New York LIVE: 2020 Toyota Highlander

Toyota's bread-and-butter three-row gets a ground-up redesign.

The hotly contested mainstream three-row segment may seem like it prints money, but no manufacturer can afford to rest on its laurels for long. Toyota is the latest of the Japanese 3 to give us an all-new model. Arriving this fall, the 2020 Highlander will bring new tech, more space and more capability.

Perhaps one of the most sought-after feature inclusions for 2020 will be a new infotainment system with both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay capability. For those keeping track at home, Toyota only recently started adding Apple CarPlay integration to its lineup. Highlander will be the first model to offer both from the get-go.

Toyota will also offer its Safety Sense 2.0 suite on all Highlander models. The newest variant of Toyota's driver aid package includes lane tracing assist and road sign recognition for the first time alongside pre-collision braking with pedestrian detection, full-speed dynamic cruise control, lane departure warning and automatic high beams.

The new Highlander will continue to be offered in both gasoline and hybrid flavors, with the latter aiming for a 34-mpg combined EPA fuel economy rating. The gasoline-powered model's V6 will return with 293 horsepower and 263 lb-ft of torque and will be capable of towing up to 5,000 pounds. Hybrid models will boast a total system output of 240 horsepower--not bad at all for the mileage targets.

Both variants will be available with all-wheel-drive, and as is the norm, hybrid models will employ an electric motor to power the rear wheels, eliminating the need for a physical link between the front and rear axles. The 2020 Highlander will go on sale next winter, with gas models arriving in December and Hybrids following in the first quarter of the new year.