Used 2016 Honda Pilot Consumer Reviews
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Worst Infotainment System in History!
Diane Larkin, 12/23/2015
2016 Honda Pilot Elite 4dr SUV AWD w/Navigation and Rear Entertainment System (3.5L 6cyl 9A)
12 of 15 people found this review helpful
I love many things about the Honda Pilot Elite, but I absolutely "hate" the Infotainment system after 7 weeks and 1,300 miles of usage! It is cumbersome, slow to respond and in no way aids the driver in safe and efficient access to information. When driving, you cannot access the phone book, speed dial (more than the first 3 listings), call history (more than the first 3 listings), touch tones (for automated attendant inputs) and many other features without pulling off the road and stopping the vehicle. VERY DANGEROUS!!! The "rear audio" screen is completely useless other than pausing a DVD. I have found the navigation system to be confusing and missing many standard points of interest. I thought my Garmin database need to be updated, however, Honda in-car tech support was unable to walk me through the update procedure using a thumb drive and USB port as described in the manual. The nav screen will indicate that you need to "take a right" when it is clean you need to take a "left"?? Very poor accuracy and slow to catch up while driving. I spend way to much time "touching the screen" as opposed to looking at the road. Again, VERY DANGEROUS!!! I have used several Infotainment systems and this is absolutely the worst! Voice commands are almost non existent for many screens. My other vehicles would allow me to give voice commands for any topic displayed on the screen or to access a main topic (Nav, FM radio, Map, Phone, Phonebook, Speed Dial, Next Screen, etc.). A dynamic voice command system would alleviate the need to constantly be looking at the screen and touching the screen. There is also many inconsistencies in what can be accessed through the touch screen while driving and what cannot be accessed. The driver is constantly "guessing" about whether to use voice activation or touch or being locked out of the selection. Very poor design, confusing and very user unfriendly. Would not have purchased this vehicle had I known how deficient and cumbersome the Infotainment system is. I cannot understand why Honda would take such a "giant" step back in Infotainment technology, yet take such a giant step forward in all other aspects of the Honda Pilot safety features.
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I (used to) feel Elite in my Elite!
John, 07/10/2015
updated 07/16/2020
2016 Honda Pilot Elite 4dr SUV AWD w/Navigation and Rear Entertainment System (3.5L 6cyl 9A)
17 of 22 people found this review helpful
I was looking for a great combination of space, high-end amenities (e.g. ventilated seats, blind spot warning, adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist etc), comfort as well as something I can take hunting and does well in the snow. The closest thing I could find to the Elite is the new Volvo XC90 which is over $20k more once you add all the same features. I have had a 2004 and a 2008 Pilot so I guess I'm predisposed to the Honda but I looked at nearly everything from $30k-$90k and this is by far the best value. From what I'm hearing from dealers is that this car is rare - three different dealers tol me that they will get 1 Elite trim every 2-3 months so get your order in early! It's early yet but we are getting 31mpg in mixed driving. UPDATE JULY 13, 2016: We have over 16,000 miles on the Pilot and it's running great! averaging 27mpg in mixed driving... higher on long trips. Rock solid reliability. Really comfortable seats. Two complaints: 1) the nav/radio interface is so slow. You hit a button and the response time is about 2-3 seconds. Drives me nuts. Also, it's the only car I own where you can't put in an address while driving. I get the safety factor in the design but I kind of feel like its treating me like a child. An additional feature along the same lines... you cannot move the car while the driver door is open. So if I'm trying to ensure I'm in a parking spot and I open my driver's door to look at the line, the car stops! I almost got whiplash the first time I did that. Again, I get the safety mindset of the engineers but I think they've over done it in a few regards. Still highly recommend! Update January 13, 2017 Ok so I'm not recommending this car anymore. Several things have started to bother me to the point I'm considering trading it! 1) Navigation - HATE it. Slooooooowwww. Cannot believe how slow the response time is. Also, cannot put in an address while car is moving. Cannot look up a phone number while moving. Just awful! 2) Way too "big brother" in terms of safety. If you pull into a parking space and open the door to see if you are on line, you can no longer move the car. It puts itself in park. How dumb is that? I want to move 6-12 inches and It won't let me. 3) Phone interface to radio - really poor. Slow. There are three AUX/ipod/USB options on the screen and it's different each time as to which one will work. 4) Power windows - TAKE 8 SECONDS to go all the way up or all the way down! What are they waiting for? Is that a safety thing? All I know is I get wet a lot longer when I'm at the toll booth or getting my mail from the mailbox. Speed it up dudes! 5) Just turning on the radio is a pain - and (you guessed it!) sloooooowwwwww. Volume control - sloooowwww. Update January 16, 2018 Sold it.
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2016 Honda Pilot for sale near you
Showing 3 of 47 listings
- EX-L 4dr SUVMSRP: $14,68670 mi away
- Elite 4dr SUV w/Navigation and Rear Entertainment SystemMSRP: $9,99958 mi away
- Touring 4dr SUV w/Navigation and Rear Entertainment SystemMSRP: $19,99559 mi away
See all 47 listings
Bad Transmission Valve after only 3 months
Bigbluesc, 06/07/2016
2016 Honda Pilot EX-L 4dr SUV (3.5L 6cyl 6A)
9 of 11 people found this review helpful
Purchased this car a little over 3 months ago. Yesterday we were driving and both the " Transmission System Problem" and "Emission System Problem" error messages came up. The car then started shifting poorly and literally jumping between the lower gears. We had it towed to dealership who's solution was to simply drain the transmission fluid and refill it to the "Honda specified level". The car drives ok at the moment but there is no chance this is a viable long term solution. Incredibly frustrating to buy a brand new car and have issues after only 3 months. We had our last Pilot for 8 plus years without a single issue which is why we stuck with the Pilot for our new car. Clearly we have made a huge mistake.
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First Honda car
Fred, 01/25/2016
updated 08/07/2023
2016 Honda Pilot EX 4dr SUV AWD (3.5L 6cyl 6A)
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
We traded a 2012 Subaru Outback on this Honda Pilot EX AWD. The Pilot has the tow capacity we need for our small camper when in the mountains. Towing with the Pilot is very nice. Much less stress on me. Towing MPG is about the same as the Outback. The backup camera is great for hitching up the camper. The right turn camera is nice for lane changes. My camper has a full time rear view camera which gives a better view for lane changes to either side. We've been seeing the highway MPG increasing as the engine gets some miles on it. We've seen 30 mpg in ECO mode. Its a much bigger car than the Outback so it took a while to get used to. The handling isn't as crisp as the Outback but its fine. So far traction in snow has been good. The first test was demanding - climbing a 4 mile mountainous road in the snow that was not plowed. Coming back down was fine although I was nervous. Four USB ports is very handy. Sometimes all are in use! The large center console keeps our devices out of sight when not in the car. 35K mile update. We often see 27 mpg on the highway. The AWD continues to impress me. The other day, the Pilot backed up the icy driveway easily. The Hyundai Accent (fwd) had a lot of difficulty. 44K mile update: Often see 30 mpg on the highway 47.3K mile update: All of the warning symbols lit up the same time. Car drove OK. Dealer said it was due to the injectors. ??? All 6 were replaced under warranty. Downside is mpg has dropped 3mpg as indicated on the dash. Will be checking mpg the old school way and talk to the service guys. This is the only mechanical problem in 4 years ownership. Cons: 35K update: There is no after market solution for the lack of disc player! No disc player! Its such a standard feature we never even looked for it until we wanted to play a book on CD. The entertainment system sounds fine but very disappointed with the user interface. The touch screen is clumsy and potentially dangerous for the driver to operate. Some options are displayed that this model doesn't have. There are some remote controls on the steering wheel which which help but their functions are limited. Due to the lousy user interface and lack of disc player, the entertainment system is almost never used and missed. 44K update. The Pilot has always had wind noise - more than we expected for a $35K car. Its getting annoying as time goes on. The dealer ran checks on the main causes for wind noise - found nothing to fix. 55K update MPG has been falling since the fuel injectors were replaced on warranty. 70K update MPG has settled at 23.5 mpg combined. 26 mpg highway on regular gas. Towing mpg varies around 13 mpg depending on terrain and wind. The 7year 70K service is expensive at $2100
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Great value for features and style
RAJA SHAIKH, 09/06/2016
2016 Honda Pilot Touring 4dr SUV AWD w/Navigation and Rear Entertainment System (3.5L 6cyl 9A)
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
Compare other vehicles, look for great internet deals( i got mine at ~$2k less than sticker price)
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