2014 Toyota Highlander

Disclosure: The Highlander in the feature below was provided to me for a week compliments of Toyota!

Have a large family? Not ready to make the switch to a minivan yet? Then the 2014 Toyota Highlander with seating for up to eight, advanced luxury and stylish design, may just be the perfect vehicle for you.

The Highlander looks much smaller on the outside than it is on the inside, which I learned to really appreciate when trying to fit into tight parking spaced. The exterior features a dramatic new grille that really turns heads and attractive chrome roof rails.

My husband was impressed that even with a V6 engine that generates 270 horsepower the Highlander still promised an EPA-estimated 19 mpg city and 25 mpg highway. During our week long test drive we drove mostly city miles with 8 passengers in the Highlander and averaged 20MPG which I was quite impressed with.

The interior is also packed with features including heated from leather seats and a 4.2″ touch screen display. I was able to get as comfortable as can be in the drivers seat thanks to the 8 way power seat and the many controls on the steering wheel allowed me to keep my eyes on the road constantly.

In the second row I had more than enough room for three car seats, even with the larger Britax Frontier 90 seat and all the kids had plenty of leg room. On a longer drive I ended up crawling back there to keep the baby occupied and I found that even I had plenty of leg room to stretch out in the second row.

We placed a booster on the seat that folds down for access to third row, which made getting into the third row very easy.

The third row does have enough room for three car seats across, however there is not much leg room back there and getting to the seat furthest way from the seat that folds down is very difficult. We placed the older three kids back here, two who knew how to buckle themselves into their own car seats and one that is old enough to ride in just a seat belt. It was a bit crowded, but everyone was comfortable

Safety is a top priority for me, especially on the road and the Highlander is packed with safety features. In addition to eight air bags it also has Dynamic Torque-Control AWD, distributes engine power from front to rear and manages the vehicle’s braking system from side to side, helping with better control. Blind spot monitor with rear cross traffic alert makes sure I never have a blind spot and the Brake Assist/Smart Stop technology helps me stop on a dime- just in case.

There was enough trunk space for my Joovy Groove stroller with plenty of room left over for groceries. With the third row up you get 13.8 cu ft and with it folded you get 42.3 cu ft which is great if you need extra space to transport something larger.