Comment on Honda sticking with nine-speed tranny

Nine-speed transmissions are here to stay. They’re being touted as a fuel-efficient selling point in vehicles such as the 2016 Honda Pilot, in top-of-the-line Touring and Elite trim levels. But these transmissions are also something that might take some getting used to. One aspect of these “teething” pains can be seen in the behavior of our Pilot Elite tester, which demonstrated a trait best described as “funky.” While coasting into a stoplight, the transmission downshifts and the engine revs higher in the lower gear, as it should, but the 4,317-pound SUV momentarily lurches forward.