Toyota Avalon 2013 Review

Quick Review

We did our first drive of 2013 Toyota Avalon today, that is 20th February, Wednesday. Our drive included city as well as highway driving, with brief stops for driver changes. 

To start off, let's talk about what has changed from the previous generation model:

Major Changes

1. New exterior design with a more athletic, aggressive look targeted to a younger crowd and not just their dads. We love it. 

2. Slightly better power, 273 HP compared to last model's 268 HP. 

3. 10 airbags for all versions as compared to only frontal airbags for base version, commendable. 

4. The mid range and top range models now come with 3 drive modes, Eco, Normal and Sport, compared to single drive mode in the previous model.

5. 11 speakers in the mid and top range versions, as opposed to 9 speakers

Driving Performance

The drive is quite good, similar to Nissan Altima 2013 3.5L V6 and Hyundai Genesis 3.8L V6. The drive feel is smooth and handling is very good too. Acceleration from 0-100 is close to the 7 second range as is the standard for these engines. 

Compared to 2012 Nissan Maxima and 2013 Honda Accord 3.5L V6, the drive is slightly less exciting. In particular the brakes could be improved somewhat as we found them to be a bit lower on the foot pedal as expected. Unlike Honda Accord though, there is adaptive cruise control in the top range version which means the car will slow down automatically upon sensing another car upfront. 

Interior

In terms of interior, all versions come with leather seats, with "premium" leather for top two versions. All versions come with all major safety features, except for the top version which has an additional "pre-crash safety" warning system. 

The interior finishing is very good in all the versions. The dashboard is redesigned with some curvy sculpting. All major tech updates can be found here with a few exceptions like lane sensing which was a big improvement for Honda Accord when they introduced the Lane Watch camera. 

You'll find some nice touch pad style functioning in the Avalon to add more elegance to the overall outlook. Check out the full features list in our Features section.

Verdict

Drive is elegant and comfortable, with solid interior finishing. Perfect for families, it has great practicality. Definitely worth a test drive. 

Check Out

- Toyota Avalon Prices and Specs