Honda introduced the new 2017 Ridgeline today at the Detroit Auto Show, and tons of spectators at the show complained about how it doesn’t look like a truck or isn’t a “real” truck. To them I say: you’re full of crap.
Sure, the front end looks soft and Honda Pilot-ish, but the profile looks no less truck-y than a Chevy Colorado. And while it gets independent suspension all the way around, is the only truck built on a unibody platform, and can be had in front-wheel drive form, I think the Ridgeline is plenty of truck for almost anyone shopping in the mid-size truck segment.
If FWD isn’t your thing, there’s torque-vectoring all-wheel drive too. But do you really need that?
The only engine option is a 3.5-liter V6, and while Honda hasn’t given us horsepower numbers, the Pilot makes 280 ponies, so the Ridgeline will probably make something similar. That engine, bolted to a six-speed auto will be able to haul approximately 1,600 pounds in the bed. Not bad.
That powertrain can be hooked up to an i-VTM4 Torque vectoring all-wheel system, so this thing could theoretically actually be a decent drift-mobile. The new ‘line still gets a dual-action tailgate and in-bed trunk like its predecessor, and boy was Honda PR selling the crap out of those features.
That’s all well and good, but the big news is the speaker system in the bed. Yup, Honda has stashed six speakers behind the bedliner— three on either side. You can’t see the speakers, but they’re there and pump 540 watts of sound, so if you want to crank “26's” by Chingy on full blast at a tailgate party, go right on ahead.
Think about it: do most people really need an insane hauling and towing rating, or do they just need something that has a bed and can carry stuff on occasion? This is a fantastic truck for normal folks. I like this truck a lot, even if it doesn’t look like Chuck Norris from the front.