Passport seats five, fits loads of cargo
Consumers drive the immense popularity of SUVs, and in turn that popularity benefits them, as automakers scramble to offer them even more choice. Honda's most recent addition is the Passport, which rides on the three-row Pilot's chassis, but it's shorter and only has seats five.
The emphasis is on carrying stuff rather than extra people, and this is where this sport-ute shines. From small-item storage up front to bigger items in the back, the Passport is an exceptional cargo-meister.
It comes in three trim levels, starting with the Sport at $42,705, the EX-L at $46,305, and my tester, the $49,705 Touring. The larger Pilot begins at $41,290, but don't compare apples to oranges – that's for a base trim the Passport doesn't offer, and the top-level Pilot Touring is $3,985 more than a Passport Touring.
All Passport trims use a 3.5 V6 making 280 horsepower and 262 pound-feet of torque, mated to a nine-speed automatic transmission. The engine seamlessly shuts off some cylinders for improved fuel economy when full power isn't needed. It also has automatic start/stop, shutting the engine off completely when you're stopped at a light and
starting back up again when you take your foot off the brake. There's a button to temporarily disable that function, if you prefer.
It's a stout engine but occasionally feels hobbled by the transmission, which can take a moment to make up its mind before downshifting when you want passing power. I also dislike the shifter, a row of push-or-pull buttons that take up as much console space as a conventional lever would.
All Passports are all-wheel drive, primarily driving the front wheels but able to send up to 70 per cent of torque to the rear whenever extra traction is needed. From there, the torque vectoring system can parcel it out to the left or right wheel as needed. There's some power to the rear at all times to make that transition even faster — because when you need grip, you need it now.
Honda advertises the Passport as an outdoorsy vehicle; it sits about halfway between most mainstream sport-utes and the true off-roaders, with more ground clearance than the Pilot and without as much rear overhang, so it can tackle steeper angles. Towing capacity is up to 5,000 pounds.
The steering is light and you feel the Passport's weight, especially on curves where there's a bit of body roll. The ride is fairly smooth overall, though, with most bumps soaked up before they make their way into the cabin.
Said cabin is roomy for front and rear passengers, and the seats stayed comfortable on a longer drive. The front chairs are heated on all trims, the rear seats are heated on the EX-L and Touring. The latter also adds ventilation to the front seats.
The Touring exclusively puts a wireless device charger in place of a cubby at the front of the console. But you likely won't miss that wedge of small-item space, because you also get twin front door pockets, a large glovebox, and a centre console bin that's wide and deep enough to have its own postal code. The huge cargo compartment has a deep bin below its floor, and the rear seats fold flat for carrying extra-long items.
The overall interior design is plain but handsome, although I'd swap out the large swaths of glossy “piano black” plastic in place of something that doesn't collect fingerprints quite as willingly, or throw off glare when hit by the sun.
I'd prefer the climate controls have dials rather than toggle switches for temperature, fan, and mode settings, but they're still easier to use than many — and any automaker that uses physical controls rather than touchscreens for frequently used functions is already ahead of the game. But while Honda finally put a volume dial back on the infotainment screen, a few more hard controls such as a radio tuning dial and menu buttons would be appreciated, especially since the touchscreen can be slow to respond when it's cold.
All three trim levels come fairly well-equipped, including automatic LED headlamps, a power sunroof, an auto-dimming mirror, trizone automatic climate control, a heated steering wheel, a 10-way power driver's seat, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
My top-line Touring added auto-leveling headlights, auto-dimming exterior mirrors, a 115-volt outlet, GPS navigation, a premium sound system, and rain-sensing wipers — which, regardless of the manufacturer, work well until they meet drizzle. Then they get confused and either don't come on as needed, or scrape away on dry glass.
All Passport models also include higher-tech safety features, including adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping assist, automatic high-beams, and emergency front braking.
The Sport and EX-L have LaneWatch, which uses a mirror-mounted camera to check the blind spot on the passenger side; when you activate the right-hand turn signal, a video feed appears in the centre screen, showing what's alongside the Passport.
It was a huge deal when it first came out and was only available on top-trim Honda models, but now the highestend Touring uses a traditional blind-spot monitoring system, which warns of vehicles on both sides.
The Passport does have some weaker points, but I like that Honda offers a vehicle for people who want a vehicle that's sized for optimum cargo functionality, but who don't want to take a third row of seats.
More choice is what it's all about, and this sport-ute delivers on that.