Best Year for a Used Honda Pilot

For most buyers it is 2019 through 2022. Honda updated the third-generation Pilot for 2019 and made the Honda Sensing driver assistance suite standard on every trim, moved the upper trims to a ten-speed automatic, and put a physical volume knob back in the dashboard. Those are the most sorted years of a generation that ran seven, and prices have settled. If your budget is tighter, 2016 through 2018 are the same fundamental vehicle for less money. If you want the newest platform, the fourth generation starts at 2023.

Seven or eight, depending on how that specific vehicle was built. A second-row bench gives you eight seats and a pair of second-row captain's chairs gives you seven, and the captain's chairs are generally found on the upper trims. This is the easiest thing to assume wrongly, because two Pilots of the same model year and the same colour can have different seat counts. If eight is a hard requirement for you, confirm it on the individual vehicle rather than on the model year. Unlike a lot of midsize three-row crossovers, the Pilot's third row genuinely fits adults for short trips.

All-wheel-drive Pilots are generally rated at 5,000 pounds when properly equipped, and front-wheel-drive ones are rated meaningfully lower. That is competitive for a three-row crossover and enough for a small boat, a utility trailer or a pair of jet skis out to Jordan Lake. The number moves with drivetrain, model year and whether the vehicle left the factory with the towing package, so read the sticker on the driver's door jamb and the owner's manual for the specific Pilot in front of you rather than a brochure figure.

The fourth generation moved to a new platform with a longer wheelbase, squared off the styling considerably, and standardized the ten-speed automatic across every trim rather than reserving it for the upper ones. Honda also added the TrailSport, which is a genuinely off-road-focused version with all-terrain tires and a retuned suspension rather than a styling package. Second-row seating became more flexible, with a removable middle seat on some builds. It is a bigger, more capable vehicle than the third generation, and it is priced accordingly on the used market.

Honda's factory warranty transfers with the vehicle. The basic coverage runs three years or 36,000 miles and the powertrain coverage runs five years or 60,000 miles, both measured from the original in-service date rather than from the day you buy it. On a Pilot old enough to be a value buy, that coverage has usually run out, which is normal and is priced in. Ask for the in-service date so you can work out exactly what is left rather than guessing from the model year, and ask what the dealer's own inspection covered.

Confirm the service history is documented rather than assumed, particularly oil changes and transmission service. Count the seats and confirm the configuration matches what you need. Fold the third row up and down twice and check it latches cleanly both ways. Run every climate zone, since rear air is standard on most trims and easy to skip past. Cycle the power tailgate through a full open and close. On all-wheel-drive vehicles, ask whether the system has been serviced. Then have an independent pre-purchase inspection done, which is the single best money a used buyer spends.