Video: 2009 Honda Pilot

Let's take a look at some of the features this model has to offer. Honda's taken a different approach than a lot of other manufacturers when it comes to styling it's crossover. You can see in models like the Mazda CX-9, it's really sleek shape. Here, Honda's chosen to go with a more upright grill, it really looks a lot like a traditional SUV. And as you come around to the side here, you can see how it has the upright profile, kind of boxy dimensions that have characterized SUV's for a long time. Now that styling theme pays dividends though on the inside, where the model has a lot of cargo space. There are some significant changes under the hood as well for the Pilot. The model still has a 3.5-liter V6, but it has improved power, now it makes 250-horsepower and it also has improved fuel economy. And the improvement in fuel economy is thanks in part to the new variable cylinder management technology that this vehicle has. Now what that means is that the engine can run either three, four or six-cylinders, and that's depending on what type of driving you're doing, but it can cut off cylinders to save fuel. And the car gets 1723 miles per gallon for two-wheel drive models and 1622 miles per gallon for the four-wheel drive model. Now inside the Pilot, you can see Honda has redesigned the entire dash layout. And first and foremost, they moved the gear selector from the steering column down to the center console. Another change is that the vehicle now has white gauges, which we don't actually see in a lot of cars anymore these days, but Honda's decided to put them on the Pilot and they've reconfigured the center console and you can see in this Touring trim level, it has Honda's new knob based navigation system. And this knob down here is used to control functions for the navigation as well as the audio system as if you've got an iPod connected to it, you can control it with this knob as well. The Touring trim level is the only version that can have the USB plugin for an iPod, but if you don't have that, there's also an auxiliary input jack, so you can run any MP3 music player in to the stereo of the car and play your music through it that way. I had a chance to drive the Pilot in the California desert and came away with a favorable impression of the vehicle overall. It's confident on the highway, feels very stable at higher speeds, but even if you get into some twisty mountain roads, the vehicle stays flat through corners and it doesn't lean over a lot like some crossover SUV's do. The engine had acceptable power and that's fine for a vehicle like this and seating comfort in this vehicle is pretty good. I'm gonna get into the rest of the seating in the vehicle as well as the cargo area in a separate video. On the whole, Honda's done a pretty nice job with the redesign of its Pilot, but the model goes up against some strong competition, like the Mazda CX-9. What it may have going for though is it's distinctive styling, as more and more of those crossovers get sleeker and have swoopier looks, this boxy shape could really set it apart in the market. <v Host>For additional information on this car or any other, go to cars.com and our blog, KickingTires.