The eight-passenger 2009 Honda Pilot may improve on the functional attributes of the first-generation model, but its styling has proved controversial. In a blog called "The trouble with Honda design," Motor Trend Editor-in-Chief Angus MacKenzie described the new Pilot as solid, but "why oh why does it have to look like it was designed on the back of an envelope with a set-square and a pencil?"
Use the side-by-side photos of the 2008 and 2009 Pilot models below to decide for yourself how well Honda executed the new SUV's design.