In this episode, we delve into the 2026 Toyota Sequoia Capstone, exploring why it’s considered the top-tier model in the Sequoia lineup. With features such as heated and ventilated seats, a hybrid engine marrying turbo power and eco-efficiency, and an array of tech-savvy options, this SUV is designed for those who crave luxury and performance. Despite its high points, we question its fuel efficiency claims against real-world performance but still rate it favorably for family transportation needs.
And we are back. That time of the week where we do car reviews, we switch over, kind of do Rush to Reason and Drive Radio at the same time. We’re going to squeeze two in today, Richard, so we’ll be careful of our time. Let’s get started. 2026 Toyota Sequoia.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yes, Dad, this is the 2026 Toyota Sequoia Capstone, which basically, Dad, is the… creme de la creme right this is the top of the line model it gives you everything heated and ventilated front seats massaging front seats standards captain’s chairs in the second row heated and ventilated captain’s chairs to go along with it um you’ve got some lot of standard tech the surround view camera system is there this has got the i-force max engine in it dad which we’ve talked about several times and we’ll just say it’s obviously it’s a hybrid system and it combines kind of the best of both worlds right it’s a dual turbo hybrid system so you get some of that instantaneous torque that you love on a hybrid, dad, or an electric vehicle combined with the turbo engine, and it works really, really well. The one thing I’ll say is this, dad, and I’m just going to get to it. That means or does not mean that you get great fuel economy because the old Sequoias, dad, as you and I know, had pretty awful fuel economy with the old V8s in them. I will say this. They’ve improved the power aspect of the Sequoias immensely. However, they haven’t fixed the fuel economy piece of it. And what I mean by that is they’re saying that they’re going to get 19 or 20 miles, you know, 22 miles per gallon. I’ll be honest that I was probably closer to 15 to 16. So instead of about 400 miles worth of range. I’m actually probably a little bit closer to the 330 miles of range. Now, is that a preventer of me buying this car or this SUV, I should say? Absolutely not. It’s a fantastic SUV, was able to put the family in it, drive around. It’s got seating for seven behind the third row. It’s not a lot. You’re definitely going to feel at times like you’re lacking, like you need some different, maybe you need to put that third row down or part of that third row, or maybe you need a little bit extra room. It does have kind of this cool shelving system in the back. That’s where you can kind of take out a piece of the floor and kind of create like a two tier shelf in the back, which is going to do a little bit more options in terms of utility. But outside of that, again, if you’ve got that third row up, I’ll be honest, it’s going to be hard pressed to get even some soccer balls, some soccer bags, sport bags, things like that in it. However, this car is, They have felt that way in the past. It has felt that way, right? It kind of feels like you’re driving this really – this is not that way with, again, with the 2026 Toyota Sequoia Capstone. It just does a tremendous job at kind of combining these different features. My wife even commented on it. My kids commented on it. It was just a really nice car to sit in. Especially this capstone. It’s got retractable running boards. You can turn those on and off. It’s got a lot of other features on it that you’d want. As far as the ride goes, Dad, I was really impressed. It was quiet on the inside. It’s got acoustic glass on the front side windows to minimize wind and road noise. There is a dark American walnut wood grain trim that’s got a back capstone logo on it. The 14-inch multimedia display. 10-inch color heads-up display, 22-inch dark alloy wheels. I could kind of go on and on with the different specifications. I’ll say that in the large SUV category, and that’s what this vehicle is, I think it competes really well. Price point data, again, this is kind of the creme de la creme. You can get a Sequoia, the SR5 category, down for about $65,000. Starting at this capstone dad with everything that was on it was about $90,000. So a really wide range, and depending on the features that you’re looking for, I think you can kind of get a vehicle outfitted however you would like, right? If you wanted all the luxury features, if you wanted maybe a little bit of a step down, if you wanted some more off-road, Toyota’s kind of got all of the different options that way, and I’d encourage people to go there. Check them out. But they’ve really done a tremendous job on it. And to me, the only con is just the overall size of the fuel tank. I just felt like with a little bit of driving I had to do over the weekend, I had to kind of fill up a little bit more than I would like. Outside of that, folks, if you’ve got a larger family, more than, you know, four or five, I would highly encourage you to check this vehicle out. Hedge your local Toyota dealer. Test drive it because I really think you’re going to want to put your family in it. And when you do that, let them know that John and Richard Rush from Drive Radio and Rush to Reason sent you.
SPEAKER 02 :
This is John Rush from Rush to Reason and Drive Radio. Thank you so much for listening. Check out more of our podcasts at RushToReason.com or Drive-Radio.com.
