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NewCarTestDrive:
INTRODUCTION: “With this new Ridgeline pickup truck, Honda has taken everything that's good about the Odyssey minivan, the Element SUV and Pilot SUV, and made the newest, most innovative pickup truck on the American market.AOL Autos
The all-new 2006 Honda Ridgeline doesn't look or act like any other pickup truck we've ever driven. It has a family storage solution in its bed that no other pickup truck can match. And it won't cost an arm and a leg to buy or to operate.
Pickup trucks have traditionally been built with a separate nose section, cab section, and cargo bed, bolted to a separate ladder frame, but this first Honda pickup uses both a welded unibody construction and a steel ladder frame, welded together, with the cab and cargo bed made as one piece, with separate subframes for the engine, front suspension and rear suspension. Honda says it is 20 times more resistant to twisting than any other pickup truck, and 3.5 times more resistant to bending. Honda says the Ridgeline can carry 1550 pounds of cargo or tow up to 5000 pounds.
The Ridgeline is one of the nicest midsize trucks we've driven in terms of comfort and ease of use, though some of the others in this class have a bit more dash and flash inside.”
FEATURES: “All models are powered by the excellent Honda 3.5-liter engine, all models will have a five-speed automatic transmission, and all models will have Honda's automatic VTM-4 all-wheel-drive system that normally proportions drive 60 percent to the front wheels, 40 percent to the rear, and can go to 30/70 when necessary. It incorporates a limited-slip differential and a Lock feature.”
WALKAROUND: “We said that the Ridgeline doesn't look or act like any other pickup, whether it's from America or Japan, and it doesn't. The grille, the front end, the cab shape, the buttresses coming down off the rear of the roof to join the integrated pickup bed, all seem to have been deliberately designed to be shockingly different.”
INTERIOR: “Inside, the Ridgeline is all about comfort, convenience and space, which Honda says it has more of than any other truck in the class.”
“We found the driver and front passenger seats to be roomy, comfortable and supportive, with plenty of adjustment range for rake and travel.”
SUMMARY: “The new Honda Ridgeline borders on the revolutionary, from its dramatic new look to its tailgate and storage innovations to its combination of body-on-frame isolation and unibody stiffness, all at very reasonable prices…For those contemplating a family recreation or commuting pickup truck for the first time, this one goes to the top of the shopping list.”
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