Big Family SUV Drag Race Involves Pathfinder, CX-9, Pilot, and Grand Cherokee L

It's been years since Sam has been using this former airstrip as his unprepped track for drag and roll races – and we've finally caught enough hints (not the windmills and corn, of course) about his location. As it turns out, he operates out of the No. 6 RCAF Dunnville Museum in Dunnville, Ontario, Canada, which features a beautiful collection of WWII vintage airplanes – in case there are also aircraft fans among the automotive aficionados.

Anyway, now that we have that sorted out, this encounter features some of the most mundane family-oriented crossover SUVs one can find – the Nissan Pathfinder, the now-defunct Mazda CX-9, the popular Honda Pilot, as well as the Jeep Grand Cherokee L. Starting with the latter, the technical specifications include a naturally-aspirated 3.6-liter V6 with 293 horsepower and 260 lb-ft sent through an eight-speed automatic to a 4WD system.

The weight is pretty high – according to Sam the Jeep comes in at 5,112 pounds or 2,318 kilograms. Secondly, the Honda Pilot also has an NA V6, but it's a 3.5-liter with 285 hp and 262 lb-ft of torque sent to the AWD system through a ten-speed automatic – weight is a lot less at 4,670 pounds or 2,118 kilograms. Thirdly, we have the now-defunct Mazda CX-9, which was replaced by the all-new CX-90 but used to feature a 2.5-liter inline-four turbo mill with 250 hp and 320 lb-ft of torque sent to all four wheels through a six-speed automatic.

We're still dropping weight – the CX-9 is 4,364 lbs or 1,979 kg heavy. Last but not least comes the Nissan Pathfinder, which is back to a 3.5-liter NA V6 with 295 hp and 270 lb-ft of torque sent through a nine-speed transmission to a 4WD system. The weight is back up to 4,634 lbs and 2,103 kg – but it's the most powerful and the second-lightest of the bunch. This should be interesting.

As always, Sam kicks off the racing proceeds with all four doing a roll race from 50 kph or roughly 32 mph. The fastest turns out to be one of the Japanese family CUVs – Honda's Pilot beats them with a two-car advantage at least, followed by a close call between the Mazda and the Nissan, while the Jeep is dead last, following them at an SUV's distance. Secondly, they do the 80 kph or 50 mph attempt, and things turn out a bit differently at the top.

This time around, it's the Pathfinder that crosses the finish line first, and there's another heavy battle for second place between the Mazda and Honda. Again, the big Jeep is following them from a pretty big distance. Next, we are on to the digs with drag race number one looking like a walk in the park or a shopping Sunday. The second one is more of the same, but the Pathfinder takes the lead, followed by the CX-9, Pilot, and the lonely Jeep at the bottom of the line.

The final drag race attempt is also the definitive one because we have the unprepped quarter-mile times. So, the Nissan Pathfinder does zero to 60 mph (96 kph) in 6.6 seconds and the ¼-mile in 15.1 seconds, followed by the CX-9 with 6.8s and 15.2s, the Pilot with 6.9s and 15.4s, and the Jeep with 7.4s and a time of 15.7 seconds.