Recently I was invited by Toyota to attend a two-day media preview of the 2008 Highlander in Calgary, Alberta. To be honest, I wasn't all that excited about going. I'm not turned on by SUVs and the prospect of driving off-road didn't thrill me either. Creeping downhill at 2 mph while trying to place a wheel on a massive boulder in order to avoid destroying the sump is not my idea of a good time. I'd rather be hairing around a road race circuit. But I took the trip and I'm glad. Our route went southeast of Calgary into some beautiful hills and valleys, many of them topped with golden fields of canola (which we city boys failed to recognise for what it was).

Most of the roads dipped and curved as good roads should and as for the off-road section, it consisted of nothing more than a short jaunt up and down a pair of steep gravel-surfaced hills to try some of the Highlander's neat control tricks. By the way, my co-driver Sammy Chan was no more enthusiastic about off-roading than me so when we arrived late at one hill we happily gave it a pass in order to get back on schedule. As for the new Highlander, it was well-equipped, comfortable, and surprisingly pleasant to drive. You're invited to read my mostly positive test drive at About.com's SUVs site.

[photo: Philip Powell]