Image Credit: Toyota.
There are countless family SUVs out there, and most of them are about as thrilling as a wet weekend in Toledo. But Toyota, the company that took a sweet geological age to fully embrace electric cars, has finally decided to shock the cul-de-sacs. Behold the all-new 2027 Toyota Highlander. It is a three-row, seven-seat battery-electric SUV designed to haul your entire clan without burning a single drop of dinosaur juice.
The old Highlander was a bit like a sensible pair of beige trousers. Reliable, sure, but hardly something you'd write home about. When I first laid eyes on the 2027 model, I was genuinely gobsmacked. It has put on a sleek, tailored suit. Toyota has stretched the wheelbase out to a proper 120.1 inches. They have also widened its stance to 78.3 inches and chopped the roofline down slightly to a height of 67.3 inches.
Image Credit: Toyota.
The result is a planted, aerodynamic shape with broad fenders, flush door handles, and a "hammerhead" front end. It looks positively menacing, which is a hilarious thing to say about a family crossover. It simply sweeps rearward, with a profile that is equal parts robust and refined.
Under that bonnie new exterior, you have a choice of two electric hearts. If you are entirely daft and buy the front-wheel-drive XLE, you get a polite 221 horsepower and 198 pound-feet of torque. But if you have any sense at all, you will go for the all-wheel-drive version. That one packs a dual-motor setup delivering a very meaty 338 combined horsepower and 323 pound-feet of torque.
Image Credit: Toyota.
As for the 0-60 acceleration times? Well, the Toyota engineers promise a "sharp acceleration feel." Which means they actually don't know it yet. Still, with that instant electric torque, it will surely scramble your brain just enough when launching away from the traffic lights.
To power this suburban spaceship, Toyota is offering two battery sizes. The front-wheel-drive and base all-wheel-drive XLE models make do with a 77.0 kWh pack. That gets you an estimated 287 miles and 270 miles of range, respectively. But the real star of the show is the 95.8 kWh battery available in the upper XLE and standard in the Limited. That beefy power source grants you a manufacturer-estimated 320 miles of driving range. That is plenty to get you from Boston to New York with enough juice left to make a smug face at the gas station.
Image Credit: Toyota.
Speaking of juice… I am thrilled to report that Toyota has finally seen the light and equipped this beast with a standard North American Charging System (NACS) port. That means you can plug this massive lump into thousands of fast chargers across the country without needing an adapter. On a speedy DC fast charger, you can zap the battery from 10 percent to 80 percent in about 30 minutes. If you are charging at home, there's an 11-kW onboard AC charger and a dual-voltage 120-volt and 240-volt cable thrown right into the trunk.
Step inside, and you might think you have accidentally wandered into a futuristic lounge. The cabin is dominated by a 14-inch touchscreen and a 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster. Toyota has even fitted 64-color customizable ambient lighting, so you can make the interior glow like a neon nightclub in Las Vegas. But the cleverest bit of kit is the vehicle-to-load, or V2L, technology - you can literally use the massive battery under the floor to power your household appliances during a blackout or run a blender at a tailgate party.
Image Credit: Toyota.
Comfort has not been forgotten amidst all this wizardry. The Highlander still seats seven, provided you opt for the second-row bench, though captain's chairs come standard. The seats are wrapped in SofTex - it's a synthetic leather that is highly resistant to whatever sticky mess the bairns drop on it. You get heated front seats as standard, while the Limited trim throws in ventilated front seats and heated second-row cushions. Fold that third row flat, and you are blessed with over 45 cubic feet of cargo storage - enough to fit a small flock of sheep in there.
Because this is a Toyota, it is absolutely crammed with safety tech. The new Toyota Safety Sense 4.0 system is standard across the board. It features pre-collision warning, pedestrian detection, lane tracing assist, and radar cruise control. They even threw in Proactive Driving Assist, which gently brakes and steers for you in traffic. It is brilliant for keeping you out of the hedges when you are distracted by the madness in the back seat.
Image Credit: Toyota.
This electric chariot is built right here in the United States. The vehicle rolls out of Georgetown, Kentucky, while the batteries are stitched together at Toyota's brand-new $13.9 billion facility in North Carolina. As for the price? Toyota is keeping that a closely guarded secret for now. They are hiding the exact MSRP like a leprechaun's pot of gold until sales kick off in late 2026.
Considering the amount of tech, space, and range, I really don't expect it to be cheap. I don't even wanna try and make a prediction here - I don't like to be shocked. Still, if it drives half as well as it looks, the 2027 Highlander might - and I stress the "might" - be the electric family hauler that finally makes sense.
Image Credit: Toyota.
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