I know, the Honda Pilot isn’t the most exciting vehicle on the planet. But hey, knowing the ins and outs of almost every vehicle we can is part of the job. So in between fancy drinks and the booming Ohio nightlife (I’m kidding, Cincinnati was great), I got some wheel time in Honda’s latest and possibly greatest SUV offering.

You’ve already seen our HR-V review – but where the HR-V sits at the very bottom of Honda’s SUV range, the new Pilot is Honda’s large-and-in-charge three-row performer. And it definitely performs.

Intuitiveness

You have to admire any brand that finds a new way to make life easier in the SUV. Like Ford's foot-activated lift gate, for example. What Honda did in their new Pilot, then, was make sure intuitiveness was at an all time high. First and foremost being third row access. One button – that’s all it takes to get to the back seats. The easy push button moved and lifted the whole seat out of the way, allowing children and small adults easy access to the back.

And then there’s the trunk. Honda was pretty excited about this nifty little feature. Instead of the ridiculous strap and pulley setup they used in the previous Pilot, the new Pilot featured a single cover that features carpet on one side and plastic on the other. You could leave it flat on top, or stow it down in the bottom to make like a cubby for groceries or plants. Of course, the back seats also fold down flat, so you can fit your dogs, kayaks, anything in the back with ease.

It may all seem a...