c5bob

I drove a 2017 Highlander Limited 2 weeks ago and was very much disappointed. Car rode like it was on truck chassis, seats were not comfortable, transmission shifted jerky, lots of engine noise, etc etc. Drove a 2017 RX350 the next day and was very much impressed with all aspects of the car. No comparison to the Highlander. No comparison to my 2010 RX350 that I traded in on the 2017. I have owned Highlanders in the past that I loved . . . new Highlander cannot compare.

JDR76

I'm surprised you found the Highlander ride to be so different than the RX. I find our Highlander rides very comparable to our 2013 RX and the 17 RX I drove. I'm also surprised you found the shifting to be jerky, as they are the same transmission.

I'm at about 6 months in on our Highlander Hybrid. We're very happy with it. I prefer it over our old RX. I like the new RX, but the lack of a third row was a deal breaker.

I'm glad you got what you liked.

quine

I test drove a 2016 Highlander thinking I was going to hate it and whoa... was blown away by it. Thought it rode so well that I had to pause and think about the RX.
Fortunately I have a small family so a 3 row crossover wasn't necessary.
Volvo XC90 is a beast- love the design, love the safety of it (am a Volvo fan)- but following a xc90 forum- lots of issues, which I find unacceptable for a car of that price. My last one was Toyota reliable until year 8-9 of ownership... then it got all European on me. A sunroof leak ended it (never a good sign when your driving in stop and go and it sounds like you are at a beach with water going back and forth) at 123,000 miles. The costs to fix things on that were outrageous and it always took a day for parts to get in- and I'm not talking about anything exotic. It got to the point where if I spent less than $1000 at the shop, I felt I had won the lottery.

I'm hoping the RX will last longer and be cheaper to maintain.

Getty

I wonder how many other people have (or had) a Highlander and an RX 350 at the same time? I'd guess that you and I are one of the very few, but I could be wrong. Since you have the limited, you have the JBL upgrade stereo and I'm guessing your happy with it. I wonder what your opinion is on the power and handling between the Highlander and the RX? I've had people suggest they feel no difference in the two... and unless I got a total lemon that somehow has kept the secret that it IS a lemon... I find the Highlander vs RX to be night and day.

I'll eventually be known as the guy who didn't like his Highlander, and no offense to anyone who's happy with theirs, but I bought a '17 Highlander SE and was not pleased... when I test-drove it I tried to drive it respectfully (read: slow) feeling a sense of obligation to treat it gently since I hadn't bought it yet. I also, wrongly, assumed that because of the price, popularity, and reputation... that it would fall into a zone of "standard nice SUV"... and it does, but... I was relying on what I THOUGHT it would be, not what it is.

Due to how I'm selling the Highlander, I still have that in my possession as I'm waiting for my title/etc to switch everything over to the RX and complete the sale, and through a long battle (trying to convince a family member to just let me trade it in, because the trade-in is so high... because I haven't driven it and it's mostly lived in my garage for the past 1.5 years)... I finally relented and agreed to sell it for the trade-in offer. I am STILL trying to talk this person out of it, because I didn't enjoy driving the Highlander. If you have kids, or often travel with 4 or more people, I think you'll love it at those times.

But I urge anyone considering a Highlander to drive one, and drive at least a little aggressively... as you would to pass a car, etc. Do NOT evaluate it's pep while on the downhill ramp to a freeway. At least try out the pep (as well as body roll) on a flat road with some turns where you can feel it. Don't make my mistake of a Miss Daisy test-drive and assuming the power is/was there.

NEXT... if it's in your budget, go drive an RX and do the same thing.

You'll see! You'll ALL see! *mwahahahahahaaa*

Okay but seriously... you'll thank me... and if the RX is not in your budget and you're happy to go Highlander, do not ever drive an RX or ride in one, ever. Fortunately this lesson only cost me $7K since I didn't drive my Highlander much, but if you want something that can carry up to 4 (no more than that) and you still want something fun to drive... well... you'll have a couple moments of clarity if you drive both.

Oh... also... if you're into music, for the Highlander the standard stereo... get away from the salesman and listen to it once the buying excitement blindness wears off. The stock Highlander stereo sounds pretty bad, and you can't fix it with new speakers (I went to tremendous trouble thinking I could). The JBL upgrade is worth it... meanwhile the RX "premium" stereo (still not top level stereo, but standard in most RX you try unless you find an RX "stripper") sounds incredible.

JDR76

Getty, your Highlander and RX experience is greatly different than mine, but I appreciate your feedback. It's like everything, one size definitely does not fit all.

ravenuer

Getty: I'm not quite getting your "review" of the Highlander vs the RX. Are you saying the Highlander is slower than the RX? I can see your point IF you got the base Highlander w/the 4cyl. If you're talking both vehicles having the V6, then I have to say there's something wrong with your HL. They are both built on the same chassis, with pretty much identical drivetrains and curb weights.
I currently own a 2010 RAV4 V6 and a 2017 RX350 and I've driven a family member's Highlander. The RAV4 blows both the others away in performance, but the other two are almost identical. Of course I'm talking performance, not luxury!

Getty

Okay so... in your signature I see you have both a Highlander and and RX F-Sport? EDIT: Oops... so I see you have GS 350... so I guess you don't currently have both. Your GS is about 1 second faster (like the RC).

If an F-Sport isn't significantly quicker than the Highlander... I would feel weird having drilled out race peddles... paddle-shifters... HUD... the really trick video tach. So... you have all that, and the F-Sport performs (accellerates/corners/handles) about like your Highlander?

If that's actually true... hmm. I'm really surprised this is a matter of opinion... because it would make all that race stuff in the F-Sport seem silly when any Mom in a Highlander is just sticking right with you... with the kids in back and groceries rolling around. It also means that my own experience with a new Highlander is drastically different than others. I have to wonder if I'm actually in the vast minority of people who are detached from choices... and willing to praise or condemn without the need to affirm my choices. You could argue I'm doing this now with the RX, but this is the entire reason I bought an RX (for the driving experience)... and selling the Highlander. This is why I'm posting about it.

Driving my own RX after the Highlander makes the Highlander feel really slow... and it's pretty funny that all the cool race stuff in an F-Sport is there only to entertain the driver... in a car that's not significantly different than a grocery-getter(?) I can tell you that with my own Highlander, and my own RX (non-F)... there is ZERO comparison. The RX is a rocket next to the Highlander... which is only marginally peppy if I stomp the peddle the whole time (except on corners because then it feels like it's going to roll over... a 4Runner with KDSS or X-Reas is as or more planted).

The SE is only 6-Cylinder. It's the same performance as Limited, but with a "sport" trim and different wheels. I (still, for now) own a '17 SE. I wouldn't argue with you on the 2010 Rav4... I think Toyota has decided to go with the public want for larger cars, and lost some of the goodness of the ealier Rav4s... I even like the shape of the older Rav4s... and yeah, it probalby is pretty quick because of the difference in weight.

However... about the Highlander... just to prove this point I may go test-drive another one... just to see, because honestly... based on my own experience... I think you guys are way off. I felt tricked into buying the Highlander by people saying it was (or at least feels) quick. I can find reviews saying it's slow and uninspiring... and one video from Consumer Reports that says it's fast. Again... if someone is reading this and considering a Highlander... do yourself a favor and drive both that, and an RX... see what you think. The only reason I bought an RX over the 4RL I intended to buy... was this very thing... the effortless quickness.

Also... again... take a look in an RX F-Sport. They have cues of F1 racing that are no small task to implement, and you pay for them (paddle shifters? HUD, etc)... I only know two other people who have paddle-shifters... one is a friend with an RC F... and the other has a Mercedes 500 AMG. So... guys are opting for F-Sports... and meanwhile this car is no faster than the average Highlander? And that seems... um... logical?

ellocovg

iTrader: (1)

I had a 2009 RAV4 and that thing was a rocket. They’ve come out and said it that engine was too big for the RAV4 but they wanted a V6 and went for it. That engine had I think 269 HP and the thing only weighed like 3,500 lbs. same engine as a highlander/RX but weighed 100s of pounds less and was way smaller. I had a 2012 highlander and I didn’t think it was a dog it had a little pep to it. I love my RX but I don’t think it’s a rocket either, but I do t think many ppl buy a Lexus RX Type F or normal looking to race all of the civics on the parkway.

JDR76

No, I do not own an RX F Sport. I currently own a Highlander Hybrid Limited Platinum and a GS350 F Sport. We went from our 3rd gen RX350 (non-F Sport) to the Highlander because there were some features we wanted that were available on the Highlander that were not available on the RX.

It is hard to compare our RX and Highlander because our RX was the regular V6 version, and our Highlander is the hybrid, so it has more power than our RX did, but also extra weight and the CVT. However, I always get an RX loaner when I take the GS in for service, so I have lots of experience with the newer RXs, most recently having a 2019 RX350 loaner. My sister has a Highlander XLE with the standard V6 drivetrain, so I have experience driving that as well.

I feel that our Highlander (drivetrain differences excluded) drives quite similar to the 2013 RX that we had. When I drive the newer gen RX, there is more of a difference, but mainly in sound, as the new RX is quieter.

But it has never been my observation that one feels more powerful than the other. I feel differences in suspension/chassis tuning, but no, not in power or acceleration.

For reference, here are some Car and Driver test results:

2017 Highlander Hybrid Limited, 0-60 mph in 7.0 seconds
2017 Highlander XLE AWD V6, 0-60 mph in 7.0 seconds
2018 RX350 FWD, 0-60 mph in 7.1 seconds
2016 RX350 AWD, 0-60 mph in 6.9 seconds
2018 RX450h AWD, 0-60 mph in 7.4 seconds

So you can see they are all pretty comparable.

Getty

Yeah that's so funny to me. (not disrespectfully, but head-scratching)... If I drive my Highlander like I'm on a suicide mission, I can make it seem peppy... but that's crushing the gas, etc. and the body roll in corners is pretty sloppy, and this is the SE which supposedly has the sportiest suspension tuning of all of them.

I can't urge potential buyers enough. Test-drive both before you buy.

Near my house is an intersection that's crowned... a rise in the middle. If I'm going to clear a yellow light and have to go through the intersection with gusto... already going the speed limit or just a little better, that crest is a bit funny as you sort of jump it, in whatever your in... doesn't matter if it's the pickup or Highlander... anything does it, BUT... from a dead-stop at the light I just accelerate as normal and go over like a hump... EXCEPT in the RX... a normally quiet take-off... is a launch off that... just like it would be if I were already going 40.

My first impression of an RX was when a work-associate let me and another guy take her car up the street for lunch... we both commented on how powerful it felt.

Even though the RX has a similar size engine to the Highlander... I've wondered if the fuel injection is different, because on any day I'm having fun zipping around in the RX... my mileage is ridiculous... like 15-16mpg... however... the car feels like a rocket, no doubt. So... I don't know. But if this is really the case... man... the F-Sport has lost all it's appeal just like that, because if it's no quicker... than what's the point? If that's reality than all that stuff is just the Activity Center for adults. (mom's know) If the car is actually quicker (which mine sure feels like it) than those things seem justified... whatever... maybe the RX has just got me fooled and I only think it feels fast... if that's the case I'll take the Shallow Hal and please let me just keep loving it... but ironically, I hated my Highlander for the opposite reason... feels like a lumbering dog... with a maddening hesitation through 2nd gear... and the same hesitation when I want to pass.

JDR76

Just to be clear, the F Sport package is a "handling and appearance package". It isn't intended to make it faster. Buying an F Sport RX is no different than buying an SE version of the Highlander. It's about suspension and trim.

Getty

Yes I'm clear on that. My point is... the Highlander SE, yes... the same... blacked out details, racier rims, "sporty over luxury" interior (that's actually pretty close to Limited, just different). What they don't have... is a race instrument panel, HUD, stainless drilled peddles, bit smaller "race" seats, and paddle-shifters.

I don't have a problem with the idea that an RX and an RX F-Sport have the identical engine, and therefor perform the same... I find it odd that people (apparently many) believe that, minus the luxuries, the RX and a Highlander have roughly the same performance, cornering, braking, etc... i.e. "drive" about the same.

And to re-state part of my logic in finding this so... hmm... "odd"... is the extensive race-mods of the F-Sport... because if that's the common concensus, that the Highlander and RX drive about the same, then all that physical stuff in the F-Sport is "poser" stuff... but *I* don't believe that it IS poser-stuff... when I drive my RX... I'm thrilled and delighted at the power and handling... meanwhile my Highlander SE is boring. It's like driving around in a comfy office... that pitches and rolls with the turns and never really feels quick. That's my opinion... and if I'm totally wrong... then I actually feel I made the best choice in RX anyway (which I didn't before now, because I think the stuff in the F is super-cool, but not if it's only as quick as a Highlander... which, I don't think they are comparable when I drive them.)

This isn't the "mountain I'm gonna' die on"... it isn't my intention to make anyone unhappy with their Highlander or offend anyone who OWNS one... but... if "you" (whoever you are reading this now) are shopping? I own one, and I feel like it was a terrible choice (for me), my feelings about the Highlander vs RX couldn't be any stronger... I love... LOVE... the RX... and the Highlander? About as far from that as it gets. Drive both yourself. Then decide.

2ndName

We were on the same boat before deciding on the RX. You get a lot more car in the Highlander in terms of functionality. You do sacrifice refinement and luxury. Biggest factor was that the primary drive, my wife, likes the way the RX looks and feels a lot more during the test drive and so that won out versus practicality, haha.

maya1883

We were on the same situation before settling on the RX. You get much more vehicle in the Highlander regarding usefulness. You do forfeit refinement and extravagance. Greatest factor was that the essential drive, my better half, prefers the manner in which the RX looks and feels significantly all the more amid the test drive thus that won out versus common sense

2ndName

That's hilarious, we both made the decision based on our better half, lol.The most important factor!