Interior

After climbing into the QX56, I pressed the ignition button (the intelligent key stayed in my purse) and the steering wheel moved into position while the seat moved forward automatically. You see, the QX56 remembered the last seat and steering-wheel position; it moved the steering wheel and seat out of the way when the ignition was turned off, which made getting in and out of the SUV awesomely easy.

There were so many places to store my stuff in the QX that I started creatively naming them. First off, there was the Black Hole Abyss, a deep center console that not only houses the DVD player but also swallowed my purse with room to spare. There was the Snack Containment Sector, where I fit a full pound of grapes, or I could use the swing-out cupholder to contain even the largest of coffee tumblers. There was also the Actually-Fits-My-Sunglasses Holder and the Ginormous-Holds-Books-and-Huge-Bottles-of-Water Door Bin.

Of course, the front seats were heated, but in another bit of awesome luxury the second-row seats were heated as well. Those second-row seats are captain’s chairs, and they have a huge center console between them, which provided not only extra cupholders (there are four in the second row and two more in the third), but an enormous bin to store the wireless headphones for the DVD system and anything else you care to bring along. But, since the QX56 is awesome, that isn’t the end of storage options for the backseat folks. There was a fold-down bin in the ceiling, which sat behind the fold-down video screen, for DVDs or books or whatever you like. The second row had so many features it was almost like being in a second set of front seats. Even the seat belts were height-adjustable, just like in the front seats.

In back, the third row folded at the touch of a button. I couldn’t get enough of those 60/40-split power-folding seats; I love stuff like that. Because the second-row console could be removed (or in our case, stepped upon), getting to the third row was easy, even if I didn’t feel like folding and rolling the second-row seats out of the way. That’s a serious bonus for folks who want to use the third row but have child-safety seats secured in the second-row seats. Ideally, though, only smaller people will want to sit in that third row. When I climbed back there, I wasn’t comfortable because I was wedged into place. Of course, I took pictures of that (see the photo gallery).

Sadly, upon closer inspection and further use, some of the QX’s awesomeness faded. The QX is so wide (78.8 inches) that the touch-screen and other controls, which sit in the center stack, are difficult to reach or awkwardly placed behind the shifter. The entertainment system ceased to be awesome when I couldn’t figure out how to play a DVD for the kids in the back and listen to my music up front at the same time. As far as I’m concerned, the whole value of the DVD system tanks because of that. 

shopping around: At cars.com

• Side-by-Side Comparison
• Auto Loan Calculator

• Build your own
• Check for Rebates

key interior: Features

available interior: Colors

Take the Next Steps at Cars.com

Shop for a car

New

Used

Certified

Make

Model

Search Within 10 miles 20 miles 30 miles 40 miles 50 miles 75 miles 100 miles 150 miles 250 miles 500 miles All

of

Your ZIP

Powered by Cars.com

Make

Model

Search Within 10 miles 20 miles 30 miles 40 miles 50 miles 75 miles 100 miles 150 miles 250 miles 500 miles All

of

Your ZIP

Powered by Cars.com