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Of the four Highlander hybrid trim levels, the base LE model boasts the highest EPA ratings: 29 mpg combined, 30 mpg city, and 28 mpg highway. The figures for the other three (including the Limited tested here) are each 1 mpg lower. Either way, compared with the all-wheel-drive V-6 Highlander, the hybrid’s EPA estimates are only better by a few mpg. Our real-world fuel economy was even less impressive, at 23 mpg overall—just 4 mpg better than the last nonhybrid Highlander we tested, a 2014 model that had the previous, less-efficient V-6 engine and a six-speed automatic transmission. With its new V-6 and eight-speed automatic, the current version likely would narrow the efficiency gap further. In our 75-mph highway fuel-economy test, this latest Highlander hybrid achieved 26 mpg—exactly the same as a nonhybrid 2016 Highlander V-6—or 1 mpg worse than its EPA highway rating and no better than some of its nonhybrid peers, such as the Mazda CX-9.