The Grand Highlander fills a niche in the Toyota SUV line, providing more room than the traditional Highlander, without the truckiness and clumsiness of the full-sized Sequoia. It’s better positioned to stave off the growing competition in the midsized three-row SUV class, which includes the Honda Pilot, Hyundai Palisade, Kia Telluride, and the all-new Mazda CX-90—all of which are roomier and more feature-laden than the regular Highlander.The Grand Highlander’s extra 6 inches of length aids interior space, makes for easier rear-passenger access, and provides more cargo room compared to the regular model. The Grand Highlander Hybrid shares its four-cylinder hybrid powertrain with the regular Highlander Hybrid while borrowing a performance-oriented turbocharged hybrid powertrain from the Lexus RX500h and Toyota Crown Platinum for the higher-level “Hybrid MAX” trims.
Because we’ve already tested both the Highlander Hybrid, and the non-hybrid Grand Highlander, this road test of the Grand Highlander Hybrid is based on our experiences with these two vehicles. Test results and impressions will be noted as such.
Driving experience
We measured an impressive 35 mpg overall on our Highlander Hybrid, which shares its powertrain with the Grand Highlander Hybrid. But overall it’s more grande than it is “grand.” While the functionality is there to satisfy Toyota loyalists, the vehicle is short on rewarding features and touches that buyers should rightfully expect at its price.
The Highlander Hybrid can glide on electric power at low speeds, typically up to 20 mph, which is a gratifying trait. But when more acceleration is called for the engine kicks in with a bit of a roar. In our tests, it reached 60 mph in 8 seconds. We would expect a similar result for the Grand Highlander Hybrid.
We found the non-hybrid Grand Highlander’s ride to be cushier than most competitors, particularly with the smaller 18-inch tires that come on the XLE we tested. (Higher trims come with larger 20-inch wheels and tires.) Thankfully, these 18-inch wheels also come standard on the Grand Highlander Hybrid XLE. The suspension does a good job absorbing all but the harshest bumps, although it’s not as comfy as the uber-plush Subaru Ascent (which isn’t currently offered as a hybrid).
Point the Grand Highlander toward a curve and it handles reasonably well during regular driving, aided by a natural feel from the steering. But when you pick up the pace it gets ungainly, with an early onset of body roll and less willingness to be driven with urgency than the smaller Highlander. It proved secure when pushed to its limits around our track, but posted a 3-mph slower speed through our collision-avoidance test than the regular Highlander. If you’re in the market for a midsized three-row SUV that handles with more aplomb, look to the Mazda CX-90 (which can be had as a plug-in hybrid).
Cabin comfort
We found the Grand Highlander we tested to be comfortable and roomy, with a legitimately adult-friendly third-row seat and bountiful cargo space.
The front seats proved comfortable for many body types, with plenty of adjustments and decent support. There’s lots of headroom, an elevated driving position, and well-positioned armrests. The Grand Highlander Hybrid can be configured to hold seven or eight passengers by either opting for a second-row bench seat or two individual captain’s chairs. The second-row seat has excellent underleg support, great foot space under the front seats, and plenty of knee room. But the flat, unsupportive seatback can become tiresome on road trips.
Hop into the third row and you’ll find one of the roomier ones in the midsized segment, capable of accommodating adults for short trips. Toyota’s lever-operated mechanism moves the second-row seat forward to create a path to the third row with a single pull (and a slight shove), but it’s not as slick as the simpler, push-button setups of some competitors. Maximum cargo capacity (with both the second- and third-rows folded down) benefits from about 7 extra cubic feet compared to the regular Highlander. According to Toyota’s specs, the Grand Highlander Hybrid doesn’t lose any of this extra space.
Interior fit and finish isn’t all that impressive, and pales in comparison to midsized SUVs such as the Hyundai Palisade, Kia Telluride, and Subaru Ascent. The XLE we tested lacks much in the way of special touches, such as a felt-lined glove box or an abundance of well-padded surfaces. For nicer Highlander furnishings, such as real leather (rather than the “SofTex'' imitation leather in our XLE), buyers have to opt for the top Limited and Platinum trims, which is also the case for the Grand Highlander Hybrid.
Controls and usability
We found most controls inside the Grand Highlander easy enough to use, including the conventional gear selector, and we appreciate the physical knobs and buttons that handle many common tasks. The infotainment system’s touchscreen is large and modern looking, but because there isn’t a “home” screen it can be tedious to jump between menus, such as the radio and navigation. We also found it confusing to wade through all the menus within the driver’s instrument screen. At least there is an audio volume knob, albeit a very small one, on the driver’s side of the infotainment screen.
Active safety and driver assistance
The Grand Highlander Hybrid comes standard with the “Toyota Safety Sense 3.0” suite of active safety and driver assistance features, which includes automatic emergency braking with pedestrian, cyclist, and motorcycle detection, along with lane centering assistance, lane departure warning, lane keeping assistance, adaptive cruise control, and automatic high beams. TSS 3.0 also includes Proactive Driving Assist. In some situations, this feature can provide gentle braking and/or steering assistance based on radar and camera information to help with turns, following behind other vehicles, and responding to a pedestrian or bicyclist. Automatic emergency braking that operates at highway speeds, blind spot warning, and rear cross traffic warning also come standard on the Grand Highlander Hybrid.