Honda Ridgeline SUT

55535432 · March 2006

It's just the same with the new Civic... which doesn't seem to be average or better in reliability when all of the owner are complaining about an awful lugging in their engine.

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The above claim is a sweeping statement, that needs to be substantiated by a link or an official Honda recall.Otherwise the integrity of the person making the generalized statement by using the word all, becomes suspect and ends up totally unreliable.

I could be wrong but has anyone encountered a link showing all new CIvic owners complaining about lugging (whatever that is? :sick:

sparksridge · March 2006

I live in Central Pa where it really does get very cold at times. I find the Auto setting on my Ridgeline works perfectly. I did discover that if you cut the air flow on outer dash vents back to about 60%, the system reaches the set temperature very quickly and holds it perfectly no matter what speed you are going. Setting the vents that way also puts more heat on your feet so they also stay comfortable. I just set it and forget it. I have had my black ridgeline since April 05 and the HVAC works great in the summer heat as well. The key very well may be in the adjustment to those dash vents.

I will also add that my Ridgeline has been trouble free, other that one simple loose connector on an interior light that took two minutes to fix, for the entire 8,500 miles that I have had it. I couldn't be happier. It's a great vehicle!

maple2 · March 2006

I will also add that my Ridgeline has been trouble free, other that one simple loose connector on an interior light that took two minutes to fix, for the entire 8,500 miles that I have had it. I couldn't be happier. It's a great vehicle!

wow 8500 miles almost trouble free it must truly be a great mini van with a box!!

bitusa · March 2006

I understand that the spare tire is located in the lockable "trunk" in the bed of the truck. If this is true, what happens if you have, let's say a bed full of mulch and you get a flat tire? How do you get to the spare?

bitusa · March 2006

Haven't seen anything about "lugging". Consumer Guide did say that its testers thought the 140 hp engine was noisy and acceleration at highway speeds required "foot to the floor" driving for passing and lane changes.

gugimann · March 2006

this truck is great, ive had it for about 5 months now and ive got about 6500 miles on it, it drives great and the only reason that i had brought it back to the dealer was a paint chip and thats it, ive driven it in snow and its the best thing ever, never even slipped a bit,

moparbad · March 2006

Honda sells an accessory bracket to mount the spare on the inside of the bed i/o the trunk for those so inclined to do so.

If you have the bed fully loaded and the spare is in the "trunk", the bed must be unloaded to access the spare.

bitusa · March 2006

Thanks.

Many journalists have touted this "trunk" as an innovative feature and asked why no one else had thought of it before Honda. I guess what happened was, it had been thought of and every one decided it was not a very customer-friendly feature. I do not believe we will see Ford, GM and Dodge rushing to their respective drawing boards to include this feature on their trucks.

varmint · March 2006

LOL. Not exactly. But they have rushed to include under the bed storage.

And the unexpected features don't stop there. Rampage delivers exceptional cargo carrying capacity above and below the dual-bed floor. Acting as a second tailgate, the rear bumper fascia also drops down to reveal an enclosed storage space extending (with the seats up) far enough forward to provide room enough to accommodate a stack of 4'x8' plywood sheets.

"This is 'clean storage,'" says Krugger, "something most pickups today don't have."

Notice the word "most" in that last statement.

atlgaxt · March 2006

We have been over this so many times on this Forum...

Ok, lets use your example. You have a pickup loaded up with 1,000 lbs of mulch, gravel, sand, etc. You get a flat. So you are telling me that you are going to trust a jack to lift a truck with a potentially shifting load. Then you are going to crawl underneath it to pull off the spare, all the while hoping that the truck with a flat tire will not come crashing down on your head? If I am in a loaded truck, I am going to offload cargo before lifting it, whether the tire is in the bed or below the truck.

Or more likely (as I do not ride around with a bed full of mulch, sand, gravel, etc. all that often) I get a flat on a muddy dirt road. Then I have to crawl underneath the truck to get the spare. Might be fine for someone who likes to play in the mud and does not fear head injuries (which seems to describe a lot of Ridgeline critics). Me, I'd rather get the spare out of the bed.

gd113 · March 2006

Hmm.... I guess you haven't seen the new 2007 Ford Sport Track with its 4 wheel independent suspension and "in bed" storage compartment.

once_for_all · March 2006

what I haven't seen are any kind of reviews of the new SportTrac, sitting on dealer lots right now. C'mon already, Edmunds, C&D, Road & Track, CR, this truck is the best thing since the Ridgeline. Let's see some assessments of ride and handling.

John

maple2 · March 2006

Then you are going to crawl underneath it to pull off the spare, all the while hoping that the truck with a flat tire will not come crashing down on your head? If I am in a loaded truck, I am going to offload cargo before lifting it, whether the tire is in the bed or below the truck.

only a moron would jack the truck up before you got the spare out why would you want to jack the truck up first? you get the spare off first then you worry about taking off the flat maby the flimsy honda jacks wont take the extra weight of a loaded truck but real trucks come with real jacks so it should be no problem if you use your head

mrjjgittes · March 2006

I agree. Perhaps I am outside the mainstream, but when I have needed loose sand, gravel, or mulch, it has usually been associated with a major project being handled by a contractor at my house, and he takes care of it. Typically when I buy that kind of stuff for my projects, it is in individual plastic bags and if I were to get a flat, I'd simply unload them and change the flat (or let the AAA guy do it). Hey, the RL is not perfect, but that trunk and the 2 way tailgate are fantastic innovations and the fears about access to the spare with the ubiquitous load of gravel in the bed seems like grasping at straws by chagrined competitors.

aspesisteve · March 2006

I see the Ridgeline comes pre wired for towing.

After putting a hitch on does the truck require the expensive tranny cooler that other Honda's do?

What does Honda charge to install this option?

anyone know?

kernick · March 2006

you: (or let the AAA guy do it).

me: I really never checked, but Honda doesn't have roadside assistance during the warranty period? If it does great, or else I'd have AAA, as you said.

I certainly think it ridiculous that if you're going to pay the kind of money for a new vehicle like this, you're going to be concerned about changing your own flat. AAA is what $70/year? I'll jackup a vehicle in my driveway, using a floorjack, but there is no way I want to use ANY jack supplied with the vehicle, on a roadside. Maybe I've seen too many RealTV videos of cars getting nailed in the breakdown lane.

If my car/truck breaksdown for any reason, I'm getting away from it. Well maybe I'd try one of those Fix-a-Flat cans but that's it.

maple2 · March 2006

I certainly think it ridiculous that if you're going to pay the kind of money for a new vehicle like this, you're going to be concerned about changing your own flat. AAA is what $70/year?

yes but the point is your still going to have to unload the bed to get the spare unless you think the friendly AAA guy is going to shovel your boxload of mulch or whatever you have out of the box, retrieve your spare, change your tire, and then load up your truck again. Im thinking that aint gonna happen

rsholland · March 2006

For me, the location of the Ridgeline's spare is less important than the fact that the spare is a "temp" tire, and not a full-service tire. For a pickup "truck," that's borderline insane.

Bob

varmint · March 2006

The tranny cooler is standard equipment. It's installed at the factory.

varmint · March 2006

Ditto. The temp spare is pure cost-cutting. The space under the bed will fit a full-size tire, which you can get from the dealer, but it's an added cost when it should be standard on a truck.

whaleya · March 2006

If you're worried about the spare, why don't you just bolt it to the side of the bed? That way you can get to it with the bed full. (details outlined in the RL manual). It's not an accessory bracket, the parts are included with each RL (unlike a real spare or TPMS for the spare)

For towing, it's pre wired BUT you need to plug in the rear harness and install a few relays and a small narness under the dash. The exact details are in a downloadable PDF file that is listed at most online sites that offer Honda accessories.

bolivar · March 2006

Answering a question with a question.

Be truthful, when was the last time you got a flat out on the road?

aspesisteve · March 2006

re: "when was the last time you gat a flat out on the road?"

That's like saying why have airbags - I mean when was the last time you had a head on?

You're more likely to need the spare on the road than need the airbags, but you wouldn't want to do without either in my opinion.

with that said, Honda could be more thoughtful in the placement and access of the spare in this truck.

bamacar · March 2006

I had 2 in the last 3 years. Both were on new cars with less than 7k miles and happened on the Interstate. Of course, both were full of travel baggage and one happened in the middle of the night in total darkness. You do never know when it might happen.

gearhead1 · March 2006

My God!! I've never seen some people so stressed out about getting a flat tire in my life. Buy a frickin horse and shut up already!

bitusa · March 2006

"Be truthful, when was the last time you got a flat out on the road?"

Last year, twice.

bitusa · March 2006

Did Ford put their "full-size" spare tire in it?

bitusa · March 2006

"My God!! I've never seen some people so stressed out about getting a flat tire in my life. Buy a frickin horse and shut up already!"

gearhead, you sound like the one stressed out.

gd113 · March 2006

Check out this link, looks like it.

http://www.pickuptruck.com/html/2007/ford/est/page1.html

bitusa · March 2006

Thanks for the link. Great article on the new Sport Trac.

The extra storage in the bed will not be for storing the spare tire. It will remain, easily accessible, under the bed.

bamacar · March 2006

Relax. No stress here, and it would not keep me from buying a Ridgeline. Flats do happen; we just answered the question that was asked. The better question is what is the chance of a flat given the chance you would have a full load of material that could not be easily removed in a Ridgeline. Not very likely.

bitusa · March 2006

I just don't buy that logic when purchasing a vehicle.

IMHO, Honda missed on this one.

qbrozen · March 2006

My God!! I've never seen some people so stressed out about getting a flat tire in my life.

This is what happens when you are really stretching for things to complain about on a vehicle you are biased against.

so now that we've resurrected the old spare tire complaint and beaten it some more, can we go back to "its just a V6" discussion? How about the towing debate. That's a real winner.

bitusa · March 2006

I don't believe the comments are "really stretching for things to complain about". All of the items you mentioned; spare tire, V6 only and towing are real-world examples of why Honda is not hitting their sales projections for the Ridgeline. I'm not saying it's a piece of crap, but it's comes up short when you're shopping for a truck.

qbrozen · March 2006

only if you are in the crowd of truck owners who actually use their trucks for hauling gravel and towing boats. For the majority of truck buyers, it is a step up. But we've been over all of this on this board hundreds of times, it seems. So go back and read it all. No need to rehash it when its right there in black, white, and blue.

gd113 · March 2006

They have hit their sales targets. 50k was the 12 month target and as of 2/28/06 the Ridge was on sale for 12 months and sold 50,892.

bitusa · March 2006

Sorry. My comment was unsubstantiated. Someone just told me the Ridgeline wasn't selling like Honda had hoped.

varmint · March 2006

Actually, I have not seen any conclusive evidence to suggest that the V6, towing, or spare location are slowing sales. Reports in the news suggest the price tag (because it only comes loaded) and the styling are the two biggest threats to sales.

On the sales issue, the Ridgeline did start out slower than expected. Dealers were charging ADMs thinking they had another Odyssey on their hands. (The Ridgeline is a good truck, but it isn't that good.) And so the launch of the vehicle was a let down. Honda later announced plans to cut 3,000 units from the production schedule. This fueled the notion that sales were not making the initial goal.

But when Honda began offering a lease deal and small dealer incentive, sales began to pick up. Everyone else in the truck market uses incentives to lower the price of their vehicles and Honda had been resisting that. When they gave in and added those deals, they fixed the price problem.

The Ridgeline also won the MT Truck of the year award, along with a dozen others. This got the truck's name in the press and gave it some street cred. That fact likely gave a boost to sales, as well.

In the end, they made the initial projection. That's not a ringing endorsement for a product, but it is better than Nissan did with the first year of the Titan.

moparbad · March 2006

They have hit their sales targets. 50k was the 12 month target and as of 2/28/06 the Ridge was on sale for 12 months and sold 50,892

Really? Sales must have improved greatly since November 2005.
However, 02/16/06 Honda announced it would cut light truck output sharply. Why? Honda says that the latest round of production cuts is designed to reduce the need for the company to offer incentives on light trucks.

With Ridgeline sales starting out slower than expected, Honda Motor Co. is cutting production of the new pickup.

Honda is taking 3,000 units out of its January-March production plan. The full-year target was 50,000.

Honda CFO Satoshi Aoki revealed the plans to cut production during a press conference announcing Honda's earnings for the quarter ended Sept. 30.

The Ridgeline, Honda's first foray into the pickup segment, is built exclusively in Alliston, Ontario. The vehicle went on sale in March. Sales through September in the United States totaled 25,787.

Honda built 17,402 Ridgelines in the third quarter.

In an interview with Automotive News at the Tokyo Motor Show this month, Honda CEO Takeo Fukui blamed the soft sales on high U.S. incentives on light trucks.

He said Honda would not join the incentive wars to jump-start Ridgeline sales.

"We won't introduce any incentives," Fukui said. "We'll adjust our production."

bitusa · March 2006

Thanks for the information. Sometimes you can't trust everyone to present facts instead of opinions and false statements.

gd113 · March 2006

Really? Sales must have improved greatly since November 2005.

I guess so unless Honda is lying.............

ORRANCE, Calif., March 1 /PRNewswire/ -- American Honda Motor Co., Inc., is posting record February vehicle sales of 106,644, up 8.7 percent, led by increases for its most popular models including the all-new Civic and the
re-designed Accord, up 37.6 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively. Year-to-date sales of 205,038 are up 14.1 percent.

Honda Division is posting record February sales of 92,498 cars and light trucks, an increase of 12.8 percent, with additional records broken for total Honda truck sales of 41,980 and Pilot sales of 10,901. Year-to-date, Honda Division is up 18.1 percent with sales of 176,911.

Civic sales of 24,722 include 1,780 Civic Hybrids (up 31.6 percent) and Accord sales of 25,285 include 783 Accord Hybrids. February combined sales of Honda's three hybrid vehicles are up 18.2 percent to 2,635, and up
47.5 percent for the year to 6,210. February marks the first full year for the Ridgeline with sales cumulatively reaching 50,892, on-track with its 12-month
sales target of 50,000 units.

varmint · March 2006

Really? Sales must have improved greatly since November 2005.

Yes, they did.

November = 5,243
December = 6,589
January = 3,814
February = 4,485

Obviously, these numbers don't compare well with sales of something like the F-150, but each of those months is higher than the 3,200 unit average Honda was selling before November. Actually, October was also a good month with 4,974 units sold.

Prior to those months, Ford and GM were having their employee sales. That made it very difficult for Honda to compete without also using incentives.

splatsterhound · March 2006

That Honda (barely) hit its goal has got to be a disappointment. It gets truck of the year from MT, Consumer Reports touts it and...at the end of the year...dealers were offering blow-out-the-inventory leases. Plus, Honda advertises the hell out of the thing.

The marketing effort for Honda was running on all six cylinders (sorry) but the thing hasn't caught on at all. I hardly see them on the road in Minnesota.

If the Ridgeline were any good, it would have sold a lot more than it did. 50,000 units is nearing boutique status.

gd113 · March 2006

Oh come on. They set and goal and got it. The Ridgeline is a niche vehicle and set a goal for such. They never said it was taking the the F150.

splatsterhound · March 2006

Yes, they got it, but only by giving them away at the end of the year. Few people seem to want to buy one, but more are willing to lease one, provided the terms are great.

I think more people than not know about the weak links of the Honda powertrain. There are a lot of people out there who have had personal experience with the fragile transmissions in their Odys and MDXs and such. The Ridgeline that Edmunds tested broke its struts -- the same thing that happened to a friend's MDX (which also lost it's tranny).

Here's the sad fact: Honda used to be known for excellent durable engines and drivetrains. With the Ridgeline, the reputation is not good from day one. Honda overplayed their hand with this vehicle, simple as that.

gd113 · March 2006

Where are you getting the lease vs buy data? It may be true but how do you know. Ford and GM are also giving away, and have been for some time, their vehicles at far bigger discounts than Honda.

qbrozen · March 2006

Honda overplayed their hand with this vehicle, simple as that.

que? How is hitting your projection overplaying your hand?? Sounds like they played it exactly right.

OH, do you mean because they offered a bit of money? Hahahahaahah! Yeah, $1k dealer money is really begging for sales, isn't it? So what exactly, in that case, would we have to call Chevy's $4k trunk money on the Avanalanche? or Ford's $2500 on the crew cab F150? (and, keep in mind, that's current. We all know Ford and Chevy go much higher than that in the rebate column.)

bitusa · March 2006

It's unfortunate, but the domestics have to "give away bigger discounts" to sell vehicles. Even the F-150 which, IMHO is the best pick-up truck on the road. If Ford were to remove the rebates, their sales would drop like a rock. Interestingly, when Ford has cut back on the rebates, their truck share didn't decline much, but their sales did. These potential F150 customers weren't buying anything else, they were just waiting until the rebates came back.

You are right about the rebates, though. The domestics have had to put more money out there. But in the past several months, GM and Ford have reduced their rebates while the imports have added more variable marketing dollars (rebates, special APR and lease deals.) There was a Detroit News article about it several weeks ago.

chuck999 · March 2006

Wow! Can't believe how contentious this forum remains.

Last year I had a hard time deciding between the new Ridgeline and a Toyota Tundra. Got a great deal on a loaded TRD 4WD Access Cab Tundra (invoice - $2000) when RL were just coming out and going for MSRP...

One year later I like the Tundra a lot, great ride, great V8 engine and 5spd auto trans with decent mileage (18 highway). Comfortable to drive and no mechanical problems at all in 12k miles. Kids getting a little cramped in the access cab rear though, and the Honda AWD system is much more secure in the rain and snow. I know this for sure - drive my wife's MDX pretty often.

Then - I load up our 4 kayaks (on a TracRac which holds 700 pounds) and 4 bikes (onto the factory hitch).. and remember why I got the Tundra in the first place ...

The Ridgeline just couldn't carry our stuff easily.. The 150 lb limit on the roof rack, and short, non-standard bed were real deal killers for me ....

If Honda ever asks my advice (doubtful) I'd suggest that they think about adding some kind of over bed rack system that would allow a person to carry FOUR kayaks up high. Or a couple of ladders. Or maybe even 4-5 bicycles.

Also, I have agree with some of the posters who keep hammering Honda for a factory tow package. The Tundra came with hitch and wiring ready to go ... Adding on to the MDX was a pretty big hassle (and expense)... RL is actually a little harder because have to go into the DASH unlike in the MDX where wiring is accessed through rear compartment. Although don't have to add the trans cooler to RL ...

Good luck with the RL - still think it's a great vehicle with a great AWD system and some very cool features. Just wish it would have worked out for me ....

cccompson · March 2006

Here in Columbus, Ohio, Ricart Ford (a huge store) is advertising a 24 month lease (21,000 mile limit) on a 2006 F150 Supercab 4X4 ($30,xxx MSRP) for $995 out of pocket and $159 per month.

Talk about a firesale price! I sure as hell don't need another vehicle but that one is hard to resist.

Honda Ridgeline SUT

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