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Honda Ridgeline

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The Honda Ridgeline is a mid-size pickup truck manufactured and marketed by Honda over two generations in a unibody, crew–cab, short-box configuration with a transverse-mounted engine.<ref name="2006 Overview">Template:Cite press release</ref><ref name="2017 Ridgeline Press Kit">Template:Cite press release</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

First generation (YK1; 2005)Edit

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File:2006-2008 Honda Ridgeline.jpg
First-generation Honda Ridgeline

The first-generation Ridgeline went on sale in March 2005 as a 2006 model year vehicle.<ref name="Unveiling2">Template:Cite press release</ref> The Car Design Yearbook called it "Honda's first foray into the true heartland of the American automotive way of life—the pickup truck."<ref name="Foray">Template:Cite book</ref> An engineering team from Honda R&D Americas, led by Gary Flint, designed the vehicle.<ref name="Book3">Template:Cite book</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> According to the author of Driving Honda, the automaker wanted to target buyers who were looking to move to a pickup from sedans, minivans, and sport utility vehicles (SUV).<ref name="Book3" />

The development started in 2001 with a development mule using an extended version of a first-generation Acura MDX with a competitor's pickup bed integrated into the rear structure.<ref>50 Years of American Dreams, The Challenging Spirit (page 151) Template:Webarchive, Honda North America, dated June 2009, last accessed October 20, 2019</ref> After four years of development, a Sport Utility Truck Concept was shown at the 2004 North American International Auto Show.<ref name="2006 Overview" /> Later that same year, Honda unveiled a revised version at the Specialty Equipment Market Association show and announced the official name of the vehicle, the Ridgeline.<ref>Template:Cite press release</ref> The production version of the Ridgeline was unveiled the following year at the 2005 North American International Auto Show.<ref name="Unveiling2" />

Honda's publications claim that the first generation Ridgeline shared only 7% of its components with other Honda vehicles. Its powertrain resembled the one used in the first-generation Acura MDX but was "extensively calibrated and strengthened" for heavier hauling and towing duties.<ref name="2006 Overview" />

Production of the first generation Ridgeline ended in early 2015.<ref name="Sales4">Template:Cite press release</ref>

Second generation (YK2/3; 2016)Edit

File:2017 Honda Ridgeline RTL-FWD.jpg
2017 Ridgeline RTL (front-wheel drive model)

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After a one-year hiatus in Ridgeline production, the second-generation went on sale in June 2016 as a 2017 model year vehicle.<ref>Honda 2019 Digital FactBook Template:Webarchive, Honda News & Views, dated 17 July 2019, last accessed 17 July 2019</ref> The second-generation Ridgeline took a different approach in design from the first generation Ridgeline by sharing Honda's new "global light truck platform,"<ref name="2017 Ridgeline Press Kit2">Template:Cite press release</ref> used for the third-generation Honda Pilot as well as other large Honda vehicles.<ref>2017-2018 Honda Ridgeline, Honda's pickup for the non-pickup types, TopSpeed.com, by Mark McNabb, dated 24 July 2017, last accessed 2 March 2019</ref><ref>2019 Honda Passport already rolling off the assembly line in Alabama Template:Webarchive, c/net, by Andrew Krok, dated 7 December 2018, last accessed 2 March 2019</ref> Honda modified the Pilot platform, including extending the wheelbase and various parts to support hauling, towing, and off-road use.<ref name="Gen2 Steel2">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Honda R&D Interview2">Template:Cite AV media</ref> Honda reported that 73% of the second-generation Ridgeline's components remain common with the third-generation Pilot.<ref name="Gen2 Steel2" /> Major changes included a 17% stronger front structure, a 31% sturdier rear,<ref>2017 Honda Ridgeline First Drive Review Template:Webarchive Car and Driver, by Jared Gall, dated 9 May 2016, last accessed 21 July 2019</ref> and 50% of the chassis' components changed or were strengthened for the second generation Ridgeline.<ref name="Honda R&D Interview2" /><ref>Honda Ridgeline Carries Over for 2019 With 2 Minor Upgrades Template:Webarchive, TorqueNews, by Parks McCants, dated 5 March 2018, last accessed 9 November 2018</ref> The second generation Ridgeline's new structure gives it an average Template:Convert reduction in weight from the first generation pickup.<ref name="2017 Ridgeline Press Kit2" /><ref name="Gen2 Steel2" /> The C-pillar and rear subframe were strengthened giving the second generation 28% more torsional rigidity over the first generation Ridgeline.<ref name="Gen2 Steel2" /><ref>Mid-Size Trucks Don't Need Frames Template:Webarchive, Jalopnik, by David Tracy, dated 25 August 2016, last accessed 5 September 2016</ref>

MarketingEdit

The design of the unibody pickup with a transverse-mounted engine and a crew-cab short-box configuration makes the Ridgeline unique.<ref name="2006 Overview"/><ref name="2017 Ridgeline Press Kit"/><ref name="Industry 1st">Honda Ridgeline Pickup Truck Makes Canadian Debut in Montreal Template:Webarchive, Auto123.com, dated 13 January 2005, last accessed 8 March 2019</ref><ref>2017 Honda Ridgeline Named North American Truck of the Year in Detroit Template:Webarchive, The News Wheel, dated 10 January 2017, last accessed 8 March 2019</ref><ref>2017 Honda Ridgeline Only Pickup Truck to Achieve Top Safety Pick+ Rating Template:Webarchive, The News Wheel, dated 8 December 2016, last accessed 14 March 2019</ref> Some in the automotive press that have studied the first generation Ridgeline, such as PickupTrucks.com, consider it "one of those odd vehicles." They wrote, "The Ridgeline can't really do what most people who like trucks need it to do."<ref>What's Going on With the Honda Ridgeline? Template:Webarchive, PickupTrucks.com, by Mark Williams, dated 8 October 2011, last accessed 12 November 2016</ref> Others in the automotive press, such as The Driver's Seat TV, had differing views and call the Ridgeline, "the Swiss Army knife of trucks." They also described the Ridgeline "the anti-truck" and summarized their view by stating "the Ridgeline scores high on practicality but very low on image."<ref>In The Driver's Seat of the 2008 Honda Ridgeline Template:Webarchive, YouTube, by The Driver’s Seat TV, dated 12 June 2008, last accessed 3 June 2019</ref>

Compared to the first-generation Ridgeline, Honda's second-generation Ridgeline has the automotive press changing its tune, yet it still has an image problem. Gearheads.org wrote the "2017 Honda Ridgeline still won’t get respect but should" stating, its "downside is going to be looks."<ref>2017 Honda Ridgeline Still Won’t Get Respect But Should Template:Webarchive, Gearheads.org, last accessed 7 October 2016</ref> Car and Driver wrote, "The company [Honda] readily admits that the problem with the first generation pickup was that the styling was off-putting, but then it went ahead and made the next iteration of the truck just as unconventional as before."<ref>2019 Ford Ranger vs. 2020 Jeep Gladiator vs. 2019 Chevrolet Colorado vs. 2019 Honda Ridgeline Template:Webarchive, Car and Driver, by Jared Gall, dated 1 May 2019, last accessed 24 August 2019</ref> "The Ridgeline’s roomy cabin, ample storage, smooth ride, and innovative touches make its rivals seem outdated. ...it not only has cargo space, but also the makings of a great tailgate party..."<ref name="Car & Driver 2016">Medium Done Well: Mid-Size Pickups Ranked-#1 Honda Ridgeline Template:Webarchive, Car and Driver, last accessed 15 August 2016</ref>

Karl Forster, an SAE trailer towing group member who was vehicle dynamics project leader on Honda's unibody Ridgeline pickup and Pilot SUV described studies of pickup usage and "found out that 84 percent of truck buyers tow 5000 pounds or less."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Production and salesEdit

According to Honda, the Ridgeline was not designed to take sales from the traditional trucks marketed in North America, but was developed to "give the 18% of Honda owners who also own pickups a chance to make their garages a Honda-only parking area."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Despite the first generation Ridgeline's poor sales,<ref>Honda 2018 Digital FactBook Template:Webarchive, Honda News & Views, dated 31 July 2018, last accessed 1 August 2018</ref> according to the author of Driving Honda, this mid-size pickup was one of the more profitable vehicles for Honda<ref name="Book3" /> with reported sales in over 20 countries.<ref>Honda Appeals After Chile Disqualifies Pickup for Tax Credit Template:Webarchive, Bloomberg BNA, by Tom Azzopardi, dated 19 January 2017, last accessed 12 February 2017</ref>

The second generation Ridgeline sales appeared to start strong<ref>2017 Honda Ridgeline sales show good momentum for August Template:Webarchive, TorqueNews.com, by Parks McCants, dated 1 September 2016, last accessed 3 September 2016</ref> but comparing sales in the US between 2017 and 2018 shows a 12% decline overall.<ref>Trucks Drive New Records and Acura Turns a Corner as American Honda Posts December Sales Increase Template:Webarchive, Hondanews.com, dated 3 January 2019, last accessed 3 January 2019</ref> A 2018 Autoline Daily report stated the Ridgeline is the only mid-size truck in North America whose sales are down in a market that "suggests there’s room for more players."<ref>AD #2493 – FCA Retools Engine Plant for Jeeps, Mid-Size Pickup Segment Soars, How the Jeep Gladiator Got Its Name Template:Webarchive, Autoline TV, dated 7 December 2018, last accessed 28 December 2018</ref>

Ridgeline sales and production<ref name="Sales4"/><ref>Honda Ridgeline Sales Figures Template:Webarchive, GoodCarBadCar, last accessed February 3, 2019 (Note: 2016 sales numbers include a few Gen1 Ridgeline sales—three in the US and eight in Canada—that were taken into account when posting the sales figures for this article. Additionally, February 2012 sales figures on GoodCarBadCar's website are in error, according to Honda's press release Template:Webarchive, and have been adjusted accordingly.)</ref>
Calendar
year 		Sales Production
USA CAN
2004 199
2005 42,593 3,512 60,679
2006 50,193 4,988 56,866
2007 42,795 4,519 55,150
2008 33,875 3,987 25,264
2009 16,464 3,546 16,180
2010 16,142 3,200 20,180
2011 9,759 1,713 13,356
2012 14,068 2,226 21,361
2013 17,723 2,122 19,557
2014 13,389 1,803 10,015
2015 520 229 154
2016 23,668 2,622 34,599
2017 34,749 4,632 39,282
2018 30,592 4,094 46,123
2019 33,334 3,405 29,246
2020 32,168 3,369 34,055
2021 41,355 3,491 41,822
2022 42,762 3,135 50,434
2023 52,001 3,114 54,934
2024 45,421

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AwardsEdit

ReferencesEdit

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External linksEdit

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