The Honda Ridgeline is unlike any other truck available in North America today. How so? Well, none of its rivals are built on a car-based unibody structure and not a single competitor features an independent rear suspension.
Clearly, Honda has taken a different approach with its pickup. Rather than shooting for the moon and delivering segment-leading capability, they engineered a truck that’s as easy to live with as an Accord sedan. The Honda Ridgeline may not offer best-in-class towing or hauling figures, but it’s still solidly capable and far more comfortable and refined than any of its main rivals.
This truck is tailormade for lifestyle customers, people that don’t swing a hammer or operate construction equipment to earn a living. Instead, it’s aimed at weekend warriors, folks that enjoy camping or anyone in need of an open-air bed for hauling messy items. The Ridgeline will happily tow a small boat or some jet skis, haul a heap of bagged mulch and is more than willing to be loaded up with mountain bikes or kayaks.
Redesigned in model-year 2017, the second-generation Honda Ridgeline is more rugged and feature-laden than ever before. It’s also far more handsome than its predecessor, which was dressed in weird bodywork that made it look more like a refrigerator that fell on its side than any sort of road-going vehicle.
The Honda Ridgeline was designed and developed in America. Styling was handled by the company’s studio in Los Angeles, California, while engineering and development was carried out in Ohio. Further wrapping itself in the flag, Ridgelines are assembled in Lincoln, Alabama.