2006 Honda Ridgeline Review

Pickup trucks have been the top-selling vehicles in America for years, but popular Honda has been missing from the pickup market. Nobody really seemed to notice because Honda is well-known for cars, a few sport-utility vehicles and a minivan.

Honda finally was spurred to build a pickup truck when it found that more than 50,000 of its customers were buying pickups from other automakers each year. That's just too many potential pickup truck customers and profits to ignore.

Honda didn't have a powerful V-8 or rugged truck frame for a conventional pickup, so it cleverly put one together as an early 2006 model, which recently went on sale.

The mid-size Ridgeline is a carlike four-door pickup for those who want a roomy cabin with reasonable utility -- and the illustrious Honda nameplate. It's an all-wheel-drive truck with a roomy "crew cab" body and a short 5-foot-long bed with a rather high floor. It isn't meant to compete with burly full-size pickups, such as the Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado, Dodge Ram or Nissan Titan V-8 models.

Three models are offered, and all are well-equipped with comfort, convenience and safety equipment. There's even a power sliding rear window and side curtain airbags with a rollover sensor. The steering wheel tilts, but has no telescopic feature. Curiously, there's no driver vanity mirror on the sun visor, although the front passenger has one that's lit.

The entry RT model costs $27,700, while the mid-range RTS is $30,075, and the RTL lists at $31,490 -- or $34,640 with a moonroof, XM satellite radio and a navigation system.

The RTS adds alloy wheels, dual-zone automatic climate control and a better sound system while the RTL adds leather upholstery and heated front seats.

The Ridgeline looks offbeat. It has an aggressive front end, no traditional pickup "break" in the body between the cab and bed, slanted bed sides, square-top wheel openings -- and a tailgate top that's lower than the adjacent sides of the cargo bed, resulting in an ill-fitting look.

The Honda is about as long as a Toyota Tacoma crew cab short-bed model, at 206.8 inches. That makes it fairly easy to park, maneuver and garage.

Looks aside, the Ridgeline has exceptional utility with innovative features. A carlike independent rear suspension allows room for a lockable 8.5-cubic-foot trunk under the rear bed floor that can hold cargo such as luggage or three sets of golf bags. The tailgate drops down conventionally, but also swings open sideways to allow easier loading of the trunk.

The bed is designed to be dent- and rust-resistant, with no aftermarket bed liner needed to protect it. While short, it can hold a large 72-quart cooler and mountain bikes or swallow a 4-foot-wide plywood sheet.

It takes extra effort to climb into the rather tall 70.3-inch-high Ridgeline's quiet, upscale interior. But all doors swing open wide, and the bottom of the 60/40 split rear seat easily lifts and locks against the seatback to create a large in-cabin cargo area.

Two big, tall adults easily fit in back. There's room for a third rear occupant, but the center of the back seat is too hard for comfort. Front occupants have plenty of room, sit in supportive seats and face a carlike dashboard with oversized gauge numbers, hefty major controls but small sound system controls.

The quiet Ridgeline feels solid as a boulder, thanks to carlike unibody construction; it's said to offer up to 20 times the torsional rigidity of traditional body-on-frame truck designs. But Honda still adds a truck-style ladder frame to beef things up.

The Ridgeline can tow up to 5,000 pounds, which falls short of rivals such as the Dodge Dakota and Tacoma. But Honda found that most pickup owners who tow trailers don't haul more than 5,000 pounds. All Ridgelines come ready to tow, with no special towing package needed to provide items such as heavy duty brakes or a transmission cooler.

While there's no V-8, a 3.5-liter 255-horsepower V-6 with good torque provides lively acceleration -- at least with a partial load. While generally smooth, it sounds a little rough when pushed hard but provides good 65-75 mph passing and is backed by a responsive five-speed automatic transmission.

Estimated fuel economy is only 16 mpg in the city and 21 on the highway. That's partly because the beefed-up underpinnings cause the Ridgeline to weigh about 4,500 pounds. However, there's a 22-gallon fuel tank for a pretty good driving range.

The Ridgeline is fun to drive. Its quick, firm-feel steering imparts a feeling of confidence. The ride is comfortable, thanks to a long 122-inch wheelbase, and firm-but-supple carlike suspension. Handling is sharp -- assisted by a vehicle stability/traction control system that helps keeps the Ridgeline on the road if a driver gets in over his head. The anti-lock all-disc brakes work well with an easily modulated pedal.

While late, the Ridgeline is a truly different pickup in a market not known for much creative thinking.

2006 HONDA RIDGELINE

PRICES
$27,700-$31,490

LIKES
First Honda pickup. Roomy. Lively. Comfortable. Sporty handling. All-wheel drive.

DISLIKES
Polarizing design. Marginal fuel economy. High cargo bed floor. Small radio controls.