Compare the2023 Infiniti QX80VS 2022 Honda Pilot

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Infiniti QX80 have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Honda Pilot doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

The QX80 Sensory’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Pilot doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front and middle seat shoulder belts of the Infiniti QX80 are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Honda Pilot doesn’t offer height-adjustable middle seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the QX80 are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Pilot doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Infiniti QX80 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Pilot doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The QX80 has standard Active Head Restraints (AHR), which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the AHR system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Pilot doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The QX80 has standard Backup Collision Intervention that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Pilot doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The QX80 has a standard Around View® Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Pilot only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the QX80 and the Pilot have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning and available all wheel drive.

The Infiniti QX80 weighs 1380 to 2044 pounds more than the Honda Pilot. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Infiniti QX80 is safer than the Honda Pilot:

	QX80	Pilot
	Front Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	27	109
Abdominal Force	81 lbs.	101 lbs.
Hip Force	144 lbs.	269 lbs.
	Rear Seat
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
HIC	31	233
Spine Acceleration	21 G’s	42 G’s
Hip Force	151 lbs.	304 lbs.
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	39 G’s	45 G’s
Hip Force	684 lbs.	838 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Warranty

The QX80 comes with a full 4-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Pilot’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 24,000 miles sooner.

Infiniti’s powertrain warranty covers the QX80 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Honda covers the Pilot. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Pilot ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The QX80’s corrosion warranty is 2 years longer than the Pilot’s (7 vs. 5 years).

Infiniti pays for scheduled maintenance on the QX80 for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Infiniti will pay for oil changes, lubrication and any other required maintenance. Honda doesn’t pay scheduled maintenance for the Pilot.

Reliability

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the QX80’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Pilot’s camshafts. If the Pilot’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the QX80 has a standard 150-amp alternator. The Pilot’s 130-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Infiniti vehicles are more reliable than Honda With 2 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Infiniti higher than Honda.

Engine

The QX80’s 5.6 DOHC V8 produces 120 more horsepower (400 vs. 280) and 151 lbs.-ft. more torque (413 vs. 262) than the Pilot’s 3.5 SOHC V6.

As tested in Motor Trend the Infiniti QX80 is faster than the Honda Pilot:

	QX80	Pilot
Zero to 60 MPH	6.1 sec	6.5 sec
Quarter Mile	14.8 sec	15.1 sec
Speed in 1/4 Mile	93.9 MPH	91.2 MPH

Fuel Economy and Range

The QX80 has 6.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Pilot (26 vs. 19.5 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the QX80’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Pilot:

	QX80	Pilot
Front Rotors	13.8 inches	12.6 inches
Rear Rotors	13.8 inches	13 inches

The QX80’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Pilot are solid, not vented.

The QX80 stops shorter than the Pilot:

	QX80	Pilot
60 to 0 MPH	122 feet	128 feet	Motor Trend

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the QX80 has larger tires than the Pilot (275/60R20 vs. 245/60R18).

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the QX80 Luxe has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Pilot EX-L. The QX80 Premium Select/Sensory’s 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Pilot SE/Touring/Elite/Black Edition.

The Infiniti QX80’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Honda Pilot only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The QX80 has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Pilot; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

Suspension and Handling

The QX80 has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Pilot’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The rear suspension of the QX80 uses air springs for a smoother, controlled ride than the Pilot, which uses coil springs. Air springs maintain proper ride height and ride more smoothly.

The QX80 Sensory has a standard automatic rear load leveling suspension to keep ride height level with a heavy load or when towing. The Pilot doesn’t offer a load leveling suspension.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the QX80’s wheelbase is 10.1 inches longer than on the Pilot (121.1 inches vs. 111 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the QX80 is 1.2 inches wider in the front and 1.6 inches wider in the rear than on the Pilot.

The QX80’s front to rear weight distribution is more even (51% to 49%) than the Pilot’s (56.1% to 43.9%). This gives the QX80 more stable handling and braking.

For greater off-road capability the QX80 has a 1.9 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Pilot (9.2 vs. 7.3 inches), allowing the QX80 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

Passenger Space

The QX80 has .4 inches more front headroom, .1 inches more front hip room, 1.8 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear headroom, 2.6 inches more rear legroom, 1.1 inches more rear hip room, 1.5 inches more rear shoulder room, 4.2 inches more third row hip room and 2.9 inches more third row shoulder room than the Pilot.

Cargo Capacity

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the QX80 Sensory’s second row seats and pressing a switch automatically lowers or raises the QX80’s third row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Pilot doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Towing

The QX80’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Pilot’s (8500 vs. 3500 pounds).

Servicing Ease

The QX80 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Pilot uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The engine in the QX80 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Pilot. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because there are no rear spark plugs and the accessory belts are in front.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Infiniti service is better than Honda. J.D. Power ranks Infiniti 9th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 27% lower rating, Honda is ranked 25th.

Ergonomics

The QX80’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Pilot does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The QX80’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Pilot’s rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

The QX80’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Pilot’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The QX80 Sensory has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Pilot doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To help drivers see further while navigating curves, the QX80 Sensory has standard adaptive headlights to illuminate around corners automatically by reading vehicle speed and steering wheel angle. The Pilot doesn’t offer cornering lights.

The QX80’s power mirror controls are mounted on the armrest for easy access. The Pilot’s power mirror controls are on the dash where they are possibly hidden by the steering wheel and are awkward to manipulate.

The QX80 has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel is only available on the Pilot Elite.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Infiniti QX80 has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Pilot SE/Elite//Black Edition offers wireless charging.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the QX80 owner. The Car Book by Jack Gillis rates the QX80 with a number “5” insurance rate while the Pilot is rated higher at a number “10” rate.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the QX80 is less expensive to operate than the Pilot because typical repairs cost much less on the QX80 than the Pilot, including $237 less for a water pump, $141 less for a muffler, $23 less for a starter and $174 less for a fuel pump.