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2020 Toyota Highlander vs other 3-row crossovers: There can only be one!

We've done quite a few spec comparison posts involving three-row family crossovers, and when included, the Toyota Highlander has always been the runt of the group. While the rest increasingly seemed to be benchmarking each other toward greater girth, the Highlander was the outlier.  That changes a bit for the 2020 Toyota Highlander, but only a bit. It's now larger and more competitive, specifically in regards to the amount of cargo space aft of the third-row seat. As you can see below, this aligns the Highlander most closely to its long-time competitor the 2020 Honda Pilot. However, let's see how it stacks up to others in the segment, which is heavily populated now, so for the sake of space, we've selected the newest entries: Kia Telluride, Hyundai Palisade, Subaru Ascent and Ford Explorer. The order in which they are presented is random.  Performance and fuel economy The 2020 Highlander is more than 200 pounds lighter than its predecessor, but has the same 295-horsepower V6 engine that was already one of the strongest in the segment. We'd say that would give it a leg up, but the Pilot and Explorer have proven to be sprinters, delivering 0-60 times in the low-6 range by some publications' stopwatches (or VBoxes, whatever). We don't expect the Highlander to beat them, but it may dip into the 6's. The heavy, less-powerful Subaru Ascent is most likely to take up the rear. It's fuel economy of 23 mpg combined also matches the Highlander and Explorer for segment-best. Remember, however, that the Explorer's turbocharged inline-four engine is likely more susceptible to differences in driving style (read: a heavy foot).  Of course, if you're really interested in fuel economy, the Highlander and Explorer are the only vehicles in the segment to offer hybrid versions. The Ford Explorer Hybrid puts a greater emphasis on performance, however, resulting in lower estimates of 25 mpg combined (AWD) and 28 mpg combined (FWD). By contrast, the new 2020 Toyota Highlander Hybrid is estimated to return 36 mpg combined.  Passenger and cargo space According to Highlander chief engineer Yoshikazu Saeki, he had a choice of two directions with the new Highlander. He could have indeed made it bigger, matching these very competitors, especially in terms of third-row and cargo space. Or, he could have maintained a smaller-than-average size. He obviously chose the latter. First, it was the size customers had come to expect. Would they be put off by something bigger?

Chevy Bolt EV, Chrysler Pacifica, Honda Ridgeline take 2017 NACTOY prizes

Every year the 2017 North American International Auto Show kicks off with the North American Car of the Year Awards. We say "awards" after all those mentions of our home continent because it's not just cars. This year, in fact, the awards spread out to three separate honors: Car, Truck, and Utility. And without further ado, here are the winners. The 2017 Chevrolet Bolt EV is the Car of the Year, the Honda Ridgeline is the Truck of the Year, and the Chrysler Pacifica is the Utility of the Year. Honda's win is perhaps the biggest surprise, upsetting favorite the Ford F Super Duty for the win. The second-generation Ridgeline rides on a unibody platform and is offered in front- or all-wheel-drive, which is unconventional for a pickup. But the layout also offers a cargo bed with an in-floor trunk and solid fuel economy figures of 19 city, 26 highway in its most-efficient form. The Chevy Bolt EV, however, was probably the easiest winner to predict. Its 238-mile range and sub-$30,000 starting price after tax credits make it a breakthrough in the landscape of electric vehicles. With the Chrysler Pacifica available in a plug-in hybrid form, this year's award illustrates the industry's shift towards efficiency and electrification. And with Ford's recent announcement on future EVs, it might not be long will it be until we see a hybrid truck on the award stage as well.Related Video:

Honda aiming for new mpg-record on European hypermile drive

Here's a warning that there will be a Honda Civic clogging up the right lane of a bunch of highways throughout Europe next month. Honda wants to set the Guinness World Record for best fuel economy for a car going through the European Union's 24 contiguous countries. To do so, we can't expect any high speeds on the autobahn. Two of Honda's finest from its UK factory will hit the road June 1 for a 25-day journey in a Honda Civic Tourer that will take the pair through two-dozen countries in 25 days. That means about 370 miles of very measured driving per day. The Civic Tourer will be equipped with a tracking device and other telematic services, and the goal is to see what kind of fuel economy the pair can get from the car's 1.6-liter i-DTEC engine. Honda isn't saying what kind of fuel-sipping figure it's looking to achieve over those three-plus weeks, which will take the car through countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, France and Spain, but the Japanese automaker is shooting for a fuel economy record irrespective of any type of powertrain, hybrids included. Take a look at Honda's press release below, and if you want to avoid or find the car en route, you can watch it on this tracker site. Honda targets new GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title for fuel efficiency with 8,500mile drive across Europe Honda will put the real-world fuel economy of its super-efficient 1.6 i-DTEC engine to the ultimate test in an 8,500mile drive across all 24 contiguous EU countries, with the aim of setting a new GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for fuel efficiency. On Monday 1st June 2015, two members of Honda's European Research & Development (R&D) team will climb into a Honda Civic Tourer and set out on an epic journey from Aalst, Belgium. Heading towards the Netherlands and Germany, their trip will see them navigate the Continent in a clockwise direction, with the aim of returning to their starting point some 25 days later, on June 25th, having covered a planned total of 8,459miles. The GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title attempt comes on the back of several independent tests which have proven Honda's 1.6 i-DTEC engine to consistently out-perform its quoted fuel efficiency in real-world driving conditions. Keen to once again underline this performance and in the challenging spirit for which the brand is famed, Honda aims to set a benchmark with a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title never before attempted in Europe.