2003 Honda Pilot EX review from North America

Little problems have been an annoyance. The adjustable grills on the rear-seat heating/air conditioning vents always break, so that we could not adjust where the air goes. The silver plating on the interior door handles began to flake off at about 45,000 miles.

One design flaw surfaced quickly. We always had trouble figuring out how to set the DVD player so that the kids could watch DVDs in the back, using the wireless headphones, while we listened to the radio or CDs in the front using the front speakers. We could always eventually get there, but it was never easy. It drove us crazy, and typically required about 15-30 minutes of frustration to figure it out.

Overall, the Honda Pilot was excellent. It drove very nicely, and handled large numbers of passengers in relative comfort. We used it to haul kids everywhere, especially to sports events. We threw kids in the seats and had plenty of room in back for the baseball bags, snowboards, etc.

We just traded the Pilot in for a Civic Hybrid. Our taxi days are finished, as our kids are getting their own drivers licenses and vehicles.