Compare the2025 Honda PilotVS 2024 VinFast VF 9

For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Honda Pilot have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The VinFast VF 9 doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

For enhanced safety, the front seat shoulder belts of the Honda Pilot are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The VinFast VF 9 doesn’t offer height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Pilot are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The VF 9 doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Using vehicle speed sensors and seat sensors, smart airbags in the Pilot deploy with different levels of force or don’t deploy at all to help better protect passengers of all sizes in different collisions. The Pilot’s side airbags will shut off if a child is leaning against the door. The VF 9’s side airbags don’t have smart features and will always deploy full force.

When descending a steep, off-road slope, the Pilot’s standard Hill Descent Control allows you to creep down safely. The VF 9 doesn’t offer Hill Descent Control.

Both the Pilot and the VF 9 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The Honda Pilot has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2024 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned an “Acceptable” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The VF 9 has not yet been evaluated by the IIHS for 2024.

The Pilot’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the VF 9’s (unlimited vs. 125000 miles).

There are almost 268 times as many Honda dealers as there are VinFast dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Pilot’s warranty.

The Pilot has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The VF 9 doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Pilot TrailSport has a standard full size spare tire so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the VF 9; it requires you to depend on roadside assistance and your vehicle will have to be towed.

For greater off-road capability the Pilot TrailSport has a greater minimum ground clearance than the VF 9 (8.3 vs. 7.4 inches), allowing the Pilot to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Honda Pilot may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 1850 to 2100 pounds less than the VinFast VF 9.

The front grille of the Pilot uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The VF 9 doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Pilot uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The VF 9 doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

The Pilot offers optional seating for 8 passengers; the VF 9 can only carry 7.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Pilot’s middle and third row seats recline. The VF 9’s third row seats don’t recline.

Maximum trailer towing in the VinFast VF 9 is limited to 3968 pounds. The Pilot 4WD offers up to a 5000 lbs. towing capacity.

Standard Trailer Stability Assist on the Pilot uses the Vehicle Stability Assist sensors to detect trailer sway, then uses individual brakes to counteract any swaying and help keep the tow vehicle and trailer steady. The VF 9 doesn’t offer electronic trailer sway control.

To improve rear visibility by keeping the rear window clear, the Pilot has a standard rear fixed intermittent wiper with a full on position. The rear wiper standard on the VF 9 only has an intermittent setting, so in a hard rain visibility isn’t as good.

The Pilot TrailSport/Elite/Black Edition has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The VF 9 doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The Pilot is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The VF 9 doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Honda Pilot, based on reliability, safety and performance.