The Japanese market's understanding of SUVs has always been related to "off-road", so the Nissan X-Trail, which emphasizes off-road performance, is still the No. 1 selling SUV in Japan, while the "family SUVs" developed for the U.S. market, such as the CR-V, RAV4, and PILOT, are basically disappearing in Japan. The Highlander is a typical American family SUV, it pays attention to large space and comfort, Toyota's similar orientation to it also has burly Sequoia, these cars as "Japanese cars" should actually be a question mark.
 
Since the first generation of Highlander was launched in North America in 2001, its cumulative sales have exceeded 2 million units, and the third-generation Highlander launched in 2015 has sold 200,000 units in the United States for two consecutive years. In China, Highlander is not the first in sales in the same class, but this is mainly because of the limited production capacity, the imported 2.0T turbocharged engine loaded by Highlander is seriously in short supply, which leads to consumers can only increase the price or wait in line, according to GAC Toyota's disclosure on a formal occasion, Highlander has maintained more than 30,000 orders for a long time, and more people choose to give up because they can't accept the long wait.
 
The reason why the Highlander is so popular may be because it takes Toyota's "meanness" to the extreme and turns it into an all-rounder. Whether it is handling, driving texture, space, economy, passability...... It has reached the top level of its class in any aspect of SUV, coupled with the quality reputation created by the previous two generations of Highlander, as well as a very competitive price, it is not surprising that Highlander has been popular, and the comfort has reached the level of leapfrogging.
 
The third-generation Highlander retains the functionality of the previous generation on the premise that the machinery has been completely renovated. Although it still shares the platform with the Camry, the rear suspension has been changed from the controversial double link to a double wishbone similar to the Lexus RX. In terms of powertrain, the 3.5-liter V6 engine has been eliminated, and all models are equipped with a 2.0-liter turbocharged engine codenamed 8AR-FTS paired with an Aisin 6-speed automatic transmission.
 
The previous generation of Highlander was completely biased towards urban and high-speed driving, with almost no pursuit of off-road, coupled with a special weight design, its 3.5L version has four-wheel drive, but there is no locking function, it is a weak urban four-wheel drive. The shortcomings of off-road performance are the most effective in the new generation of Highlander, this generation of Highlander's high-end models are equipped with a four-wheel drive system, which can also lock the center differential, and can manually control the front and rear axles to achieve full-time four-wheel drive with a 50-to-50 power distribution. Generally, the situation that a part-time four-wheel drive urban SUV gets out of trouble through the electronic system after getting stuck on a muddy road, may not be stuck at all in the forced four-wheel drive mode of this generation of Highlander.
 
Of course, Highlander is never an off-road master, the new Highlander's best working condition is still high-speed cruise, Highlander's high-speed driving texture is undoubtedly the best in its class, its chassis is thick and tough, while ensuring comfort, a little intense driving will not be empty. The Highlander's driving texture has a strong "sense of luxury", which is because it isolates the vibration of the road and the noise of the outside world very well, giving people a feeling of driving a luxury car, and many media reviews even believe that its driving experience at high speed is close to that of the Toyota Crown.
 
Being able to sit and install is the traditional virtue of Highlander, this generation of Highlander in addition to the lowest configuration, all adopt a 2 3 2 style 7-seat layout, the second row of space is very abundant, the seats support forward and backward adjustment, even in the front position, can also meet the 180cm large man to move freely. And even with all the seats in use, the Highlander's trunk can still hold items such as large backpacks.
 
The configuration of the Highlander is not particularly high, but the excellent workmanship makes up for the shortcomings in this area to a considerable extent. And Toyota models have always been known for reasonable ergonomic design, and the advantages of Highlander's interior design are numerous, such as the narrow storage slot in the lower part of the center console, the oversized armrest box that can put a laptop, the elongated sun visor, etc., there are many more such careful designs, and these details are also an important reflection of the maturity of a product.
 
"A Toyota that doesn't break" is not a joke. It is no exaggeration to say that the quality of the Toyota Highlander is a myth in the car. According to the U.S. Consumer Reports, which tracks 550,000 vehicles, the 10-year-old Highlander has not declined in almost any aspect. Except for the Highlander, which has been around for about eight years, has a somewhat reduced score in the performance of the entertainment system, the other parts, especially the main components such as the engine and gearbox, are almost the same as the new car.
 
The safety performance of the 2017 Highlander is also impeccable, with Toyota's Driver Safety Assist System, or TSS-P for short, which helps with braking when necessary. The system also includes Lane Departure Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control and automatic headlights. In the IIHS test, the Toyota Highlander has received the highest safety rating of its type for the third time in a row: TSP. In China's C-NCAP crash test, GAC Toyota Highlander 2.0T 2WD Luxury Edition participated in the third batch of tests in 2015 and received a five-star safety evaluation. The overall score was 55.5 points.
 
Although the sales volume is not the first, the Highlander is undoubtedly the benchmark in the same class, and the new cars of the same class like to launch the topic of "challenging the Highlander", but the most important challenger of the Highlander - Honda PILOT as long as it does not land in China for a day, consumers can still only accept the price increase or wait.
Toyota Highlander evaluation report