Toyota Highlander 2004
By
Alfian Adi Saputra
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Thursday, June 14, 2018
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2004 Toyota Highlander
The four-cylinder engine that comes standard is a lot more powerful and the new V6 is larger and a lot more powerful compared to previously. Contributing to the improved responsiveness these changes bring is a new five-speed transmission. The suspension has been revised, producing a really soft flight quality. And also minor structural adjustments have actually been made to boost area performance inside.
Toyota Highlander 2004
Even with these revisions, the Highlander continues to be the most convenient of motoring friends. Getting in and out could not be simpler. Its adaptable indoor makes it very easy to different mixes of individuals as well as cargo. Seating for 5 comes requirement, yet 2004 models provide an optional third-row seat to lug approximately 7 travelers, though they 'd be constrained. The 3rd row folds flat and also the second-row seat folds up virtually so, revealing 80 cubic feet of cargo area, more than a Toyota 4Runner. The Highlander could swallow unplanned flea-markets gets effortlessly, and tote them home in spite of abrupt worsening of the weather. New air bag systems for 2004 consist of optional curtain-style air bags as well as side air bags made to safeguard passengers' heads and also torsos in a side effect or rollover.
The Highlander supplies a soft, smooth ride as well as its engines are smooth and also silent. The base model, outfitted with the revised 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine and also front-wheel drive, performs well around community and also on the open highway, delivering responsive performance when combining right into freeway traffic. Equipped with the larger 3.3-liter V6 as well as all-wheel-drive, the Highlander uses solid power and also safe handling in unpleasant weather. Highlander deals much of exactly what made the Lexus RX 300 preferred, yet without Lexus-sized month-to-month payments.
Version Lineup
The Toyota Highlander is offered in base or Limited trim, each with either front-wheel drive or full time all-wheel drive. A choice of engines is available: A 2.4-liter inline-4 comes criterion, modified for 2004 as well as rated at 160 horse power. A new 3.3-liter V6 that generates 230 horsepower is optional on the base Highlander and requirement on the Limited. All Highlanders come with transmissions.
The base four-cylinder, front-wheel-drive model ($ 24,080) comes with cooling, power doors and windows locks, cruise ship control, cloth upholstery, advanced anti-lock brakes, seating for 5, as well as electronic stability control (VSC). The all-wheel-drive design ($ 25,480) is similarly equipped. The V6 is optional ($ 1,060), however if you buy it on the 4WD model, then you need to take the optional third-row seat also ($ 850).
Highlander Limited 2WD ($ 29,980) as well as 4WD ($ 31,380) come basic with V6 and also third-row seat as typical equipment. The Limited additionally gets automated climate control, an eight-speaker JBL sound system, eight-way power vehicle driver's seat with flexible back assistance, four-way power traveler seat, 17-inch light weight aluminum wheels, roof covering rack, haze lights, rear personal privacy glass, heated mirrors, remote keyless entry with protection system and also engine immobilizer, wood-grain interior trim, leather-wrapped steering wheel as well as shift handle, as well as other facilities.
Natural leather seating is available for the Minimal ($ 670) or base design ($ 2,255). Various other choices: tilt-and-slide glass sunroof ($ 900), in-dash six-CD changer ($ 595). The optional rear-seat DVD system ($ 1,770) includes two cordless headphones, RCA input jacks for video games, and a household-style 115-volt Air Conditioning power electrical outlet. GENERAL PRACTITIONER navigation ($ 2,200) is used on Limited only. A Towing Plan ($ 160) includes trailer circuitry plus an upgraded radiator, transmission oil cooler, as well as 130-amp generator.
We advise the optional side-curtain and seat-mounted side-impact airbags ($ 680), which are made to protect the heads and also torsos of passengers in the very first two rows. Highlander's air bags are extra innovative for 2004. Sensors in both front seats adjust the frontal airbags to respond properly to the extent of the crash as well as the weight of the passengers.
Walkaround
The Toyota Highlander looks wise and also trim, dropping somewhere in between the edgy high style of the RAV4 and also the muscle purposefulness of the 4Runner. There's a minor family members similarity in between the Highlander and the Lexus RX 330, although the Highlander looks extra dressed down, rather like putting on discolored pants and a preferred windbreaker instead of dry-clean-only lunch-with-the-ladies attire.
Highlander is really a little bigger inside, as determined by complete EPA indoor volume, compared to the RX 330, although the Lexus has slightly even more freight volume.
Highlander's front bumper, light collections and also grille are brand-new for 2004. The bumper cover has sharper lines molded into it, so its form is much better specified than previously. The grille's horizontal bars are bolder as well as much better specified, while the various aspects of the light collections appear to blend with each other a lot more efficiently. Similar modifications have actually been made about back. At either end, however, the difference is so refined that just the most devoted Toyota-watcher is most likely to see.
The Highlander no longer stands for the most up to date in design, however. While the Lexus RX 330, which makes use of the very same fundamental chassis architecture as the Highlander, is now in its second generation, the Highlander is still in its initial generation of style. The Highlander does not have the advanced design of the Nissan Murano, as well as its front and back overhangs are relatively huge.
Entry, both for freight and for individuals, is less complicated in the Highlander compared to in truck-based SUVs. With its even more car-like step-in and lift-into, the Highlander is even pleasant to users of limited skirts. Not so the typical truck-based SUV.
While the Toyota 4Runner is basically a vehicle, the Highlander is essentially an auto. Like an automobile, the Highlander makes use of unit-body building instead of having a separate frame. And, like an automobile, the Highlander features a four-wheel independent suspension, rather than a strong rear axle. Two-wheel-drive versions are front-wheel drive, not rear-wheel drive. The 4Runner is the opposite of each of those. The most effective selection? It boils down to your game: For pulling and driving off road, the 4Runner is better. For travelling and also transporting the family members, the Highlander is the far better choice. Appropriately furnished, Highlander could tow approximately 2,500 pounds, not much by vehicle requirements.
Inside Characteristics
Couple of lorries are less complicated to obtain in and out of than the Toyota Highlander. Neither climbing nor stepping down is required. Just slide in. This makes the Highlander among the most practical lorries in the world for running everyday duties. The Highlander will certainly not likely ever before irritate you.
Highlander has reclining front bucket seats ahead. These seats are level and also lean, yet encouraging and also comfortable and adjust to suit various-size chauffeurs. Part of the allure of SUVs is the ease of seeing out at every angle. And so it is below. The sloping hood of the Highlander makes the forward sight a lot more incorporating.
The second row seats up to 3 guests, yet is better for two. The center of the second-row seat folds down right into an arm rest with cup owners, adding comfort with 4 aboard and the seats recline for included comfort. It's split 60/40 and folds up down with a smartly verbalized seat base. It folds up relatively flat yet not perfectly level. The second-row seat slides forward making accessibility to the 3rd row less complicated, and to supply even more legroom for third-row passengers.
Toyota means for the third row to be used just periodically. We found sitting in the 3rd row uneasy. Our knees rode high, there's no leg area as well as it's reasonably confined. Legroom is the same, but the Honda Pilot offers substantially more hip and also shoulder room in the third row. Likewise, the side-curtain air bags do not protect third-row passengers as they are made to do in a Toyota Sienna minivan. Profits: Take into consideration a minivan if you need the third row frequently. A third-row seat folds flat into the floor, without any should remove the headrests. Third-row seats ($ 850) consist of rear personal privacy glass, a rear heating unit system with different fan controls, as well as added mug holders.
Back up front, you'll locate everything in its place. Power home window switches are right there on the doors. Ventilation air ducts are right where you would expect to find them. Radio as well as heater controls utilize easy dials as well as amply sized buttons and also operate intuitively. Instruments are easily noticeable with a scenic area in the comfy four-spoke steering wheel. The entire layout bespeaks thoughtful appraisal and also smart selections. V6 models include aluminum indoor accents. Interior trim and materials in all Highlanders have actually been upgraded for 2004. 2004 Restricted versions have substitute maple-burl dashboard trim and also door scuff plates, but the fake timber on the facility stack appears like fake wood. The standard climate control is a single-zone system.
The shifter is uniquely placed a lot more as a part of the dash than on a central console. This opens up the room between the front seats. It likewise provides an open, unconfined air to the cabin. The interior is outfitted with dome, door courtesy, handwear cover box as well as cargo-area lights. Map pockets, visor mirrors, and front and also back auxiliary power outlets are supplied. The motorist's window has one-touch Auto-down.
Highlander supplies a big quantity of cargo room: 80.6 cubic feet with the second- as well as third-row seats folded up. The second row does not fold perfectly flat, but the third row folds up flat as well as does not occupy freight area. Many people end up riding around with the second-row in place for guests as well as the 3rd row folded flat into the flooring, leaving virtually 40 cubic feet of area readily available for stuff. Opening the third-row seat leaves only 10.5 cubic feet behind it for cargo. The Honda Pilot offers even more cargo area, nonetheless. A cool feature: The freight cover stows.
Driving Impressions
The Toyota Highlander is simple to drive and also run. It really feels quickly knowledgeable about no screwing up for controls. The Highlander is quieter than truck-based SUVs both in engine as well as road sound. It flights efficiently on a selection of surfaces, true to the auto side of its SUV heritage, though some roadway resonance could be really felt through guiding wheel.
The common front-wheel-drive, four-cylinder Highlander makes an exceptional wagon for the city and residential areas, especially since traction control as well as security control are typical equipment. Highlander is far less complicated to take care of every day compared to a truck-based sport-utility. Though you ride a little taller, you look eye to eye at Volvo wagon vehicle drivers.
The four-cylinder engine offers good power. It's quick, smooth as well as quiet. Power is up somewhat from the 2003 design to 160 horsepower and 165 pounds-feet of torque. We located the four-cylinder version to be a delighted entertainer and also really did not feel like we were missing something by not having the V6. The four-cylinder obtains considerably far better fuel economy than the V6 (22/27 vs. 18/24 mpg EPA-estimated City/Highway). The four-cylinder Highlander features a four-speed transmission. It features a Snow Mode for enhanced throttle control when starting up on a slippery surface from a grinding halt.
The optional V6 is larger and also much more effective this year, at 3.3 litres and also 230 horse power (versus 3.0 litres and 220 horse power in 2003). Torque is boosted considerably, to 242 pounds-feet. Torque is that force that propels you far from crossways as well as up hills. Even more boosting engine smoothness are active-control engine places that cancel vibration. Toyota suggests making use of premium fuel for the V6, yet it runs great on normal. The new V6 is mated to a new five-speed automated.
Highlander feels at home around community, among traffic lights and auto parking applicants. It's an excellent dimension for city streets and soaks up holes as well as irregular sidewalk well. Rolling into suburbia, the Highlander fits right in. It's a natural mall-crawler, maneuverable and also fast to nose right into a car park slot. It cruises well on major freeways, supplying great security as well as a smooth, silent trip. It's a solid-feeling framework.
The guiding effort is extremely light at reduced rates, so it's simple to turn in limited quarters. Hold is quite good for difficult cornering, better than anticipated. On winding roadways, though, the steering really felt slow-moving and also vague. The suspension is too soft for tough driving. There's way too much body movement. The automobile indulges edges, the body leans.
Toyota's electronic Lorry Stability Control (VSC) with grip control (TRAC) is currently basic on all Highlanders. VSC can identify moving of either the front or rear wheels and lowers engine power and/or uses the brakes on private wheels to deal with the Highlander's training course.
Braking is particular as well as smooth. Criterion on all 2004 Highlanders are anti-lock brakes (ABS) with Electronic Brake pressure Circulation (EBD) and also Brake Assist. ABDOMINAL helps preserve steering control while stopping hard, while EBD enhances brake force at each wheel under different lots conditions, or as the vehicle's weight changes forward under braking. Brake Assist identifies emergency braking and also automatically maintains sufficient brake pressure to involve the ABS even if the vehicle driver makes the blunder of enjoyable pressure on the brake pedal.
Four-wheel drive works fantastic in slippery or irregular conditions. Snow thaw, muddy ruts, icy spots on shady contours were conveniently dealt with by our AWD V6 Limited. On a twisting alleyway, the Highlander cut up hillsides with 8 inches of newly fallen snow like a snowplow on a rescue objective. All-wheel-drive Highlanders use a completely involved system that divides torque 50/50 front/rear, and also relies upon TRAC's electronics to restrict slippage at any wheel. Highlander is intended largely as a freeway and also street vehicle with all-weather capacity. It is not suggested for boulder slamming a.
Recap
Toyota Highlander is an excellent option as a no-hassle wagon. Its simplicity of operation as well as ease functions make it incomparably very easy to live with. Highlander brings four individuals in comfort, hauls a great deal of things, as well as will roll through any type of tornado. Toyota's reputation for high quality, longevity and dependability ought to indicate hassle-free ownership and a solid resale value. Highlander supplies what lots of people desire from a modern-day, on-road sport-utility.