All-New 2016 Honda Pilot SUV Begins Mass Production in Alabama

All-New 2016 Honda Pilot SUV Begins Mass Production in Alabama

More than 1,500 associates at Honda Manufacturing of Alabama (HMA) today celebrated the start of mass production of the all-new, thoroughly redesigned and reimagined 2016 Honda Pilot, slated to go on-sale next month at Honda dealerships nationwide. HMA is the exclusive manufacturer of the family friendly, up to 8-passenger Honda Pilot SUV and its advanced direct-injected i-VTEC V-6 engine.
"Today we celebrate the incredible dedication of our Alabama team to delivering an outstanding new Pilot that will set the course for others to follow," said Jeff Tomko, president of HMA.  "I want to congratulate our associates for their unqualified commitment to building a new Pilot of the highest quality that exceeds the expectations of our customers."
Designed, developed and manufactured in America, the all-new 2016 Honda Pilot SUV is improved in every imaginable way – with dynamic new styling, an even more spacious and family-friendly cabin, a more powerful and efficient new powertrain, and more advanced technology and premium features than ever before.
All three generations of the Honda Pilot have been designed and developed in America by Honda R&D Americas, Inc. at its Los Angeles design studio and Raymond, Ohio R&D center.
"Our U.S.-based development team lives with the midsize family SUV everyday and we have applied our deep understanding into the development of this best ever, third-generation Pilot," said Marc Ernst, chief engineer at Honda R&D Americas in Raymond, Ohio and development leader for the new Pilot. "We advanced Pilot's dual-purpose character by increasing both family utility and personal sophistication to meet the needs of the driver and passengers in every dimension of their life."
The Pilot is designed to achieve the highest safety ratings of any vehicle in its class, and offers Honda Sensing™, a comprehensive suite of advanced safety and driver-assistive technologies that can help drivers avoid a collision or mitigate its severity.
The new Pilot joins a reinvigorated Honda light-truck lineup that includes America's best-selling SUV and 2015 Motor TrendSport Utility of the Year, the 2015 Honda CR-V, and the just-launched Honda HR-V crossover, the new gateway model in Honda's triple-threat SUV/CUV lineup. The Pilot is produced alongside the Honda Odyssey, which is leading all other minivans in sales to individual American retail car buyers in 2015.  Honda's Alabama-built light-truck lineup will be further strengthened when HMA begins production of an all-new Honda Ridgeline pickup early next year.
Since its market debut in the 2003 model year, the Pilot has continuously advanced its unique combination of smooth ride comfort, accommodating interior packaging and overall efficiency that traditional SUVs lacked. The Pilot helped transform the SUV segment with better ride quality, top crash safety ratings, more interior space and increased fuel efficiency.
All-New 2016 Honda Pilot Makes World Debut and Redefines the Midsize, Three-Row SUV at 2015 Chicago Auto Show

All-New 2016 Honda Pilot Makes World Debut and Redefines the Midsize, Three-Row SUV at 2015 Chicago Auto Show

  • Modern, refined and confidently capable new Pilot launching this summer
  • Advanced and efficient Earth Dreams Technology™ powertrains
  • Class-leading safety features, fuel efficiency and driving dynamics
  • A host of new technologies and even more packaging flexibility

The all-new 2016 Honda Pilot SUV made its global premiere today at the 2015 Chicago Auto Show. Reengineered and redesigned in America, the 2016 Honda Pilot delivers more family-friendly utility, more advance technology and more premium attributes and amenities than ever before, boasting class-leading safety features, fuel efficiency and confident driving dynamics in a thoroughly modern, stylish and sophisticated new package.
The all-new 2016 Pilot, launching at Honda dealerships nationwide this summer, is the third generation of Honda's three-row midsize SUV to be designed, developed and manufactured in America. Reinforcing 2015 as the "Year of Honda," Pilot further strengthens Honda's SUV/CUV triple threat by joining the exceptionally well received 2015 CR-V (2015 Motor TrendSUV of the Year) and greatly anticipated new 2016 HR-V.
"With looks that command attention and the powerful presence of true functionality, the 2016 Pilot sets a new benchmark in the midsize SUV class with an unmatched combination of sophistication and utility," said Jeff Conrad, Honda Division senior vice president and general manager. "This means the all-new Pilot will comfort, entertain and assist active families in all aspects of their lives, whether it's an evening out for two, a road trip adventure for all or just the chores of everyday life."

Premium Style and Features
The all-new design of the 2016 Pilot sports a modern, sleek, yet commanding and muscular form incorporating new premium features, including optional brighter and more efficient LED projector headlights with auto high beam technology, available signature LED daytime running lights and taillights, plus available 20-inch wheels and a first-ever panoramic roof option. The premium quality of the new Pilot carries over to the interior, where designers have applied high-quality, soft- touch materials throughout the cabin and added thoughtful details such as LED map lighting.
Additional high-end amenities include available heated and ventilated front seats, a heated steering wheel and heated second-row seats. For the first time, upper-trim Pilot models will have available two second-row captain's chairs, providing for easy walk through between the second and third rows, in addition to the standard second-row three-person 60/40 split seat for 8-passenger seating capacity.
Advanced Technology 
The new Pilot delivers the connectivity and power access that the modern family demands, including up to five USB ports, four that provide better recharging with 2.5-amp output, to charge iPads or smartphones while in use. Additional ports and plugs include an auxiliary jack for nearly any audio player, an HDMI port for a gaming console, two headphone jacks, two 12-volt power outlets and a 115-volt outlet to power just about anything.
The new Pilot also incorporates Honda's latest thinking for advanced, family-friendly technology, including an upsized 8-inch capacitive touchscreen Display Audio telematics interface powered by a new Android-based operating system and more powerful processor, along with an available all-new embedded Honda Satellite-Linked Navigation System™. The new navigation system features improved graphics and new capabilities, including 3D renderings of terrain, buildings and road signs, improved lane guidance, live search function, 911 emergency services and more.
The Pilot's Display Audio system enables simplified smartphone connectivity making for easier access to all the features and connectivity options of the HondaLink™ connected-car system. A 9-inch rear entertainment system with DVD and new Blu-Ray disc™ capability is available.
Family-Friendly Utility
The new Pilot builds on its reputation for best-in-class interior space, versatility and utility with 3.5 inches of added overall vehicle length, enabling a larger cargo area that can hold an 82-quart cooler without compromising third-row seating capability, a segment-exclusive feature. Third-row entry and exit is made even easier and more intuitive courtesy of an available one-touch walk-in second-row seat that slides and tilts to its forward-most position at the touch of a button. As compared with the current Pilot, the width of the lower portion of the third-row entryway has been increased by 2.5 inches with 1-inch lower step-over height.
The Pilot's new center console features a cavernous storage compartment capable of accommodating items as large as a full-size iPad or large purse. And with its seamless cover in the closed position, the console provides a convenient, non-slip surface for items that the driver or front passenger may need close at hand.
Earth Dreams Technology™ Powertrain
The 2016 Pilot delivers more refined, powerful and fuel-efficient performance than ever before courtesy of its new 3.5-liter, direct-injected i-VTEC® V-6 engine with Variable Cylinder Management™ (VCM™) cylinder deactivation technology. For improved fuel efficiency, the Pilot will include available Idle Stop technology that shuts off the engine when the vehicle is stopped, instantly and smoothly restarting the engine when the driver lifts their foot off the brake pedal. The new engine is mated to one of two advanced new transmissions – a Pilot-first 6-speed automatic transmission, or on upper trims, a Honda-first 9-speed automatic transmission – both delivering notably refined, responsive and fuel-efficient performance. The new Pilot will be available in front-wheel and all-wheel-drive configurations and will feature a completely new Honda all-wheel-drive system that delivers even more confident, efficient and dynamic all-weather performance.
The new Pilot is almost 300 pounds lighter than the outgoing model; its more rigid, tightly sealed yet lighter body in combination with new, efficient powertrains, a new all-wheel-drive system and class-leading aerodynamics result in class-leading dynamic performance and fuel efficiency along with a new level of cabin quietness befitting its status as a premium family SUV. 
Advanced Safety Performance
In keeping with Honda's commitment to safety, the new Pilot will feature the most comprehensive set of advanced safety and driver-assistive technologies ever offered on a Honda vehicle. Together these technologies make up Honda Sensing™, a suite of technologies designed to expand the driver's situational awareness while sensing and responding to potential road hazards, including other vehicles, road obstacles and even pedestrians, mitigating the possibility or severity of a collision. It includes Honda's popular LaneWatch™ display, Blind Spot Indicators, a standard Multi-Angle Rear View Camera, and available Collision Mitigation Braking System™ (CMBS), Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Forward Collision Warning (FCW), Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS), Rear Cross Traffic Monitor, Adaptive Cruise Control and a Honda-first Road Departure Mitigation (RDM) system.
The new Pilot is expected to deliver the highest safety ratings in its class and targets a 5-Star Overall Vehicle Score from the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and a TOP SAFETY PICKrating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), including a GOOD rating in all crash modes. The new Pilot incorporates Honda's next-generation Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™) body structure, designed to more efficiently absorb and disperse the energy from a frontal collision, along with a new ultra-high-strength door ring designed to help better protect occupants. The 2016 Pilot also incorporates an all-new 3-bone platform while also utilizing high and ultra-high strength body materials, which together reduce noise, vibration and harness (NVH), improve handling, increase rigidity and reduce weight. 
Standard safety and driver-assistive features include four-channel anti-lock brakes (ABS) with Brake Assist and Hill Start Assist; Vehicle Stability Assist™ (VSA®) with Traction Control; an Expanded View Driver's Mirror; dual-stage, multiple-threshold front airbags, driver and front passenger SmartVent™ side airbags and side-curtain airbags for all outboard seating positions; and a new Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS) with real-time display of individual tire pressures.
For more photo's on the all new 2016 Honda Pilot, click here.
2016 Honda Pilot debuting at the Chicago Auto Show

2016 Honda Pilot debuting at the Chicago Auto Show

With the introduction of the HR-V subcompact crossover coming this spring, Honda turns its attention to the Pilot midsize crossover. Based on the teaser photo and what Honda is saying ahead of the debut, the three-row Pilot looks to be getting an overhaul from the wheels up. 
The redesigned Pilot, scheduled to arrive this summer, sports a more aerodynamic look than the current version. Honda says the 2016 Pilot will offer class-leading fuel economy and advanced safety features. 

For more information on the Chicago Auto Show, click here