This page is dedicated to my former 2007 Honda Pilot EX. I was going to delete it but I can't bring myself to do it.
My beautiful black 2007 Honda Pilot EX was born out of love..... well it was born from the need for something larger than my 2004 Saturn Ion to carry my three kids and new significant other around in, so love was involved. The funny thing is I have spent maybe 100 or more hours pouring over car info trying to find a replacement for my Pilot but spent less than one hour deciding on the replacement for my Saturn. I mean the saturn was a good car, kinda cool looking, nice sun roof but became impractical. And the Pilot was very nice.
The Pilot however was NOT cheap. It was a demo from City Honda so I got a bit of a deal on it but I liked it so much it was almost like I didn't care how much it cost. On Aug 17, 2007 I signed on the bottom line for a 4 year lease at 2.9%. Total vehicle cost was $46,436 (before tax, included a couple thousand from my previous lease), residual was $18,532 and my lease payment ended up at $751 / month. Yes it was a high payment, yes I would have to give it back in 4 years but I wanted that vehicle so I bought it.
The Pilot it the perfect vehicle. Large enough to easily carry the 5 of us without picking and whining from the back seat, nice Clarion DVD player with 3 sets of headphones (City Honda graciously bought us the third set once they found out I had 3 kids), 4WD for Newfoundland Winters, and it was the coolest shade of Black with nicely tinted windows, it was wicked. Everything works well in the vehicle, seats fold easily, heats up quickly, cools down quickly, dual zone temp controls for kids, sliding and reclining back seats, bunch of power outlets and plenty of power. Everything feels solid and well built, no cheap plastic bits to be found. There is a light on the dash for everything, tires low, it tells you, door open, it tells you, low fluid of any type, it tells you, you need coffee, it tells you.
This thing is a beast, snow can not stop it, seriously I have tried. If all else fails put on the 4 wheel lock and you will be free...... Only minor problem is stopping going downhill in the winter, the weight of the vehicle means that it will slide on steep downhills if the roads are extra icy (check out Brazil street in mid-January).
There is a lot of cargo room in this vehicle and the seats fold up and down very easily, both second and third row split 40/60 and recline to provide any number of cargo configurations. There are also nice touches like 3 different hook ups for cargo net, storage area for headrests and power outlets all over the place.
As you can see, you can actually fit human beings in the back seat, the RAV4 offers a third row of seating but just try to sit back there, I dare you.
I also tried out the Sorento third row seat and didnt find it as easy to get into or as comfortable. It is not huge or anything but I can put a couple of kids back there no problem.The center console is simple and well laid out, nice 6 cd changer included. There is no bluetooth but its not something I would use anyway.
I have never had a problem with the Pilot, had brakes done after 2 years which seemed a bit early but that was on the advice of City Honda Service (which I will be posting about later.... not great). My Pilot is by far the best vehicle I have ever owned and probably the nicest vehicle I have ever driven.
