The Honda Ridgeline, it seems, produced more polarization here on CL than just about any pickup I have ever seen discussed in these forums. Seems people either liked it or hated it....there wasn't much middle ground. Flip....I know you are not one of its fans.

Anyhow, here is Car and Driver's opinion of it.....and its competition.

http://www.caranddriver.com/article....&page_number=1

 

I saw it in person a few months ago and I'm actually impressed with the over all package. From the rear it just looks like any other truck for the most part. Side profile is still very truck like as any other. The front grill, however; is ugly. However, Honda sells in their option equipement a normal Honda grill that looks so much better. I don't understand why they don't use that grill instead of the one they have on as standard. It totally transforms the front end.

 

Yeah mahn, nuts. Sexy posted here
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=146918

But we can discuss here in a seperate thread. I think C&D editors sleep with Honda executives. B/C it dosn't matter what Honda sells or makes, they make it a 10 best winner and proclaim us all idiots for not buying their products. Clearly as of late, the Honda executives have really been giving Brock, Csbera and company even more hot man sex, because I don't think there is a Honda product recently that hasn't been proclaimed best in class for them.

I have yet to drive it b/c I cannot get past the fact it is somehow uglier than current Hondas. This is the prime example I am talking about, Americans will buy anything import no matter how awful.

The interior is not even great, its average at best. Its ugly, yeah it rides nice but its SUPPOSED to be a truck.

And SHAME or SAD on either C&D or/and The American companies for being the last 2 in the comparison.

Do we now realize.
Best sports sedans are arguably Japanese
Best luxry and SUVs are Japanese
Best family cars are Japanese
Best midsize trucks are SUVs
BEST performance bang for the buck is JAPANESE

We can now argue all those facts. INCREDIBLE, since EVERYONE ELSE is just watching them take over every damn market. Amazing.

30 years ago, Japanese cars were ALL small and about fuel economy. Look now!!!

 

Actually Sick, it was me, although I'm sexy too.

 

My bad, you've been on a roll with the good threads recently

 

There is some truth to what you are saying here.....but over the years (and I have been reading C&D since the late 70's).....it seems to me that C&D has been more enthralled with BMW and Porsche overall than any other makes. They absolutely worship the 3-series....and they worshipped the 3's bigger brothers, too, until You-Know-Who came along.

 

Too bad my GM and Mercedes apologist friend still thinks Toyota builds toys. Then how come my 15 year old LS400 is a leaps and bounds better car than his Mercedes 300SD mechanically?

 

or maybe they are great cars and you just hate Honda?

 

Yes I do hate Honda.
But realistically that truck is no good for a truck. It's a big family vehicle that is a little more agressive. The bed isn't big enough to use for a work truck.
Cool concept. Not many buyers. I've seen two since it's been released. And I see plenty of new cars all the time. Oh yea, today I say a brand new FX45 (clear tails that's why it's new), new SL500, brand new CLS. And I saw an M coupe.... that's not new but I thought I'd add that in.

 

I notice when different makes win contests in magazines etc some people accuse those magazines of taking payoffs from Honda, BMW, etc but when their preferred brand or car wins they say the magazine is right on and how the win proves how the car is superior to all other cars. The last time I saw this was on Freshalloy when a publication did not rate the M45 so well in a contest and many people were saying they were payed off and how stupid and uncredible the magazine and writers were. If you are predetermined to like another brand no matter what and consider all other brands even good ones to not be near as good then you are probrably not going to like a different vehicle from a different brand no matter how good it is just based on that bias.

If a well respected magazine like Road and Track, Car and Driver, Automobile, etc were found and exposed to have taken payoffs from other companies to choose their vehicles then those magazines would instantly loose all credibility, loose most subscribers and buyers, and may even face legal charges since many car buying decisions are influenced by their pics. I do not think the short term money would be worth loosing your respected business over and I believe it would of been exposed by now most likely from other car manufacturers. If they chose the Ridgeline it is most likely because it outperformed the other trucks and the writers preferred it over the other trucks. Car magazines prefer sportier higher performance cars that use high quality materials which is one reason they seem to like Honda, Acura, BMW, Porsche as well as Lexus, Infiniti, Mercedees and Audi. I just wish they took in reliability and cost of ownership a little more into making decisions. Having a car for just 1 year does not expose most reliability issues. I can understand preferring a brand and not preferring other brands but I don't know why someone would "hate" Honda unless they dislike any foreign makes and prefer domestics.

 

Because Honda and Toyota are rivals. I chose sides a long time ago. Until Honda pushes their Acura's upscale and go head to head with Lexus, no props yet. Honda is doing some bad things lately. I like some of their older designs but most are unappealing at best to me. I do respect the company because it is giving Toyota competition but you'll probably never see me drive a Honda.
I have nothing against domestics... that's a lie. I prefer Toyota over anything and than I look at Japanese cars next before I go to domestics. Not many major recalls of Toyota.

 

I like Honda.

 

It ain't pretty, but by no means is it as ugly as the Solara, which takes the crown as far as ugly Japanese cars go.

I like Honda. , too. Overall, their cars are somewhere between the floaty boat Toyota theme, and the rough Nissan theme. Too bad they don't diversify their lineup.

 

Diversify in what way? Hondas are more of a driver's car than Nissans. Well, in general.

 

Auto mags DO take reliability and service costs into account when they do the 4-seasons tests...usually for a year. That may not sound like much, but in that year those vehicles get hard use, long trips, heavy loads, etc..... and a lot of miles put on them. and the mags usually go to the same dealerships and have the same service performed that any other customer living in the area would.


Now....having said that, I still have to say that no one else does the thorough job that Consumer Reports does for auto reliability....not even J.D. Power, IMO. Each year, the auto mags might keep a couple of dozen 4-season cars at most for long-term testing....but Consumer Reports gets hundereds of thousands ( sometimes millions ) of cases of feedback from its customers each year and has a reliability database like no other. When I myself make a vehicle recommendation to someone based on reliability, I rely on CR's data base more than any other single source....though I read ALL of the 4-seasons tests in Car and Driver, Automobile, AutoWeek, and Road and Track as well. ( No, Motor Trend does not impess me...I gave up on them )