I am a theater artist with two kids. We bought our Highlander used because we needed better space for our family than just our sedans. What I found out though was not only was this car great for our family, which I'll get into later, but the lay-down seating is great for large bulk order of supplies picked up at Lowes or Home Depot. It also pulls a trailer almost as well as most full-sized trucks. Our first week owning, we hitched a U-Haul up to it to tow an 1860 Chicago upright piano about 30 miles to our location. Then it was a huge help when buying supplies for and lumber for our large musical production, because I could hook up the trailer, lay down the back seats and carry about 3 to 4 times what I would have been able to if just towing a trailer. Don't let the hybrid aspect scare you either. It still has great towing capacity while at the same time not taking too much of a hit on MPG. And our girls couldn't love it more. They like having enough space in the back to stretch their legs, watch a movie or play games. And if more people want to ride with us, the third row of seat provides two more seats in the very back. My wife and I love it because it has been very reliable, and the fact that it one of the mid-sized SUVs out there that is also a low emission vehicle allows for my wife to have chances at better parking at her work, where they have more people working there than they have spaces for cars, but she can park in one of the only 200 or so LEV parking spots.

I bought the 2013 Highlander Hybrid a couple of years ago and there are several things to like and dislike about the car. We use this car as our primary commuter car and hauler. I have to mention that I like driving the car but it is not a very comfortable ride at all compared to my previous Highlander Limited 2005 model. The 2013 model is not as quiet, not as smooth and just does not have that nice luxurious feel that the 2005 model did. The car is not as quiet when driving on the freeway, the seats are not very comfortable, the ride itself is pretty good for an SUV but we no longer take long trips (100+ miles) anymore because of the uncomfortable seats. I like the car for commuting since we don't take the freeway and run on batteries for most of the commute and because of that we get excellent mileage, around 600 miles per tank or around 40 miles per gallon. I like all the new gadgets that come with most new cars now like the touch screen control panel, dock for your phone/iPod/mp3 type players etc...The car is very roomy for its size, my wife and I play golf and bring a lot of equipment with us, obviously the clubs, but also push carts, umbrella's, we both have shoe bags and hat bags too, plenty of room for us bring all of that plus stop at Costco on the way home.

I have really enjoyed my Toyota Highlander. It has lasted for over 200k miles with few mechanical troubles. It is roomy and durable, though the interior was a poor color choice for children and pets. Over time some of the controls for the ac have worn out and the CD player no longer works. It has been a great vehicle overall for our family. The third row seat has since been improved as it is almost impossible to access in our car, but for kids it works when you need extra room. The seats are easy to lay flat for extra cargo space and the roof rack has come in handy many times for hauling oversized items. It's been great for camping trips and handles well off paved roads. The mileage on the hybrid is good, but has improved a lot in the newer models. The vehicle has handled the wear and tear of driving for almost 10 years very well. I would own another Toyota in a second. Overall it has been a great car.