The Pilot can seat up to eight, but some of them best be small. The second-row seats are comfortable for adults, but the third-row seats are more suited for children.
Up front, the Pilot's bucket seats are spacious and comfortable. The LX model's manual seat adjustments are simple but effective. A driver's foot rest, or dead pedal, is standard on all models.
The second- and third-row seats are slightly higher than those ahead. This theater seating improves forward visibility for back-seat passengers. The second-row seatbacks recline, albeit with limited range. The second row can slide fore and aft, allowing leg room for the second and third rows to be adjusted according to the size of the passengers. Getting into the third row is aided by the seat design. Flip a lever and the second-row seatback pivots forward while the entire seat slides forward. The seat returns to its original position by pushing on the seat back.
In terms of cargo capacity, the Pilot is among the best in its class. With both rear rows folded flat, the Pilot offers 90.3 cubic feet of cargo space. That's more than the GMC Envoy or Chevy Trailblazer (80.1 cubic feet), Ford Explorer (81.3) or Toyota Highlander (80.6) or Nissan Murano (81.6). Moreover, the Pilot's load floor is four feet wide, allowing full sheets of building materials to fit inside.
Pilot's seating system is exceptionally versatile for handling a mix of cargo and people. Both rows of rear seats are split 60/40. The second-row seat folds away easily via a single lever and drops the seat flush to the floor. There are no gaps in the cargo floor as with some SUVs such as the Ford Explorer.
The driver benefits from excellent visibility in all directions with as little obstruction to sight lines as you'll find in an SUV. All controls are easily accessible by the driver.
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 hollow 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. 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 features. There's a cup holder 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 cup holders and storage for pocket-sized electronic games or fast food, including a little spot that cradles sauce containers.
The optional rear-seat DVD screen measures a huge nine inches diagonal yet it doesn't take up much space when not in use. It's easily viewed from all of the rear seats when deployed from the headliner. Audio and video input jacks are provided for a variety of electronic accessories, from camcorders to portable VCRs to game consoles. The system includes two sets of cordless headphones, with jacks for three mo
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