The Honda Ridgeline is nearly a guaranteed show at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show given the numerous teasers while the Hyundai Santa Cruz is doubtful as we have only seen a concept truck to date.
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The 2017 Honda Ridgeline will actually go head-to-head with several similarly sized trucks, the new Toyota Tacoma, Chevrolet Colorado, and GMC Canyon. The 3.5-liter V-6 and six-speed automatic transmission combo is also shared with the Pilot, though Honda has not released output information for the Ridgeline yet.
Honda isn’t talking specifics for power or economy at this stage, though it says it’s targeting segment-leading EPA numbers.
As Mendel presented the new truck it became clear that Honda will market the new Ridgeline primarily as a “truck for the rest of us”. For the first time Ridgeline will be available in a front-wheel drive version, though all-wheel drive will still be available.
Compared with the previous Ridgeline, which went out of production in 2014, the new bed is 5.4 ins.
USA designers and engineers led the redesign of the Ridgeline, which will be assembled at the automaker’s plant in Lincoln, Ala.
The truck also has a dual-action tailgate, hinged at the bottom and left side, which seemed to function well in a test last month.
At a practical level, the new Ridgeline will also have a more spacious cargo bed-longer and wider-responding to another owner lament. At 60 inches wide by 64 inches long, it’s 5.4 inches wider and 4 inches longer than the first generation.
Out of the gate, it’s composite lined, UV-stabilized, and scratch-resistant in the bed, while options include a locking In-Bed Trunk storage container, 400-watt power inverter, and – unusually – an in-bed audio system with 540 W of power split among six “exciters” mounted inside the bed walls. It will do that by offering systems such as Collision Mitigation Braking, Lane Departure Warning, Road Departure Mitigation, Forward Collision Warning, and Lane Keeping Assist.
For 2017, Honda fans willing to write the check can opt for a bed-wall-integrated 600 watt stereo system with television flatscreen connectivity.
The Ridgeline is expected to launch sometime in the first half of 2016. In other words, it’s still a spin-off from the Honda Pilot.
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Honda introduced the Ridgeline in 2005, and it has struggled to gain a wide following. As proof, the company plans to star the new truck in a 60-second Super Bowl TV spot on February 5, estimated to cost somewhere between $9 and $10 million, depending on timing. Honda expects the final payload capacity rating to be close to 1,600lbs.
