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The Toyota Sequoia received a full redesign in 2023.
- Spacious & Comfortable Second Row: There is generous legroom even behind a tall driver, along with available heated and ventilated seats, dual air vents, and built-in sunshades.
- Massive Infotainment Screen + Physical Buttons: The large touchscreen is easy to navigate, and the oversized knobs and toggles make adjusting temperature and rear air simple and intuitive. Higher trims also include features like a heads-up display and a digital rearview mirror camera to improve visibility.
- Bold, Muscular Redesign: The Sequoia has a muscular, commanding presence with strong body lines, large wheels, power running boards, and modern Toyota styling. It looks substantial and upscale, giving it serious road presence compared to many other full-size SUVs
The Exterior
Exterior: Muscular & Modern
First things first — this SUV is stunning.
The redesign gave the Sequoia a bold, muscular, commanding presence. It’s not a “tissue box on wheels.” It has strong body lines, a wide stance, and serious curb appeal.
The Platinum trim I drove had:
- 20-inch wheels
- Power running boards
- Blacked-out accents
- Roof rails
- Hybrid badging (with that signature blue Toyota logo)
It looks expensive. It feels substantial. It absolutely turns heads.
Hybrid Powertrain
The 2023 Sequoia now comes standard with a hybrid powertrain. Toyota claims up to 22 MPG highway.
In real life?
I averaged closer to 19–20 MPG, especially running A/C during summer driving.
For a full-size SUV, that’s solid — just not quite what the window sticker promises.
First Row
Driver Comfort & Interior Features
The Platinum trim starts around $79,000, so yes — I expected premium features.
And Toyota delivered in a lot of ways.
What I Loved:
- Heads-Up Display
- Full digital gauge cluster
- Massive infotainment screen
- Physical climate control buttons
- Rear climate control button with one-touch access
- Heated & ventilated seats
- Wireless charger
- Auto hold + parking brake
- Four cup holders within driver’s reach (a non-negotiable for me)
The physical buttons were a surprising highlight. So many brands are burying climate controls into screens, and Toyota kept things simple and user-friendly.
Rear air control? One tap. Done.
No digging through menus.
Visibility: A Small Concern
One thing I noticed immediately: the rear windshield is small.
Add a car seat in the third row, and your visibility out the back becomes limited. Thankfully, Toyota includes a digital rearview mirror camera that gives you an unobstructed view behind the vehicle.
That feature is a must-have in this SUV.
Second Row
Second Row: Spacious & Comfortable
As expected in a full-size SUV, the second row is roomy.
With the driver’s seat set for me at 6 feet tall, I had:
- Tons of legroom
- Great headroom
- Dual ceiling and lower vents
- Heated and ventilated second-row seats (on Platinum)
- Built-in sunshades
For older kids or adults? The second row is fantastic.
The Sequoia offers:
- Captain’s chairs (7 passenger)
- Bench seat (8 passenger)
The captain’s chairs are the more common setup.
Car Seat Setup: A Major Miss
Here’s where things get complicated.
In the captain’s chairs:
- Two sets of lower anchors
- Two top tether anchors
So far, so good.
But in the third row:
- One top tether anchor
- No lower anchors
- That single tether is located in the middle seat
This is a significant limitation.
Why it matters:
- You need a top tether for forward-facing car seats.
- With only one tether in the middle, you’re extremely limited.
- A car seat installed in the center greatly affects rear visibility.
- The middle seat doesn’t comfortably accommodate wider car seats.
- You essentially cannot install four car seats in this vehicle.
For a nearly $80,000 full-size SUV, that feels like a big miss.
If you have three or more car seats, this is not the vehicle I would recommend.
Third Row
Third Row: Comfortable — But Complicated
The third row itself is surprisingly comfortable.
With the seat slid all the way back (which reduces trunk space), I had solid legroom even at 6 feet tall. Amenities include:
- Sunshades
- Ceiling vents
- Cupholders
- Reclining seats
However, here’s the catch:
The second row is not on tracks.
The third row is.
That means:
- If you want more third-row legroom, you slide the third row back.
- But sliding it back dramatically reduces trunk space.
I would have preferred adjustable second-row tracks — or ideally both.
Third Row Access
Toyota uses a “flip-and-fold” mechanism for access.
It’s wide, dramatic, and even includes built-in steps — which is great.
The downside?
You have to manually reset the seat back into place after someone climbs in. Not a huge deal, but worth noting.
Trunk
The Trunk: The Biggest Letdown
Let’s talk about the elephant in the room.
With the third row up, the trunk space is… small.
Shockingly small for a vehicle this size.
I kept comparing it to vehicles like the Ford Expedition and Chevrolet Tahoe, and the Sequoia just doesn’t offer the same usable cargo area.
Toyota added a multi-level shelf system that allows you to:
- Create two grocery tiers
- Add dividers
- Customize storage
It’s clever. I actually used it and liked it.
But the math still doesn’t quite add up.
When you slide the third row forward to increase trunk space, you compromise third-row comfort. When you maximize third-row legroom, the trunk becomes extremely tight.
Even with seats folded, the floor isn’t fully flat. Toyota offers ways to adjust it, but it still feels slightly uneven.
For a family SUV in this price range, I expected more cargo versatility.
Safety
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