Talking Cars 394: Driving the Freshened 2023 Toyota Highlander

Main theme: A freshened three-row midsized SUV may not be the most exciting topic, but consider this: More than 264,000 Toyota Highlanders were sold in the U.S. in 2021, a year that saw the impact of the global chip shortage; it was also the best sales year ever in the U.S. for the Highlander Hybrid. So it’s kind of a big deal when this particular model gets some major changes, as it did for 2023. Toyota has dropped the long-running 3.5-liter V6 engine from the Highlander and replaced it with a new 265-hp, 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder. (The Hybrid powertrain is unchanged.) Inside the Highlander gets Toyota’s new infotainment system, with a larger available touchscreen. We talk about what we like, what we don’t like, and whether we would buy a Highlander or one of its competitors with our own money.

Audience questions: We answer two questions on this week’s episode. The first is about Top Tier gasoline, and we cover misconceptions about it, where it can be found, and the benefits of choosing a brand with the Top Tier certification.

Our second question is about launch control, a feature that’s found on a variety of “sporty” vehicles, from the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray and Porsche 911 up to hyper-exotic sports cars from Ferrari, Lamborghini, and others. But launch control is also found on more mundane sedans and SUVs as well. We talk about the whys and hows of this feature.