I would not say the Ridgeline is a great truck but I think as someone else already said it is a fine grocery getter for those that may do some light hauling.

A good friend of mine (Woman) has one. She has a shell on the back. It works great to haul her two kids and two dogs. We do fire road off roading when we go out to train our dogs, nothing serious

 

haaa you guys my truck would rip that thing apart, lets not get into the 300. but man who are they fooling. a truck should be a ranger, f150s just better.

 

Was the Ford Ranchero not a "truck"? Or, because it is a Ford, you guys would give it a pass. The Ranchero and El Camino are required to have commercial plates in CA, there fore they are legally trucks. If anyone remembers the Subaru Brat, the factory welded a couple of jump seats in the bed so it could be registered as a car instead of a truck. If you dont like it, just dont buy one, but the Ridgeline is a truck.

Jim

 

I remember when the Ranchero and El Camino was introduced and I don't know anyone who considered them actual trucks. They were simply a station wagon with an open cargo bay. Somewhere along that time, Studebaker came up with a better idea. They made a station wagon with a sliding roof in the rear (Didn't GMC try it a few years ago with the Envoy?).

The Subaru Brat had the seats BOLTED in the bed to avoid the 25% import tax that was imposed on imported trucks at the time. They weren't able to avoid the tax like the other imported trucks because the bed couldn't be installed after they were imported.

As with the Ranchero, El Camino, Subaru Brat and Baja, etc, the Ridgeline makes a good truck for someone one who doesn't need a truck. If you need a truck, the Ridgeline makes a good ride to go down to rent one.

 

Yeah, GM did, and said it was the greatest creation since sliced bread. They soon were discontinued because they leaked like sieves, and while it might be a good idea, no one gave a scheiss.


In 1963, Studebaker was the first to offer a sliding roofed station wagon. It was named the Wagonaire. It leaked too. Studebaker and the sliding roofed Wagonaire went the way of the dinosaur in March 1966. At that time they were the oldest manufacturer of wheeled transportation in the world. They are the second oldest today. Daimler-Benz is the oldest.

 

Honda and Truck shouldn't even be in the same sentence.

 

Yes. As in "The Honda was delivered on a truck".

 

While I do feel that the Ridgeline is not a truck and should not be marketed as one, it does fit the bill for many people out there. How many people do you see driving a Super Duty pickup or F-150 to work every day just to park it in the ramp and pick up their dry cleaning? It is the soccer mom's dream come true.

That being said, they look really silly when they are loaded up and cambered in like crazy in the rear because of the IRS and the weight.

 

[QUOTE=MisterCMK]How many people do you see driving a Super Duty pickup or F-150 to work every day just to park it in the ramp and pick up their dry cleaning?/QUOTE]

My 04 F-150 still looks new and it may be seen picking up the laundry and people might think I don't need it and a pretend truck or not truck at all would be more appropriate. However, most people don't see it when I load my motorcycle in the bed and hook my travel trailer up and head for the mountains or interstate. I also haul hay and other feed for my "pets" (goats and donkey). I don't go to town when I use my truck as a truck. I can't fit my motorcycle in the little bitty bed on a Ridgeline or pull my travel trailer with it. I can do both at the same time with my F-150. One can't assume a truck is not used just because they don't see it when it is being used.

 

All I am saying is that there are a lot of people that never use their trucks for anything more than a lifted honda civic. The Ridgeline is perfect for them.

 

Not me......the Ranchero (as is the Ridgeline) wasn't a truck either, IMO.


El Camino.....nope, not a truck either, IMO (regardless of what CA. says/said).


I don't like it, and I don't need to NOT buy one to have an opinion on it.


It may be classified as a 'truck' by a given State's standards (or your opinion), but the general consensus here appears that it's not.

 

When I was 16, my dad had a '72 Ranchero. It had a (transplanted) 429 and a 4 speed transmission, and ran like a bat outta Hades. Dad had bought it because the price was right, and he needed something to do some light hauling, such as trash to the dump, etc. He soon abandoned it in favor of a '73 F100 4x4, because, in his words, he needed a real truck. I drove the Ranchero to school for awhile and got along with it pretty well, but I never once thought of it as being a "truck". It could haul a few bags of seed, a few bales of hay, etc; but if it had been a 1972 Torino station wagon, it could have done the same thing, really. So, in my opinion, no, a Ranchero or an El Camino is NOT a truck in the sense of being capable of hauling a half-ton of cargo or towing a large trailer. They do have their place, which I don't dispute at all, and I'm sure that the Honda Ridgeline has its good points and has fans and owners who love them. But, just as my Ranchero was pretty much a two-seater Torino with a window right behind the seats and an open area behind it, the Ridgeline does not fit into my definition of what a pickup truck is and should be able to do.

My opinion. Not meant to start any feuding.

 

Do you mean Tartarus? Hades is the ruler of Tartarus...

 

It really doesn't matter if they call it a car, truck, or golf cart. The truth is some people will luv it and say it works great for them.We don't all need to haul 2000lbs. in the box or tow 30,000 lbs to do our jobs. With the way some talk we couldn't call our f250's or even f350's trucks because we can't hook-up 53ft trailers to them.
It may be a great item, it's just not what we would call a TRUCK.

 

The Ford Explorer Sport Trac (which spanks the Ridgeline with a 7,160# tow limit) is identical to the Honda Ridgeline. Ford considers it to be a small SUV, not a truck.

I have a friend that owns his own trailer/hitch shop. This guy knows his stuff - he installs, fixes, and builds anything related to trailers and hitches/5th wheels. He was the one that advised me to get the Ford 'TowCommand' TBC (Trailer Brake Controller) system when I went to order my new Ford Super Duty instead of getting the Prodigy later on. He tells me that he gets weird requests from customers - like adding a 5th wheel to the bed of a new Ford Ranger and stuff like that. He said as long as the customer has the money he can do whatever is asked of him. I asked him what he thought about the Honda Ridgeline "truck" and the 5,000# rated towing capacity. After he did a little laugh he said, "...you wouldnt catch me towing that much weight with a little frameless (uni-body) car." I then said, "you mean to say 'truck' not 'car', right?". He said, "if its uni-body, its a little car."