Okay, so my husband and I went looking at Highlanders and 4-Runners tonight (as well as the new Tundra's for him ... to replace the "old" body style he already has!). Turns out the Highlander has a front passenger airbag feature that senses the weight of the person in the seat. If the person is under 80 lbs, it automatically turns off. It also deploys the airbag based on the weight of the person. A heavier person's airbag would deploy stronger than a lighter person's.
Very interesting, eh? I thought it was cool. However, if only the 4-Runner had this feature, which it does not.
So, after driving the Highlander, I was leaning toward buying one. Then we drove the 4-Runner and I leaned extremely heavily toward buying one. In the end, I came home and drove my Sequoia and decided I like it better than both the others! Go figure! I still want something smaller, but neither the Highlander or the 4-Runner are it. I think what I REALLY want is an Acura MDX.
We're going to go look at them tomorrow, but I'm expecting to have to wait a while and I'm okay with that. It's nice to finally have a peace about this. I tossed and turned all night thinking about it! Bleh!