To ensure the gasoline engine in the Highlander hybrid is as efficient as possible, Toyota removed from it the parasitic equipment typically driven by a vehicle's engine, such as the power steering pump and air
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| To ensure the gasoline engine in the Highlander hybrid is as efficient as possible, Toyota removed the parasitic equipment typically driven by a vehicle's engine. (Photo: Rob Rothwell, Canadian Auto Press) |
conditioning unit. This equipment is now electrically powered, thus reducing drag on the internal combustion engine and enabling it to shut down, when it switches to idle mode or full electrical drive power, without the loss of power steering or air conditioning functionality.
I'm not sure if the unnatural steering feel I detected was due to the unconventionality of its design or not, but steering resistance when turning felt manufactured and disconnected from the roadway; something I didn't notice when road testing a conventional Highlander. Nevertheless, maneuvering around in the hybrid version was easy. The vehicle is remarkably nimble in and out of parking lots and secure and stable during high speed cornering. Should
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| When slippage is detected up front, Toyota's on-demand, intelligent 4WD system applies traction control to the slipping wheels while directing power to the rear wheels. (Photo: Rob Rothwell, Canadian Auto Press) |
things inadvertently get out of hand, Toyota's Vehicle Dynamics Integrated Management (VDIM) system, which orchestrates key electronic aids to work in unison, such as stability control, traction control, ABS brakes, EBD, BA, etc, will keep the SUV between the lines of the road.
Hopefully such intervention will never be needed, but given that the Highlander hybrid is available with 4-wheel-drive (4WD) some off-roading excursions are to be anticipated, and here is where the hybrid technology gets most interesting. The Highlander's gas engine powers its front wheels - nothing unusual about that. When slippage is detected up front, Toyota's on-demand, Intelligent 4WD system applies traction control to the slipping wheels while directing power to the rear wheels. But have a look under the hybrid Highlander and you'll ask how that's possible given the absence of a driveshaft (okay not all of you will, just mechanical geeks like me will).
