Detriot Free Press Blasts Highlander Hybrid
Cost cutting measures by Toyota leave Mark Phelan of the Detriot Free Press cold. Or perhaps the cheap interior materials leave him hot, we suppose it depends on how you look at it. Regardless, Mr. Phelan makes it very clear that the Highlander does not match up to Toyota's typical quality and certainly does not match up to the hype surrounding Toyota's latest hybrid SUVs. What we found interesting was that during Mark's testing he only achieved 20 mpg. That is about what we experienced in our fully-loaded Ford Freestyle. Hat tip to The Auto Prophet for sharing this with us.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Craig 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
I really wish Phelan would just back off a bit and look at the big picture. Toyota's intent with Hybrids isn't to set the world on fire when it comes to increased MPG, but to offer a quicker vehicle that doesn't sacrifice fuel economy.
Being a Detroiter myself, I find it hard to purchase an import over a domestic. I call it "naive nationalism". Regardless, Phelan's decision to lump the Trailblazer as a suggested vehicle over the Highlander further damages his declining credibility as an automotive journalist.
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paulene 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
This is great! Finally, someone in the mainstream left-leaning press sees through Toyota's brainwashing hype. It's about time that a reviewer points out the traditionally poor fit-and-finish of interior quality that Toyotas possess
And don't get me started on the 'hybrid' moniker that Toyota is using to cover up shoddy craftsmanship, like on this turd. 20 miles per gallon? Over $36,000 tested? That's more of a rip off than their Avalon, if you can believe that.
Hey, Toyota, learn from GM's mistakes in the 90's: Penny-pinching does not lead to profits. You'll have to do better than this expensive, shoddy turd. I'd rather be driving a Suzuki SUV than this dung heap.
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iQuack 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
I have no problem with Toyota or any other car company using hybrid technology for the purpose of performance as much as fuel mileage. In any case, the car uses less gas than a corresponding one with equal acceleration.
What I do object to is giving relatively uneconomical hybrids a tax deduction or tax credit and allowing them in special traffic lanes or giving government-granted incentives for buying these things.
Hybrids are fine for people who want them, but using these overpriced vehicles for social engineering is bad economics and bad government.
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Mal Fuller 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
At first I thought that Randall Halcomb's spelling of Detroit as Detriot was a mis-spelling until I realized that his spelling of the Motor City's name may, in fact, more accurately reflect reality!
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Joseph Willemssen 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
How much does Detroit pay you to keep up this propaganda campaign, Randall? Or do you do this for free?
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CcntMnky 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
paulene, remind me again how an automotive journalist in Detroit is considered left-leaning. While I have big problems with the quality of the mass media, I think it's a mistake to lump them all in as liberal. Fox News is as bad (worse) than CNN, and they're so far right they're almost falling out the door!
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Scott 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
Everyone knows that Faux News isn't news. It's just a mouthpiece for Rupert Murdoch's point of view. They should be required to insert a line at the bottom that says "*Not a legitimate news source" much like advertisements in magazines have to put "*special advertising section" when they are placing ads that appear to be real content.
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whofan 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
My oh my, how people come to defend Toyota. If this article were about the Trailblazer or Escape there would be a bash fest going on.
Gm & Ford don`t need to learn how to build better cars. They need to learn the art of brain washing!
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James G 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
I've got a Chevy SUV and a Ford minivan. Both ave. right at 20 combined, neither have loose parts or sun showing through gaps. On top of that, the author said he'd expect a gas Highlander to get 15-16 ave. That's pathetic, and far lower than I'd have expected from a Toyota. What's up?
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whofan 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
I look at the Highlander and think boy that`s a nice looking vehicle. I thought, about time Toyota builds something that looks good. Now is reviewed as shotty quality? Well I do like like the new Tacoma too, its way better looking than the truck it replaced. Out of all the vehicles Toyota makes the Highlander and Tacoma are the best looking.
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md 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
Joseph, the hybrids are the vehicles that are in the limelight right now. they are going to be scrutinized and picked over and every little defect is going to be brought forward because people are generally wary about new technology. the regular highlander is a well built, comfortable vehicle. I have never seen a single loose panel in my friend's highlander, and this author easily saw evidence of cost cutting. he did not totally cut the car apart in his review. he said it performed well, handled well, etc, but clearly thought the bad interior quality was a poor reflection of toyatas usuall quality. the author really seemed biased against hybrids, but loose panels are unacceptable in modern cars for most buyers. the higlanders only real selling points are its comfort and high quality interior, and the hybrid could be in trouble if the interior quality is sub par.
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paulene 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
CcntMnky, let's see, because Detroit is the most liberal city in America? ( http://wwmt.com/engine.pl?station=wwmt&id=18643&template=breakout_state.html )
And don't get me started about Fox News bashing. I'll reiterate Joseph's comment, does the MainStream Media pay you guys to sit and defend CNN, while their ratings are falling faster than Air America's illegal donations? You guys will always amaze me, being brainwashed for so long that when a network actually presents two sides to an issue, it's considered 'biased.'
Anyway, Prius lovers, continue your I (heart) Toyota ravings for as long as you can before your Toyota stalls on the highway and spews oil sludge all over the engine compartment. Oh wait, Toyotas don't break down or have recalls. They just have 'mandatory dealership service procedures.'
Enjoy your top of the line hybrid SUV that gets worse gas mileage than a Hummer H3, but costs much, much more. And for the price of a Tacoma with even some equipment, you can almost get a heavy duty dual-axle diesel three quarter ton.
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Joseph Willemssen 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
"does the MainStream Media pay you guys to sit and defend CNN, while their ratings are falling faster than Air America's illegal donations?"
From this comment, are we to assume you consider CNN to be "liberal"? LOL!
"You guys will always amaze me, being brainwashed for so long that when a network actually presents two sides to an issue, it's considered 'biased.'"
..and from this that you consider Fox to be "fair and balanced"?? LMAO!!
"Enjoy your top of the line hybrid SUV that gets worse gas mileage than a Hummer H3"
Hummer H3 - 16 city/19 Highway/17 combined
Highlander Hybrid - 31 city/27 highway/29 combined
Just a suggestion - I wouldn't label others as "brainwashed" if you defend Fox News as "fair and balanced", consider CNN to be "liberal", and think that a vehicle with 29 MPG gets "worse mileage" than one that gets 17 MPG.
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DGTLLVR 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
First off, I didn't read anyone elses posts, so excuse me If I double up on what has already been said.
I sell Toyotas, I have sold 5 of the Highland Hybrids so far. I have yet to see any ill-fitting piece of trim in them, or any Toyota that I have been around in the last 15 years.
There is no offsetting of costs on the Hybrid over the regular Highlander, almost all interior parts are 100% swapable, with the exception of items that mold around the battery compartment.
The third row seat is identical, so how is the Hybrid at fault for that? It's been available in the Highlander for two years now and works better than most of the competitors vehicles because the second row seating slides forward to give the third row seat more room. I bet he never even tried that.
The fuel economy he got was representative of the driver not understanding how a hybrid works. You can't mamby pamby around in it, you have got to use regenerative braking and engine breaking to recharge the batteries while driving. If you let your foot sit on the accelerator peddle at a constant rate for the entire trip, your mileage will go down. That is the biggest reason why hybrids get better fuel economy in the city than they do on the highway.
We have customers that complain all the time, until we point out to read the owners manual before calling to complain again. Once they try it, their mileage goes back into a respectable range.
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dc 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
Media outlets do tend to be liberal, most news journalists and producers would much rather expose a corrupt corporation instead of a failed liberal policy. That being said, media outlets also tend to be regional and will often put local interests ahead of their own politics.
Note to Randall: For better spelling try openoffice.org
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paulene 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
I didn't attack you personally, Joseph, because I thought that while you disagreed with the Toyota controversy, there might be hope for you politically. Unfortunately, you have proved yourself to be a mere molecule in the river of Piss.
This being an automotive site, I'll skip the CNN debate. It's just noted for the future that you, quite remarkably I might add, seem to disagree with an almost factual notion of CNN's liberalism. This doesn't prove your idiocy, however, as there is still hope. After all, the millions and millions of people watching Fox News had to be watching something else before they came around, right? There's hope, just like the rest of CNN's now-defunct 'audience' that can't figure out how to stop their TV from switching from Favorite to Favorite while surfing.
Clearly, diverging back to automobiles, it's clear you had not read the article in question. It has been pointed out time and again that the hybrid Toyota achieves no where near the "30mpg" that their window sticker blasphemizes. This page ( http://trucks.about.com/od/suvreviews/a/h3_introduction.htm ) estimates the H3's fuel economy at over 20mpg, exactly what this author noted his "hybrid" got. But, why point out facts? CNN doesn't.
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Dave T. 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
I won't get into the whole liberal media debate here because I believe that is one of the greatest misconceptions in this country. But the H3 I'm driving this week I drove for 50 miles almost all hwy and is showing half a tank. I'll let you know when i refuel what kind of mileage I get. I'm guessing it will be around 15.
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Dave T. 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
oh and paulene why are you quoting a story from a year ago with projections instead of the company's own sticker that I have handy:
16 city 19 hwy
So 19 would be the Highest the H3 got and i'm not seeing close to that in my travels.
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Whydrive 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
Actually, the current generation Camry and the previous generation Avalon are known to have poor interior quality compared with earlier-built Toyotas. A lot of owners have complained about rattles around the dash area and the door area. I have an '04 Camry and I hear a very annoying rattle in the dash right by the clock. Just like most rattles, it goes away when I bring it to the dealership. So I would believe if someone has experienced similar issues with the Highlander.
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Oh Brother 10:45PM (12/18/2005)
Hey Willemsen, since you just called post # 12 out for labelling people, might I ask you to look back at post #5, in which you accuse Randall of being on the take.
In any event, Phelan doesn't do many test drives, and I suspect this is really why. But if the bleedin' parts don't fit together right he's allowed to tell readers.
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