
The Highlander has a modern, somewhat aggressive front-end design. The flared fender arches and the way the third-row window kicks up a bit help make the spacious Highlander appear a bit smaller to the eye. But make no mistake about it, when you climb inside, you have tons of cabin space and a clever storage solution for iPads and juice boxes.
We usually work our way up the trim lineup by price, but we have to start with our XSE test car. Do not adjust your eyes, that is not the interior of some racy Italian performance-luxury SUV. That bold red is the optional leather package available on this trim. It’s a fun combination to have a sedate navy blue exterior and this bold red cabin. The XSE also features unique exterior styling, ambient interior lighting, and a sport-tuned suspension.
Trims for the Highlander are L, LE, XLE, XSE, Limited, and Platinum. The base L trim comes equipped with 18-inch alloy wheels, pushbutton start, proximity/remote keyless entry, three-zone climate control, an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, five USB ports, and all four windows are one-touch power up/down. The L also comes standard with an 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa. The climate control has a clever function that shuts off the rear zone, but still syncs the two front zones.
Moving up to the LE trim adds standard features such as LED fog lights, a smart key system on the door handles, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and shift knob, and a power liftgate. The XLE trim adds silver roof rails, synthetic leather upholstery, a 10-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, heated front seats, an eight-way power-adjustable front-passenger seat, a power moonroof, wireless device charging, second-row captain’s chairs, second-row sunshades, and a 7-inch digital screen within the instrument panel.
As mentioned, the XSE features unique exterior styling elements, including revised front and rear bumpers. It also includes 20-inch alloy wheels, a large mesh grille design, and dual exhaust tips. The aforementioned “Red Cockpit” leather upholstery is a no-cost option. The 11-speaker JBL premium stereo is a $1,680 option.
The XLE and XSE deliver plenty of comfort and tech features, but if you’re feeling upscale, look to the Limited and Platinum trims. The Limited trim comes with high-output LED fog lights, heated and ventilated front seats, genuine leather upholstery, acoustic noise-reducing windows, a wall-style power outlet, a hands-free power liftgate, and that JBL premium audio system comes standard. It also comes with a feature called Driver Easy Speak, which is a comms system for the third-row seats. If you don’t feel like straining your voice, this actually is a helpful feature.
The range-topping Highlander Platinum adds adaptive headlights, rain-sensing windshield wipers, a panoramic sunroof, a 360-degree parking camera, heated second-row seats, a rearview camera mirror, and the larger 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen.

The Highlander comes equipped with a 3.5-liter V6 engine. It makes 295 horsepower and 263 pound-feet of torque. Power is routed through an eight-speed automatic transmission to standard front-wheel drive (FWD) or available all-wheel drive (AWD). The transmission has a tap-shift function on the shifter and certain trims come with steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters. There’s also a drive-mode button in the center console with Sport, Normal, and Eco modes. Finally, next to the drive-mode button is a dial for the AWD system with Mud/Sand, Rock, and Normal modes.
As noted above, the V6 has more horsepower than torque, and that translates into better pickup once the Highlander is moving. This engine is just fine off the line, but we’ve driven V6 SUVs that felt livelier from a standstill. This engine tends to shine more when already cruising or getting up to highway speeds. There’s plenty of pickup for an overtake and the engine makes a surprisingly throaty exhaust note in the process. If you’re looking for maximum fuel-efficiency, check out the 2022 Toyota Highlander Hybrid, which is covered in a separate Test Drive Review.
No matter if you are around town or on the highway, the Highlander’s handling was very good in all scenarios. Out XSE trim came equipped with a sport-tuned suspension that reduced body roll but was nonetheless soft over bumps in the road. Even on on-ramps and off-ramps, the steering was well-weighted and it felt composed through the higher-speed turns.
When properly equipped, the Toyota Highlander can tow up to 5,000 pounds. This figure is average for the class. Its max payload is 1,685 pounds, achieved in the FWD L and LE trims.

With the second- and third-row seats folded, the Toyota Highlander provides up to 84.3 cubic feet of cargo space. With the second-row seats in use, there’s 48.4 cubic feet of cargo space. With all seats deployed, the Highlander offers 16 cubic feet of cargo space behind the third row. Lowering the seats was easy thanks to quick-release latches on the second and third rows. Lifting them again was aided by pull-straps on the back of the third-row seats. Every trim above the base L comes with a power liftgate. Limited and Platinum trims come with a hands-free power liftgate.
As mentioned above, the base L trim comes with an eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat, and the rest of the cockpit is just as helpful. The front doors have deep cargo pockets with room for multiple large water bottles. The entire area is a veritable Swiss Army Knife, with extra little ledges in the center of the dash and in front of the driver. The main center dash tray has plenty of room, and the center console compartment is even larger. Even the third-row has two cupholders for either side of the vehicle.
Our XSE had second-row captain’s chairs, which are always helpful. They provide a center aisle to the third row and put some space between second-row occupants. On a long road trip with two small children, that space can be extremely helpful. The second-row seats are plenty spacious for adults as well, but the same cannot be said for the third row, which adults will only find tolerable for short trips around the block.

The Highlander comes standard with a WiFi hotspot, five USB ports, and an 8-inch touchscreen that supports Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa. This is the infotainment system that has been around for a few years and the Highlander is better for it. While it does not have wireless Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, it does have a straightforward layout and is backed up with hard buttons on either side of the screen. As we march towards baking ever more features into screen menus, consumers may start to miss the effortless blend of screens and hard controls from the past five-or-so years of the automotive industry.
Beneath the climate controls in the center tray, our XSE test model featured a wireless charging pad, as well as a combination of USB and USB-C ports. A larger 12.3-inch touchscreen is available, though it’s not as effortless as the base touchscreen. Other available features include a digital instrument panel screen and an 11-speaker JBL premium stereo system.

The Highlander comes standard with the Toyota Safety Sense suite of driver-assistance features. It includes standard forward collision avoidance, automatic emergency braking, pedestrian detection, lane-departure warning, adaptive cruise control, traffic-sign recognition, and automatic high beams.
All but the base L trim come equipped with blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert. Other safety features that are optional or come equipped on upper-level trims include front and rear parking sensors, rain-sensing windshield wipers, a surround-view parking monitor, a head-up display, and adaptive headlights.
The available lane-departure warning and lane-keeping assist systems are very active, almost too active. On certain highways, it feels like you’re playing “Operation“ where you’re triggering the lane-departure warning by getting even remotely close to one of the lane lines. The lane centering is good at times, but it still feels abrasive on back roads where it tends to fight back when you’re crossing over the center line to get around a mail truck. It still wants to correct the driver.

The most efficient configurations for the 2022 Toyota Highlander are the FWD L trim and the FWD XLE. Both return EPA-rated fuel economy of 21 mpg city, 29 mpg highway, and 24 mpg combined. The AWD L, LE, and XLE are the least-efficient Highlander models, returning 20 mpg city, 27 mpg highway, and 23 mpg combined. In our week of driving the 2022 Highlander XSE, we observed fuel efficiency of 23.4 mpg. Toyota also offers the Highlander Hybrid, which delivers improved fuel economy, but it is slightly more expensive.
Base MSRP for the 2022 Toyota Highlander is $35,855 for the base L trim. The LE starts at $38,055 and the XLE starts at $41,055. The XSE trim starts at $42,650. At the top end of the lineup, the Limited starts at $45,010 and the range-topping Platinum starts at $48,010. The Toyota Highlander is backed by a five-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty.
It is often said of the modern car market that there are “no bad cars.” That is to say, nearly every model from every automaker is a competent vehicle that is reliable and has modern tech and safety features. The job now becomes finding the right car for a particular consumer. Within the midsize, three-row SUV market, brands have started to try different things to stand out. The Nissan Pathfinder has pivoted back towards ruggedness (at least in image). The Honda Pilot is going for modern sophistication with a comfortable cabin and a video-game-like instrument panel.
The Toyota Highlander stands out by covering the basics and covering them well. But Toyota does not leave it there. Like the children’s book wedged under the back seat, the Highlander is a veritable choose-your-own-adventure. It runs the gamut from frugal, to sporty, to downright upscale. And through it all, it provides a standard V6 engine, an immensely versatile interior, and the high-tech safety features to make the Toyota Highlander a no-brainer when shopping for a family-hauling SUV.