Back for 2017, Honda Ridgeline earns top safety ratings
Honda’s Ridgeline is on a roll. Last month, a panel of journalists named Honda’s midsize pickup the 2017 North American Truck of the Year. It was a warm “welcome back” for the Ridgeline, which was sidelined for a couple of years.
Then, this month the Ridgeline earned some more love in the form of a five-star overall rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The truck had already racked up a Top Safety Pick Plus award from the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety.
Those feats would suggest that Honda was onto something with its Ridgeline reboot. The automaker has a long track record of going its own way, from becoming the first Japanese automaker to build cars in the United States, to today’s ventures into robots and executive jets.
The second-generation Ridgeline marches to its own beat, able to perform many of the tasks a fullsize pickup is put to while delivering a more car-like driving experience. While the Ridgeline may not even rate a glance from diehard full-size pickup buyers looking for a pure work truck or towing big trailers or hauling heavy loads, it could be just the ticket for pickup owners or buyers looking to downsize or stretch the fuel budget. Available for the first time in both two-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive, the former is rated at 19 miles per gallon in the city and 26 on highways, while AWD costs an additional mile per gallon in both categories.
Instead of body-on-frame of construction used in traditional pickups, Honda went the unibody route with the 2017 Ridgeline. There are no choices to make in body style or powertrains. All Ridgelines have crew cabs, a 280-horsepower V6 and a wideratio six-speed automatic transmission. The directinjection 3.5-liter motor puts out 262 lb.-ft. of torque. Along with the 30-horse bump and the 15 lb.-ft. increase in torque, the new Ridgeline is 78 pounds lighter, on average, than the previous generation.
There are seven trim configurations in the Ridgeline lineup: RT ($29,475), RTS ($31,515), Sport ($33,015), RTL ($33,780), RTL-T ($35,930), RTL-E ($41,470) and Black Edition $42,970. At extra cost, AWD is available with every grade but the loaded RTL-E and Black Edition both have AWD standard. The Ridgeline can haul a payload of up to 1,584 pounds and tow up to 5,000 pounds, depending on trim and configuration.
The new Ridgeline is easy to spot. It’s more aerodynamic, with modern, low-profile headlights (LED projector headlights and running lights are available or standard depending on model) and the sides of the cargo box no longer slope down from the cab. The 2017 is shorter and far more level sides make the cargo area a lot easier to access. The previous truck’s high sides were a bone of contention — and sometimes a deal breaker — with the first-generation pickup (or sport utility, as it was also called).
The bed is made of UV-stabilized composite material that is scratch and dent resistant, doing away with the need for a bed liner. It’s also 3.9 inches wider and 5.5 inches wider than the last (2014) Ridgeline, meaning 4-foot wide items like plywood or drywall can be stacked between the wheelwells on the flat floor. The tailgate opens conventionally or like a door for better access. In addition to bed lights and eight standard 350-pound tie-down cleats, an 115V AC in-bed power outlet is available that can provide 400watt charging with the engine running.
All Ridgelines come standard with a Class III towing hitch and AWD modes add a 7-pin wiring connector.
Inside, Honda has added more soft-touch material. The Ridgeline’s 60/40-split and folding rear seat offers seating for up to three passengers and, with the seat bottoms folded up, has the capacity to carry bulky items like a television or a bike. The truck’s under-seat storage area can carry long items, such as golf clubs, with the rear seats folded down.
With a touch of a button, the 2017 Ridgeline’s new traction management system offers normal, snow, mud and sand modes for AWD models while 2WD versions have normal and snow settings.
The top safety ratings only apply to models equipped with the stateof-the art electronics and sensors to keep you on the safe and narrow. The Ridgeline’s suite, called Honda Sensing, is available or standard on certain models and includes collision mitigation braking system, lane departure warning, forward collision warning, lane keeping assist system, road departure mitigation, and adaptive cruise control. Depending on trim, the Ridgeline can also be equipped with Honda LaneWatch, rear cross traffic monitor and a blind spot warning. The catch, as usual, is that the package is not available on the lower end of the model range. The solution? Start paying attention to driving again and stow the phone in the lockable glove compartment. At least the rear-view camera is standard across the board. (It will be required on all light vehicles sold in the U.S. soon.)
Our Ridgeline RTL-E rode well, cruised quietly (thanks in part to the acoustic windshields on RTL and above) and we saw 20 mpg. The midsize pickup is easy to get into (ground clearance is a corresponding 7.8 inches) and we appreciated the storage solutions. The in-bed lockable compartment is downright handy.
Our loaded tester had the 8-inch touch screen and four USB ports, two with 2.5-amp charging. You don’t have to splurge, spending full-size truck money for a midsize. The RTS and higher have remote start, smart entry, fog lights, Homelink, and tri-zone climate control standard. Every 2017 Ridgeline works with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto for integration with compatible smartphones.