This is the all-new 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander

For the benefit of everyone in the UK reading this, the Toyota Highlander is an eight-seat American SUV that we would describe as ‘pretty darn large indeed’. It’s pretty much the same size as a fully-grown Land Rover Discovery 5.

And yet, clearly Toyota USA felt that it needed to be bigger. So, give a warm welcome to the new 2024 Grand Highlander. “There is definitely a need in the market for a midsize-SUV that prioritizes interior comfort in all three rows and Grand Highlander is the ultimate option,” says vice president of Toyota Marketing Lisa Materazzo. Midsize! We’re not making this up.

So, what sets the Grand Highlander apart from the standard Highlander? Well, it looks different for one. The Grand is actually built on the same TNGA-K platform as its smaller sibling, but it’s over 16cm longer, 5cm wider and far more boxy-looking too.

It’s been penned by Toyota’s US-based Calty Design team and will be built in Indiana. We’re told that the third row of seats is ‘adult-sized’ and there is apparently room in the boot for seven hand-luggage suitcases even with all of the seats in place. Yeah, it’s massive.

There will be three powertrain options. The 2.4-litre petrol and a 2.5-litre hybrid are presumably being carried over from the standard Highlander, but Toyota says there will also be a 362bhp ‘Hybrid MAX’ option that can sort the 0-60mph sprint in 6.3 seconds and tow up to 5,000lbs. Not at the same time though, presumably. The latter setup will be all-wheel drive only whilst the other two can be specced with either front- or all-wheel drive.

Inside there’s masses of space as you can imagine, as well as no fewer than 13 cupholders and seven USB-C charge ports. Wireless phone connectivity is standard and there’s a 12.3-inch central infotainment screen.

That’s about all the info we have right now. Toyota says it’ll confirm pricing this summer, but expect the Grand to start somewhere north of $40,000.