  
2008 Toyota Highlander Hybrid by Keith Burton Toyota is acknowledged as the automotive leader in hybrid technology. The company has a whole stable of hybrid vehicles, including the Prius and Camry sedans, the Highlander and several Lexus models including the RX 350h midsize SUV.
The non hybrid Highlander’s torque peak is 248 ft. lbs., which gives the vehicle a snappy launch and plenty of pull on the highway. But as mentioned earlier, the hybrid is the fast version. At all speeds, the “right now” torque of the hybrid’s electric motors combine to make the hybrid version feel and perform with real verve. The gas engine’s torque peak is only 209 lbs.ft. The electric motors (there are two) produce 247 lbs.ft. of torque for the front motor, and 96 lbs.ft. from the rear electric motor. Now, we don’t want to get you as confused as we were when Toyota explained this, but the total electric torque increase is not the same as just adding the total torque figures of the all the motors together. In fact, we never could get an exact figure for the total torque of the hybrid drive from Toyota, other than it was “more than the standard gas version.”
The Highlander is a considered a mid size SUV and has grown a bit for 2008. The vehicle is a true Crossover vehicle as it is derived from the chassis of the Camry sedan. As a result, you get a vehicle that is more car-like in driving characteristics than truck-like. That means the handling is more precise and the ride smoother than a typical truck-based SUV. All 2008 Highlanders come very well
equipped with plenty of safety and handling improvements. You
also get a As with all Toyota SUVs for the last three years, the Highlander gets the company’s STAR safety system, which features anti-lock brakes, traction control, electronic brake force distribution, brake assist and advanced vehicle stability control, with electronic power steering. By the way, the stability control is new for 2008. You also get standard a total of seven airbags, including a driver’s knee airbag and roll-sensing side curtain airbags for all three rows of seats. Styling is still very conservative for
SUVs. The new Highlander clearly picks up on the boxy look of
its There are three versions, mostly equipment level difference available, base, sport and Limited. The Hybrid version gets most of the sport model’s upgrades and can be outfitted with the Limited equipment. All sport and Limited models get a back up camera that is not tied to a navigation system display as standard equipment. Steering is very good, even with its electric power steering system. The effort is a bit light, but feel is good and the Highlander tracks well on the road without needing a lot of corrections. Wind noise is subdued, however road noise does intrude into the cabin, but it is not distracting. We did note a higher level of road noise coming from the rear area of the Highlander, which may have been the result of the vehicles we reviewed not being production versions. But be sure to sit in the back seat to see if the noise is still there in the production versions. Overall, the 2008 Highlanders, both hybrid and gas-only versions, should be good sellers for Toyota. They are bigger, drive better, and are better looking than earlier models and just the right size for most families. Prices range for the Highlander Hybrid from $33,700 for the base model, to $39,700 for a well-equipped Limited version.
Specifications: Layout 4WD-i models equipped with front and rear electric drive motors Transaxle/Transmission Type Electronically controlled continuously variable transmission with planetary gear unit for gear reduction and power splitting; electronic all-wheel drive control system Designation – Front/Rear P310/Q211 Differential Ratio – Front/Rear SUSPENSION 3.542/6.860 Body/Frame Unitized steel Front MacPherson strut, coil springs Rear Dual-link MacPherson strut, coil springs BRAKES Type Electronically Controlled Brake system (ECB) with regenerative control and incorporating Anti-Lock Brakes (ABS), Electronic Brake force Distribution (EBD), Brake Assist and Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management system (VDIM) Brake Rotors -Front – type / diameter Ventilated Disc/ 12.9 inches -Rear – type / diameter Solid Disc / 12.2 inches Anti-Lock Braking System 4 channel, 4 sensor STEERING Type Electronic Power Steering (EPS): Rack and pinion with electronic power assist Overall Ratio 15.6:1 Turns, Lock to Lock 3.1 turns Turning Circle 39.0 feet TIRES AND WHEELS Wheel size 7.5 X 17 inches aluminum alloy (standard on Base model) 7.5 x 19 inches aluminum alloy (standard on Limited model) Type and Material Aluminum alloy Tire Size P245/65R17 (standard on Base) P245/55R19 (standard on Limited) Tire Type All-season steel-belted radial Spare Full-size EXTERIOR DIMENSIONS (inches) Wheelbase 109.8 Overall Length 188.4 Overall Width 75.2 Overall Height 68.1 (without std. roof rails) 69.3 (with std. roof rails) Tread Width (front/rear) 64.0/64.0 Minimum Ground Clearance 7.3 INTERIOR DIMENSIONS (inches)
Headroom (front/middle/rear) Front (without moonroof) 40.6 39.7
(with Moonroof) Middle (without moonroof) 39.8 39.8 (with Moonroof) Third row (without moonroof) 36.3 36.3 (with Moonroof) Legroom (front/middle/rear) 43.2/38.4/29.9 Shoulder Room (front/middle/rear) 59.7/59.5/55.0 Hip Room (front/middle/rear) 56.7/56.3/42.3 EPA Cargo Volume (cubic feet) Behind 1st row 94.1 Behind 2nd row 42.3 Behind 3rd row 10.3 EPA Interior Volume 155.7 cubic feet Passenger Volume (cubic feet) 145.4 EPA Class Mid-size SUV EPA ESTIMATED FUEL ECONOMY (city/highway/combine mpg – 2008 EPA Rating) Actual mileage may vary 27/25/26 COEFFICIENT OF DRAG 0.34SPECIFICATIONSRID PRELIM I NARY VEHICLE MASS and TOWING (lbs.) Curb Weight Base: 4,508 Limited: 4,641 GVWR Base: 5,935 Limited: 6,000 Payload Base: 1,642 Limited: 1,509 Maximum Towing Weight 3,500 pounds Maximum Tongue Weight 350 pounds ANGLE OF APPROACH/DEPARTURE 29/24 degrees SAFETY FEATURES STAR SAFETY SYSTEM™ with Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management (VDIM) which integrates Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) with Brake Assist (BA) and Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Vehicle Stability Control (VSC) with Traction Control (TRAC) Driver and front passenger advanced airbags with occupant classification sensor Driver and front passenger seat- mounted side airbags, three row roll-sensing side curtain airbags. Driver’s knee airbag Three-point seatbelts for all seating positions; Emergency Locking Retractors (ELR) on driver’s belt; Automatic/Emergency Locking Retractors (ALR/ELR) on all passenger seatbelts; three-point front seatbelts with adjustable shoulder anchors Driver and front passenger active head rests Child seat top (ISOFIX CRS) tether anchor brackets located behind the 2nd row for all seating positions Child seat lower (ISOFIX CRS) anchor brackets located in the lower portion of the 2nd row seat backs in outboard seating positions Pretensioners and force limiters on driver and front passenger seatbelts Head impact protection structure (A & B pillar trim panel) Direct type Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) Side impact door beams BASIC LIMITED WARRANTY COVERAGE 3-year/36,000-mile Comprehensive 5 year/60,000-mile Powertrain 5 year/unlimited mile Corrosion Perforation 8-year/100,000-mile Hybrid Componentry
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The
2008 Highlander is all new this year. It is bigger, more refined
and more comfortable in all its versions. All 2008 Highlanders
come with a V6 engine. The standard version is a 3.5 liter
producing 270 horsepower, this is 55 horsepower more than the
previous version. The Highlander hybrid gets a high-torque 3.3
liter V6 that with the hybrid Synergy hybrid drive, also
produces a combine gas/electric 270 horsepower. The V6 model is
a pleasure to drive and is quick to accelerate, but the surprise
is that the hybrid version is faster. That is thanks to the fact
that the torque on the hybrid is significantly better than that
of the standard V6.
Regardless,
the performance made the hybrid faster to launch, faster to accelerate on
the highway and when in passing vehicles on the road. All of
this while delivering a slight increase in fuel mileage. We saw
around 22 mpg with spirited driving, while the standard version
didn’t do better than around 17 mpg. Okay, these were not the
best these vehicles can do and we only had them for a short
time, but they were real world figures and you might do better.
The EPA rates the Highlander Hybrid at
third row seat, which is not available in Toyota’s RAV 4. Still,
consider the 3rd seat just for children as this is
not a large vehicle. 
predecessor but with an updated look. While some people might
want a little more bling in their SUV, Toyota knows its
customers well and sees the 2008 model as just right. 