Compare the2024 Mazda CX-90VS 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander

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 CX-90 are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Mazda CX-90 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 Grand Highlander doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the CX-90. But it costs extra on the Grand Highlander.

Both the CX-90 and the Grand Highlander have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, 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, driver alert monitors and available around view monitors.

A significantly tougher test than their original offset frontal crash test, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety does 40 MPH small overlap frontal offset crash tests. In this test, where only 25% of the total width of the vehicle is struck, results indicate that the Mazda CX-90 is safer than the Grand Highlander:

The Mazda CX-90 has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2024 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The Grand Highlander is not even a standard “Top Safety Pick” for 2024.

The CX-90 has more powerful engines than the Grand Highlander:

As tested in Motor Trend the CX-90 PHEV 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid is faster than the Toyota Grand Highlander turbo 4 cyl.:

On the EPA test cycle the CX-90 running its gasoline engine gets better mileage than the Grand Highlander:

The CX-90 PHEV can travel with zero emissions for 26 miles. The Grand Highlander can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the CX-90’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Mazda CX-90 uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended on CX-90 PHEV for maximum performance). The Grand Highlander Hybrid Max requires premium, which can cost on average about 82.8 cents more per gallon.

The CX-90’s standard fuel tank has 1.3 gallons more fuel capacity than the Grand Highlander Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (18.5 vs. 17.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The CX-90 Turbo S’ standard fuel tank has 1.8 gallons more fuel capacity than the Grand Highlander’s standard fuel tank (19.6 vs. 17.8 gallons).

For better stopping power the CX-90 Turbo S/PHEV’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Grand Highlander:

The CX-90’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Grand Highlander are solid, not vented.

The CX-90 stops much shorter than the Grand Highlander:

For better traction, the CX-90 has larger standard tires than the Grand Highlander (265/55R19 vs. 255/65R18). The CX-90 Premium/Turbo S’ tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Grand Highlander (275/45R21 vs. 255/65R18).

The CX-90’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Highlander XLE’s 65 series tires. The CX-90 Premium/Turbo S’ tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Grand Highlander Limited/Platinum’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the CX-90 has standard 19-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Grand Highlander XLE. The CX-90 Premium/Turbo S’ 21-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Grand Highlander Limited/Platinum.

The CX-90 has variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the CX-90’s wheelbase is 6.7 inches longer than on the Grand Highlander (122.8 inches vs. 116.1 inches).

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the CX-90 is 1.8 inches wider in the front and 1.8 inches wider in the rear than on the Grand Highlander.

The CX-90 Premium Plus handles at .85 G’s, while the Grand Highlander Platinum AWD pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The CX-90 Premium Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.4 seconds quicker than the Grand Highlander XLE AWD (27.2 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the CX-90 PHEV Premium/Turbo S has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Grand Highlander (8.1 vs. 8 inches), allowing the CX-90 to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The CX-90 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Grand Highlander 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 CX-90 is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Grand Highlander. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The CX-90’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 Grand Highlander’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The CX-90’s headlights were rated “Good” to “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Grand Highlander’s headlights are rated “Acceptable.”

The CX-90’s optional rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Grand Highlander has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

Car and Driver performed a comparison test in its October 2023 issue and the Mazda CX-90 Premium Plus won out over the Toyota Grand Highlander Platinum AWD.