Rugged All-New Honda Pilot Arrives as America’s Ultimate Family SUV; Pilot TrailSport is the Most Off-Road Capable Honda SUV Ever
“The Honda Pilot has been a family favorite for two decades, and now we’ve made it even better with more space and refinement inside, cool new rugged styling outside, and substantially increased off-road performance to back it up,” said Mamadou Diallo, vice president of Auto Sales, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. “Topping it off, the new Pilot TrailSport is an authentic, off-road-capable SUV for true weekend adventures, without sacrificing comfort and on-road dynamics for daily driving.”
Pilot now belongs on the trail with all-new rugged styling that complements its trail-ready capability. The tough and aspirational design features a large upright grille and a powerful stance accentuated by flared fenders, wider tracks and larger tires. Under its new longer hood is Honda’s most powerful V6 ever, an all-new dual overhead cam (DOHC) 3.5-liter engine producing 285 horsepower.
Inside, Pilot’s all-new interior makes it the new flexible king of the carpool lane with unmatched comfort, versatile seating with an available removable 2nd row seat that can be conveniently stowed under the rear cargo floor. Complementing the interior flexibilty is the most passenger and cargo space in Pilot history, including a more comfortable third row, and Pilot boasts best-in-class overall passenger space and top-class cargo volume behind the third-row seats. The new modern interior is also more comfortable with new front Body Stabilizing Seats that help reduce fatigue on long drives. Sophisticated materials, premium touches and must-have tech features create the most upscale Pilot ever.
Standard class-leading safety features include a new and improved suite of Honda Sensing® safety and driver-assistive technologies, a next-generation front passenger airbag, improved front side airbags and new driver and front-passenger knee airbags.
Tough-looking New Exterior
Designed in California, developed in Ohio and built in Alabama*, the all-new fourth-generation Pilot further advances the new rugged design direction of Honda light trucks with a tough new look and powerful stance. Complementing its off-road capabilities, Pilot’s all-new styling is tough, aspirational and adventure-ready with a large, upright grille, a strong horizontal beltline and aggressively flared fenders. Pulled back A-pillars and long hood create a longer dash-to-axle ratio for a sportier profile.
A strong horizontal beltline highlights its increased overall length (3.4 inches longer), while a longer wheelbase and wider tracks give it a stronger, more aggressive presence. A sleek body-color roof spoiler and new LED taillights make the fourth-generation Pilot instantly recognizable from the rear.
Sport features gloss black trim and grille bar, a chrome exhaust garnish, standard black roof rails, front fog lights and Shark Gray 7-spoke, 20-inch wheels. EX-L adds flash with chrome trim and grille bar, and machined 5-spoke, 18-inch alloy wheels.
Pilot Touring and top-of-the-line Elite feature an even more upscale design with premium exterior finishes, including a gloss black grille mesh and B-pillar, dual chrome exhaust garnishes and distinct 7-spoke, 20-inch alloy wheels with a machined finish.
For the first time, Pilot will be available with a new line of four post-production option packages, including a new HPD Package for those looking to take Pilot’s rugged new styling even further. Created in collaboration with Honda Performance Development (HPD), Honda’s U.S.-based racing company, it includes bronze-colored aluminum wheels, fender flares and HPD decals.
Modern, Spacious Interior
With clean surfacing, sophisticated materials and premium touches, Pilot’s all-new modern interior builds on the Honda design direction to create the most upscale Honda SUV ever. A clean, uncluttered instrument panel top reduces windshield reflections and improves outward visibility.
Pilot is also more comfortable and spacious, with class-leading passenger space and notably more rear seat legroom in the second and third rows. New Body Stabilizing front seats reduce fatigue over long drives. Second-row legroom is up a generous 2.4 inches and the second-row seats feature up to 10 degrees of recline angle (+4 degrees) for increased comfort. Additional forward tilt range improves entry and exit to the more comfortable third row, which gains 0.6 inches of legroom..
On-demand 8-occupant flexibility gives Pilot Touring and Elite an extra level of versatility. In the second row, a first-in-class multi-function removable middle seat can be conveniently stored underneath the rear cargo floor instead of being left at home in the garage. Families then have the seat available if they need it later in their journey, providing owners three distinct seating options at any time:
- A traditional second row bench for 3-across seating and 8-occupant total capacity (middle seat up)
- A captain’s chair-style wide center armrest with additional drink holders (middle seat down)
- Wide pass-through for access to the third row (middle seat removed), particularly useful when child seats are installed in the outboard second-row seats.
Pilot is also the only vehicle in its class with 8-person seating and an opening panoramic sunroof, which is standard on Touring and Elite. Heated seats are standard across the lineup. TrailSport and Elite also feature a heated steering wheel. EX-L and Touring have soft leather upholstery and the top-of-the-range Elite gets exclusive perforated leather inserts and ventilated front seats.
The 2023 Pilot has the most cargo room in the model’s history, with up to 113.67 cu.-ft.1 behind the first row, and up to 22.42 cu.-ft.1 behind the third row. Expanded cabin storage includes a massive console bin that can swallow a full-size tablet, the return of Pilot’s clever passenger-side instrument panel shelf, and 14 large-volume cupholders throughout the cabin, including eight that will fit wide 32 oz water bottles.
