C100: Anybody using a Honda Pilot as their production vehicle?

nedcam

nedcam

Well-known member
My POS blew up again and now I have 6 days to get a new car and am thinking of a new 2015 Pilot but I will have to miniaturize my kit. I tend to bring the kitchen sink but I can't go with a big vehicle anymore. I now have a smaller garage. Anybody using the Pilot?

I want to go 6 cylinders, prefer Japanese, although the Ford Flex looks like it could hold a lot, although the name Ford sounds like trouble. I took a tape measure to a Tahoe and the Pilot will hold more. I'd like the Tahoe because it will plow through the Chicago snows, I've had a Suburban and that's what a Tahoe basically is but shorter. It's just that 8 cylinders will be bad news when gas prices go back up. I've never had Japanese but I think their reliability will be greater.

The first thing I do is custom build shelves, I often remove the seating. Has anyone here removed the seats in a Pilot? So many models have become cross overs we can't load as many cases. I'm considering getting custom padded cordura cases made for items like my Diva light, 1x1, etc. so the cases will take up less cubic inches, plus not scratch the hell out of the interior.

On the few days I need to bring absolutely everything (all three Pelicans, seamless, all the lights, etc.) I can build in the price of a van rental. I used to have two full size Chevy vans plus an Astro (my favorite) and I seldom filled them up.

So if you have a Pilot I'd value your opinion.
 
I do not, but I have a buddy that uses one. Last time I saw him, he just kind of stuffed things in there. No shelving or such. While I think it works for him, I will say he gets wood every time he sees my Sprinter Van. :Drogar-BigGrin(DBG)
 
I would love a Pilot.. but seriously considering a CRV as well... All of this comes out of my '14 Civic currently!!... time for a change soon. photo.jpg
 
For small crew one man band stuff, the dodge caravan with stow and go is the best vehicle to work out of. I have a ford 350 van and the caravan and I usually work out of the caravan.
 
I have worked out of a 2005 Pilot for 10 years and it is still going strong. When I need more room there is usually more crew and I either rent a grip truck (sprinter) or have the crew carry gear.
 
dustylense said:
For small crew one man band stuff, the dodge caravan with stow and go is the best vehicle to work out of. I have a ford 350 van and the caravan and I usually work out of the caravan.
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Yeah the Caravan is a perfect vehicle for that.

Still love my Nissan NV1500 though.
 
I use my 2014 Hyundai XL as a production most days as its my personal vehicle.

I have worked for a production company which uses Honda Elements as their production vehicles. The vehicle is considerably smaller than my Hyundai XL but because you get so much vertical space compared to traditional SUV but not quite like the sprinter or Transit or other small cargo van styles. The honda element with its removable back seats and no mid pillar is a nice compromise of utility and serviceability outside of work hours. Easy to park also.

If I were just going out to buy a do it all work van and wasn't going to go full van like the sprinter or Transit I would look at the Dodge Caravan or Honda Element if I worked in an urban city where parking is key.
 
dustylense said:
For small crew one man band stuff, the dodge caravan with stow and go is the best vehicle to work out of. I have a ford 350 van and the caravan and I usually work out of the caravan.
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Yep! That's what I have and couldn't be happier...well, I would if it had 4x4 (I live in eastern Canada), but I can live with it.
 
Thanks guys!

• The Piece of S**t I have owned for 3 years is the stow and go 2008 Chrysler Town & Country which is the same as the Caravan, where the seats fold flat into the floor so it's basically a giant box with my custom shelves, has 114K miles on it and for the 2nd time within 8 months a plastic $5 Y connector for the radiator hoses blew sky high, leaked all the fluid, and left me stranded on the side of the tollway causing a $80 tow, $500 repair and $400 in a two day van rental. I love how much gear it fits but having only 2 wheel drive really sucks in the snow. A DP buddy in NC loves them but says he gets rid of his at 80K miles. Maybe that's what I should have done. In fact, the last repair the mechanic said anything American made I should change ALL the hoses, belts and clamps at 100K even if they look perfect. I do a lot of shooting out the side with a bungee cord, car to car, car to bike, etc. Love how it loads both sides. But when I have a big gig, especially a live event, I don't want to have to worry about the car failing to get me there. I really need a van but don't have the garage space.

For 20 years I get my brakes done at Car X and the owner told me he's not going to honor the warranty anymore because I obviously am using the car to carry heavy gear and I am burning the brakes out much quicker than a regular Joe and he'd go broke honoring it for guys like us. I put 22K a year on my production vehicles and this car's brakes are too wimpy for what a DP carries.

There's rust around all the wheel wells and the body shop told me that's because of the alloy Chrysler used during that period and they can't repair it, so I would never buy another one.

I often drive with a soundman as a passenger, but if I go down in size I will have to have him follow me in his car, including neighboring states?

• David Jones: Last weekend I had a DP do my second unit for an infomercial, highly stylized b-roll, very high end guy with Alexa, F55, and a black Sprinter. I asked him how he functions with it in downtown Chicago since he can't use garages. Because he is very high end, meaning large crews and production/location managers, they get him permits to park. My kind of clients would ask me what a permit is. Also, I would not be able to park it at my house.

• Chappelldigital: The CRV looks nice, holds less than the Pilot. However, for the weight you and I carry, don't you think we'd burn out a 4 cylinder?

• McGee: I didn't know about the Nissan NV1500, I'll go back to Nissan. I was considering the Armada but it is too much $ and it's 8 cylinders. My garage size is a factor. My wife refuses to allow a Ford Transport to be in our drive.

• Framefarm: I considered the Element but since they no longer make them I didn't want to buy a model where the parts may be rare in a few years.

In sum, what I don't know how to figure out is how a smaller car will handle the kind of days where I have many locations where I just need to hop out of the vehicle and grab shots, meaning that the rig is already assembled and I just need access to the tripod. If it's a pure b-roll day I can configure properly but if the car is loaded with 100% cases, I don't know what to do with a Pilot size car. Although the Pilot and Tahoe size cars will fit all my cases when they are closed, I can't wrap my head around how to jump out and grab b-roll 20x a day. I used to have the Jeep Grand Cherokee for smaller shoots and that proved too small. I have a custom made case I call The Coffin (see below) where the Frankenrig or ENG camera is all assembled so I can pull it out and be rolling in 5 seconds. Will check out the Nissan NV1500.

I have seen a flat carrier that attaches to the trailer hitch, that may carry my large rolling Kata light case IF it's not raining. But then parallel parking would be hard to do.

Or...maybe now I should transition to just producing. Oh well, thanks for your input!

Thanks
 

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nedcam said:
• David Jones: Last weekend I had a DP do my second unit for an infomercial, highly stylized b-roll, very high end guy with Alexa, F55, and a black Sprinter. I asked him how he functions with it in downtown Chicago since he can't use garages. Because he is very high end, meaning large crews and production/location managers, they get him permits to park. My kind of clients would ask me what a permit is. Also, I would not be able to park it at my house.
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That is likely one of the only drawbacks to owning a Sprinter. Parking decks, garages and the like with low roofs.

Many time I will commandeer parking when needed at various locations, and block off the area with traffic cones. Especially for load outs.

Here's a thought Ned.... In my area there is a work truck & van place. And that is all they sell. Had I not bought the Sprinter some years back, I would likely try and work out a trade with them. Commercial production for a properly equipped vehicle.

You might check your area for a place like that before you buy.

Good Luck!

Dave
 
nedcam said:
My POS blew up again and now I have 6 days to get a new car and am thinking of a new 2015 Pilot ...
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Good plan. I had a ford, not making that mistake again. Had 14 recalls when I let it go, and needed $4500 worth of repairs when I traded it for $900. Had 80k miles on it. POS indeed. Not buying another ford. No no no.

The Hondas are nice. The Subarus are nice, might be too small for you but the AWD does great in the snow. Personally I wouldn't have a vehicle in Chicago without AWD.
 
Looking all over on my day off but these Nissan NV1400s are as rare as hens teeth! When I was making the payments on the awfully expensive Suburban, I noticed that none of the clients wanted to pay anything extra and man did they like the ride. We're in a biz where prices are stagnant or going down so the Pilot EXL is about the top of my pain threshold. I'm on my back nine. Although I don't like the look of a UHaul I may need options for the really big shoot days. It's getting harder to rent cargo vans, I can't find any.

So I am also exploring what's involved in removing everything in total behind thePilot's front seats. Quite complex.
 
Bruce Watson said:
I had a ford, not making that mistake again.
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I have to stand up for Ford! I just sold off my '98 Ford Explorer with 225,000 miles on it this week. It was running strong and still has a lot of good life in it. I beat on it regularly and it still ran like a champ and needed few repairs. I know they're not all like that, but you can't trash an entire brand for one bad car. Maybe I shouldn't claim they're all awesome based on one truck, but just wanted to point out that Ford can also make some really good ones.
 
i drive a honda odyssey which i like a lot, but it's about the same size as your town and country and doesn't have 4 wheel drive.
 
William_Robinette said:
Ford is currently making some of the best cars in the world across all its platforms.

Don't let the late 90's memories skew your perception.
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Why not? Ford's dealers wouldn't stand behind their product then, what's changed that they will now? And most importantly, why should I believe them now when they lied to my face back then? It only makes sense to let my memories of their deceptions, lies, and endless quality problems protect me from ever buying a Ford again. Not. Going. To. Happen.
 
Andrius Simutis said:
I have to stand up for Ford! I just sold off my '98 Ford Explorer with 225,000 miles on it this week.
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Yeah, I've heard they and all American manufacturers make much better trucks than cars, and that's been true in my experience too. My POS ford was a contour. Excellent design, disastrously built. Did have a nice drivers seat though -- the third one anyway. The ford was shedding paint after less than two years -- you'd think they'd paint the cars just like the trucks, yes? I did. Apparently not.

That said, the Subaru I replaced it with has been a constant joy for the last decade, still going strong, not a single recall, not a single problem. Highest quality car I've ever owned, and the longest I've ever kept a car. Can't bear to let it go.

The Honda I had decades ago was great too. But I traded it in on a Mazda RX-7. What can I say? I was young, and it was a blast!
 
Man, lots of Ford hate. That's all I've bought since the late 90's. Before my first Ford, it was a Grand Cherokee. Now THAT is a POS. Jeeps are overpriced, overhyped and well… you can figure out the rest.

I'm currently on my fourth Ford truck in 17 years(2 Expeditions, an F-150 and currently a 250) and I've loved all of them(my GF who is a 'Toyota girl' drives my 10 year old 150 everyday). The 250 is my favorite out of all of them, though. I went diesel and it will haul anything you throw in it. Empty, full… it doesn't matter. Even loaded up at 10K+ lbs (total), you would never know it. Did custom shelves and raised flooring in the back so I can load a LOT in there. The biggest drawback is the bed height when loading and unloading. BUT I still fit into most parking decks/garages(it's 6'8") and I can park it in normal parking spots better than a lot of people with compact cars.

I have a few friends with tricked out Sprinters and they are convenient as hell, but you can't park them in any parking decks(or at least VERY few) and they don't seem like a vehicle I'd want to make a long trip in(I constantly do 2:30hr to 5:00hr+ trips).

Another buddy had a mini-van for years back in the 90's and had so many problems he swore off Dodge/Chrysler/Plymouth for 10 years. He then went with trucks and is the reason I eventually went that way. Recently(the last year or two) he has gone back to a mini-van and swears by it. He built some very basic shelving in the back, but the thing he loves the most is having sliding doors on both sides.

There are so many choices out there and if all I did was 'local stuff', within an hour of me, I'd probably customize some type of cargo van. But I do a lot of out-of-state shooting and even long trips within my own state and I want something that is comfortable, drives & rides well and I feel at home in so that I don't mind spending half a day or more in it.
 
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