The Honda Ridgeline Is Not A Utilitarian Pickup Truck

"TheHondaBro" (wwaveform)
02/09/2015 at 14:15 • Filed to: honda ridgeline, honda, baja

If my infamous "What Honda Should Do To Be Taken More Seriously" post revealed anything, it's that people don't take the Honda Ridgeline very seriously. People tend to observe the Ridgeline's rear bed and assume it's a pickup truck. Sure it may resemble a pickup truck, but then people compare it to the Ram, F150, and all the other utilitarian pickup trucks. That's not fair, because the Ridgeline isn't a pickup truck.

To prove its worth, the Ridgeline successfully competes in the Baja 1000. This is old, old news, but it's unfortunately something not many people know. !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! on FourWheeler Network underscores the Ridgeline Trophy Truck as a tuning project commissioned by Honda and undertaken by two men.

Honda Motor Company has nothing to prove in the desert-at least on two wheels. In the last decade alone, factory-backed Honda motorcycle teams have notched nine straight wins in the Baja 1000. It would be hard to count just how many other off-road races have been won by riders astride Hondas, whether factory-backed or privateer.

Yet in 2005, Honda had a different desert-race goal in its sights. Faced with a mixed reception to its all-new Honda Ridgeline pickup, Honda decided to prove its truck's mettle by entering one in the grueling Baja race. Many truck makers over the years have traded on the cachet that comes with south-of-the-border desert competition, and Honda no doubt figured the Honda Ridgeline could get a nice boost by surviving one of the toughest challenges in all of motorsports.

Rather than start a truck-race program from scratch, Honda sought partners with experience in the desert, especially in the area of turning production vehicles into competition-ready machines. Clive Skilton and his son, Gavin, seemed perfectly tailored for the job. Originally with Don-A-Vee Motorsports (which has since become California Race and Rally, or CaRR), the Skiltons have spent some 15 years prepping and racing unibody Jeeps, and Clive now heads the JeepSpeed racing series. Another of Skilton's sons, Darren, successfully transformed Kia SUVs into desert race trucks that weren't just competitive; they notched an impressive series of wins.

Honda has plenty experience with desert off-roading, as is seen in their dirt bikes and ATVs. Beyond that, they have the Ridgeline: a desert truck. To compare this truck to the likes of a Ford F150 or Dodge Ram 1500 would be incorrect as they're not even in the same class. Sure, the Ridgeline has a bed in the rear, but a utilitarian pickup truck it does not make.

The truck's relatively light-weight construction makes it ideal for desert bashing.

Every Ridgeline I've seen in a Honda showroom sports either a couple of dirt bikes or an ATV. In advertisements, they don't show the truck to be a "take-to-lowes-and-transport-lumber-to-your-sweaty-man-job" truck. It's shown either on the road, toting desert toys, or in the desert itself. It's never shown doing typical pickup truck work.

It's not built like a Ram or a Ford F150 or the likes, so it can't be compared to them. What can you compare it to? Nissan Xterra, for starters.

Don't let the bed fool you, the Ridgeline is an SUV.

Now here are some photos of the Baja Ridgeline.

DISCUSSION (53)

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:17

I LOVE the Ridgeline so so so much. We have a Pilot because mom refused to let Dad get a "truck".

Id have one if they didn't hold value so well

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:18

It's not even a pickup truck, it's a car. Unibody construction=not a truck.

HammerheadFistpunch > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:26

Technically, the Ridgeline is a minivan, as it shares many mechanical and structural components with the Odyssey (and pilot). It's not a truck and its not comparable to an xTerra either (BOF with solid rear axle and low range) its basically just a Honda Pilot Ute....put another way, if Toyota made a ridgeline competitor it would be based on the highlander. The Ridgeline is a crossover with bed. Its a fine vehicle, but if crossovers are for people who wont be seen in a minivan, the ridgeline is for people who wont be seen in a crossover.

RELATED PLATFORM:

Honda Odyssey (North America)

FYI.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:26

I would say it's really just a Pilot for people who prefer a more useable truck over a third row. You're right, it's still a crossover SUV, not a full-on truck.

Logansteno: Bought a VW? > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:27

I've always had this sort of secret liking for the Ridgeline. Mostly because of how it looks.

TheHondaBro > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
02/09/2015 at 14:27

If I'm correct, the first Ridgelines were based on the Accord, right?

TheHondaBro > Logansteno: Bought a VW?
02/09/2015 at 14:29

There's definitely a rugged appeal to its appearance.

TheAutoRules > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
02/09/2015 at 14:30

The Jeep Cherokee and Grand Cherokee are unibody. Are they cars?

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:31

Yep, it is. In fact, I think they still are.

Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast. > HammerheadFistpunch
02/09/2015 at 14:33

I would love to see a Odyssey racing throughthe Baja 1000 just for the Lulz.

Party-vi > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:33

Well, Honda calls it a pickup truck, marketed it as a pickup truck, and it won Truck of The Year in 2006 from Motortrend, so I'd say it's a pickup truck. Just because it's a bad pickup truck compared to better models offered by juuuuuuuust about everyone else doesn't mean we can re-classify it to make it seem like it sucks less.

Is it a real truck? No, but since Honda insisted that we call it one means we can compare it to other trucks.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > TheAutoRules
02/09/2015 at 14:35

Yep. They're just cars that are really good at off-roading. They aren't trucks. Can't really pull anything or do other heavy truck work with them.

HammerheadFistpunch > Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast.
02/09/2015 at 14:36

That would be the lulz big time, it would also be fun to invalidate so many manufactures claims for BAJA greatness. i.e. Toyota getting 2nd in the stock class this last year (and first, but not a factory effort) in a class of...wait for it...3.

TheHondaBro > Party-vi
02/09/2015 at 14:37

Honda calls it a pickup truck, but it's really an SUV with a bed. It was never built from the ground up as a pickup truck, it's based on the Pilot.

Jonathan Harper > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:38

But it might be a good Zombie bug-out vehicle.

Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast. > Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast.
02/09/2015 at 14:38

Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast. > HammerheadFistpunch
02/09/2015 at 14:38

Ivan Stewart has a shop not far from my house. I am now going to make it a point to go by there and drop this idea into his head.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > HammerheadFistpunch
02/09/2015 at 14:38

But "Bed-added Tall Minivan" is so hard to say...
I actually know a farmer who owns one, but it's being used more as a Minivan+ than as a truck - real truck duty is handled by the truck in the family.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:39

I like what it offers a lot more than I like the looks. The buttresses drive me absolutely up the wall.

HammerheadFistpunch > Mr. Ontop, No Strokes, No Smokes...Goes Fast.
02/09/2015 at 14:39

Tell him I will personally contribute to that campaign.

HammerheadFistpunch > RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht
02/09/2015 at 14:41

how about Bedded Allweather Minivan?

BAM! a new class is born.

HammerheadFistpunch > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
02/09/2015 at 14:42

our old XJ 5 speed 4.0 pulled a trailer really well, granted it was only like 3000 lbs, but it handled it like a champ! Though I generally agree with your above statement. The XJ and the Pilot/Ridgeline had the same towing trick: embedded frame rails in the unibody.

RamblinRover Luxury-Yacht > HammerheadFistpunch
02/09/2015 at 14:43

Jules: I want you to go in that bag, and find my keys.
Pumpkin: Which keys are they?
Jules: They're the ones that say Bedded Minivan.

SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie > HammerheadFistpunch
02/09/2015 at 14:44

Yeah, I'm not knocking it. The XJ is one of the best vehicles ever built in my opinion. It's just not a truck.

HammerheadFistpunch > SidewaysOnDirt still misses Bowie
02/09/2015 at 14:47

fair enough, I'm calling my cruiser a truck though and to hell with those that say otherwise.

HammerheadFistpunch > Party-vi
02/09/2015 at 14:48

"And hillbillies prefer to be called 'sons of the soil' but its not goinga happen."

Kinja'd!!!

TheAutoRules > HammerheadFistpunch
02/09/2015 at 14:53

My 93 Land Cruiser came with full-floating rear axles and is body-on-frame. Totally a truck.

TheAutoRules > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:55

The Ridgeline has the same (mostly) underpinnings as my gen 2 Odyssey. My odyssey is pretty good off-road, in case you were wondering.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:56

Pictured: Why the ridgeline failed. Everyone wanted it to be a non-GM avalanche. It was not an avalanche. The ridgeline is a minivan without the captains chairs but with a pickup bed. The avalanche is a suburban with a pickup bed and storage cubbies in previously mentioned bed. The difference? Many thousdands of pounds in towing, a couple hundred pounds of payload, and a general difference in construction. Example - I worked for the leather company that did the leather for the GM trucks. We used a thicker hide, and a more robust surface coating. We did this to be resistant to things like belts, jean rivets, tools, and other objects commonly found in, and dropped/thrown into, pickups. I took a look at the ridgeline's leather and laughed my ass off. It's the same spec as the accord. Way too thin, way too weak. But then again anyone who hopped in it would know that. Hence why no one who wanted a pickup for pickup things bought one.

The ridgeline was 80% of the way to a good idea. But it got very similar gas mileage to the avalanche while having half the capability and sat in a showroom of well designed products. It is a rare honda that came out too soon, or maybe should never have been launched.

Kinja'd!!!

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > TheAutoRules
02/09/2015 at 14:57

Unibody 4x4s - it's a jeep thing :)

HammerheadFistpunch > TheAutoRules
02/09/2015 at 14:57

K294 option? (lockers)

TheAutoRules > HammerheadFistpunch
02/09/2015 at 14:58

Yep. Just as soon as I yank them from a wrecked one and put them in mine.

Mane > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 14:59

It's not a truck... but I still really like them.

TheHondaBro > Jonathan Harper
02/09/2015 at 15:03

I once saw a Ridgeline with Duck Dynasty stickers on it. I laughed.

TheHondaBro > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/09/2015 at 15:05

The Avalanche is a poor idea altogether. It's heavier than most pickup trucks, and it has poor off-road capabilities unless you're prepared to turn it into a prerunner. You might as well just get a real pickup truck. At least there's method to the Ridgeline's madness.

Party-vi > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 15:06

Sounds like the Ford Explorer Sport, Cadillac Escalade EXT and Chevy Avalanche. Truck-based SUV.

OPPOsaurus WRX > Party-vi
02/09/2015 at 15:15

I was thinking the Sport Trac. I think I have a hate for the Ridgeline because it was such a close competitor to my Sport Trac and everyone just assumed because it was a Honda it was automatically better. The others u named are much bigger. Also the design where the tailgate and bed walls meet is just plain ugly

OPPOsaurus WRX > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 15:19

I'd call it a truck. Its probably the closest thing to my Sport Trac and I used that thing as a truck, probably more like a truck than most F150 owners. The bed was small but it was fine for bringing the mountain bikes to the trails, trash to the dump and whatever you need at home depot for the weekend projects. The thing has a bed so in my book its a truck.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 15:20

Ummm......why does prerunning come into this? As far as a utilitarian vehicle is concerned, the reason why the avalanche is heavy is because it uses the beefier heavy duty frame of the suburban (in 2500 guise, otherwise it uses the fullsize pickup frame in 1500 guise). Off roading is not on most shoppers lists for a vehicle the size of either of these. The tacoma, colorado/canyon, and frontier are what you buy for off-roading on trails like the baja. But in terms of being a useful vehicle, the avalanche was very popular for two reasons - one, the covered bed with removeable panels mitiated the need to buy an aftermarket cap or cover and two, the bedsides were converted into storage spots with locked doors and everything. The bed itself also had more tiedown points and whatnot than the standard bed of the sierra or silverado. I think the ridgeline had some of this? But even so, avalanche can tow more and haul more inside while returning similar gas mileage.

Party-vi > OPPOsaurus WRX
02/09/2015 at 15:21

oh crap that's right - it was the Sport Trac.

norskracer98-ExploringTheOutback > TheAutoRules
02/09/2015 at 15:23

No, they're SUV.

and 100 more > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 15:50

Any idea how much the the baja "Ridgeline" is actual Ridgeline anymore?

I mean, Mini developed one of their cars for Dakar... but as a tube-framed, AWD sandrail with a contemporary Mini shell, you can hardly say it's a Mini.

TheHondaBro > and 100 more
02/09/2015 at 15:57

How much of a 1000hp drag Supra is an actual Supra anymore?

Any vehicle has to be modified to compete in motorsports, the fact that the Ridgeline's platform can withstand Baja 1000 is kmpressive, in the same way the modified Supra can achieve that much as a Supra.

and 100 more > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 16:06

I didn't mean it to sound critical of the Ridgeline. I was genuinely curious, and I was just hoping to pick your brain on the subject since you brought it up.

But you're right, we hang onto the name of the original platform, even if it just happens to be just a shell of its former self (literally), stuffed with brand-new internals.

I will give Supras, by-and-large, a pardon on this , as they typically have been known to have very robust drivetrains that are mod-friendly, and the chassis seem to be able to accomodate these upgrades in power, so a 1000-hp Supra is probably a lot more Supra, than a Dakar Mini is a real Mini.

I guess using those two as our scale ends - a modded Supra running factory internals (however upgraded) and a stock chassis (also, however upgraded) vs. a one-off, clean-sheet vehicle design that fits under a Mini shell - my question can be better asked as, where does the Ridgeline fall, in terms of maintaining its original parts?

Shift24 > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 16:44

Here is what you compare them too

Kinja'd!!!

The avalanche and those POS Ford explorer sport trac which will not even get a pic because that how much of a joke it is.

Chevy defined this category back in 2002 when this first came out and it was based on the Tahoe/Suburban platform. It was very versatile (back seats fold down) and allowed for comfort when hauling more than 2 people. It is still seen as not being a true truck because it was based on the SUV frame (ie tahoe with the back cut off). Now both the Avalanche and Ridgeline are decent SUV trucks but the reason the Ridgeline gets even more flack is because its based on a Minivan platform and has AWD its not true 4x4. The Avalanche has a better rep due to its true 4x4 and the crazy 8.1L Votec V8 GM stuffed in the 2500 versions. The AWD is one of the down falls of the ridgeline. It can only tow 5000lbs and gets a 21 mpg on the highway with a V6. The avalanche received the same rating with a 5.3l V8 with towing ranging from 5000 to 8000 lbs depending on body style. The 2500 was rated to tow 12,000 lbs but that was rated at like 14mpg highway.

But i will agree that the Ridgeline is basically a SUV though its platform being a re-purposed Mini-van. They also really need to redo the interior, the fan nobs look like wana-be tough stuff

E92M3 > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 16:54

But it will carry all the stuff your wife buys when you take her antiquing (which is what most guys with a truck do). They don't even cut their own grass, much less tow anything.

RyGuy > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 16:59

Dear Christ, there's so much misinformation being swatted around in this thread, I don't know where to begin.

Wait, I do — let's assault the misconceptions first:

- "The Ridgeline is a Pilot with the hatch thwacked off and replaced with a bed". While it may share some components with the Pilot, such as the drivetrain and front suspension components, the Ridgeline has a ladder frame built into its unibody and its very own rear suspension design that's beefier than any of its AWD platform-mates (see it's 5000 towing capacity vs 3500 for the SUVs).

- "The Ridgeline can't haul a goddamned thing in that sissy plastic bed." Payload is ~1500lbs. Compare that to contemporary crew cab pickups, and you'll find it's about the same, if not more in some instances, than full-sizers (without optional payload packages, of course).

- "The Ridgeline can't tow a goddamned thing." 5000lb standard towing might not be a high limit, but the truck is a rock solid towing machine up to (and by some accounts, beyond) its rated limit. It has a very wide track and low COG, and it's very stable in cross winds and when towing on twisty roads.

- "It's got that shitty 5 speed automatic that dies if you look at it funny." Honda got that transmission sorted by the time the Ridgeline came out. A guy on the forums has over 300k on his Ridgeline, and regularly tows his race car rig at and beyond the limit, no trans trouble. Trans cooler is the only mod, and that's a necessity for ANY vehicle used for towing.

- "It's only a V6 so it's got no grunt." The J35 makes something like 85% torque by 1500rpm. It's an overachieving engine in many ways. Don't knock it until you've lived with one.

- "It's FWD-biased so it can't be a truck!" So? That means it's more maneuverable in parking lots and when backing a trailer. The rear pumpkin, clutches, and axles are stout and can take all of the torque, and it's always ready to jump in when needed.

Nibby > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 17:41

The Ridgeline is a bastardized Odyssey.

Manic Otti > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 18:31

According to the websites - bed length:

Ridgeline 60"

Silverado:

shortbox 68"

standard 78"

longbed 98"

So the shortbox is just as useless, the standard isn't much better, the longbed is the only one you are getting lumber in with the tailgate up. Hence, most crewcab pickups on the road are just as useless as the ridgeline, and simply exist because guys that really need cars think they need a truck to drive to work.

TheHondaBro > and 100 more
02/09/2015 at 18:39

According to the FourWheeler article linked, the truck raced in the Stock Mini class, which meant the truck's modifications were limited.

It's basically a stock Ridgeline with some suspension/handling components and some weight loss. The article is a nice read.

and 100 more > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 18:44

My bad, glossed right over that link...

That's impressive!

Dusty Ventures > TheHondaBro
02/09/2015 at 20:15

Great article, just a couple technical corrections. The Ridgeline competed in the Baja 1000 (past tense), not competes (present tense). The team traded up (so to speak) to a Class 7 Honda Pilot (which is actually the Kia SUV mentioned in the article you linked, but with a fiberglass Pilot body). Also the Ridgeline isn't/wasn't a trophy truck, it was a Stock Full class truck. "Trophy truck" is a specific class within desert racing, and calling the Ridgeline a trophy truck is like calling a GT-AM class 911 a Le Mans Prototype (only with an even greater technological gap).

Dusty Ventures > and 100 more
02/09/2015 at 20:22

A lot is still Ridgeline. It ran in the Stock Mini class, which meant stock suspension components, stock engine (mostly), stock transmission, etc. That's the class my truck was built for. You can change the shocks (because you have to if you want any chance of surviving), change spring rates (so long as you don't adjust the mounting locations), improve the engine internals, and that's about it aside from the safety components. They're not tube frame cars like the Dakar Minis.