2008 has brought the most snow southern Ontario has seen in years. As a result, I’ve been pretty happy to be sampling a pretty wide variety of AWD and 4WD vehicles this winter. Every one of those vehicles has done a decent job getting off the line in the white stuff, but none of them were able to beat the laws of physics when it came to stopping. As I mentioned before, Toyota realizes that all season tires are really 3 season tires and have equipped their media fleet with true winter tires. What a treat!
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We’ve spent a lot of time lately in traditional domestic family movers, now the time has come to sample what the Big T has on offer. Our tester this week is a 2008 Toyota Highlander SR5. The first thing that really got my attention was the fact that the Toyota folks have gone to the trouble of installing Toyo Observe snow tires on their media vehicles. Thanks for realizing that it is winter here in Ontario. One thing about testing different vehicles every week is that one doesn’t always become accustomed to how a vehicle handles in slippery conditions. It’s good to know that the Highlander is ready for anything winter can throw at it.

Out on the road, the Highlander feels much smaller than it actually is, and actually feels more car like than some of the competitors. With 270 horsepower, the Highlander is only 5 up on the Taurus X we had a couple of weeks ago, yet the Toyota feels much more powerful. It will be interesting to see how the fuel economy compares.

Will the Highlander pass the 3 hockey bag test? Stay tuned!