Is the Honda Ridgeline a Good Work Truck?

Before I settled on the Honda Ridgeline I test drove several trucks. I was very familiar with the Nissan Frontier having driven one for over 15 years. I am the type who likes to drive their trucks into the ground and I achieved that with my Frontier. After the drive the new Ford Ranger, Ford F150, Jeep Gladiator, and Chevy Colorado, the Ridgeline just was a better all-around truck.

The Ridgeline is consistently ranked #1 in its class and before I purchased mine I test drove different new and used Ridgeline models. I also researched the best year and trim level to purchase and the 2019 RTL-T was ranked the best Ridgeline year and trim from 2017 to 2022. I rarely buy a new vehicle and suggest you let someone else take the hit on a new truck purchase. 

With only 35,000 miles on the truck, I purchased I think the engine was barely breaking in. I also got it $3,000 below Bluebook and since I pay cash for all of my vehicles and write it off on my taxes as a capital expenditure the price technically was even lower than the $29,990 sticker price. $3,000 off from the dealer - $7,000 saved in finance charges and a tax write-off on the value over the next 5 years equals significant savings taking the true price of the truck to under $10,000.  

Here are some key stats that were in the video. The Ridgeline is a large compact truck with really good dimensions:

17.5 ft Long  x 6.5 ft Wide x 5.9 ft High 

The Bed is 6 ft long but more importantly, it is just 52” tall so you can easily reach over and grab items out even if you are shorter like me at 5 ft 7” tall.

The truck has a capacity of 7.3 Cubic ft or as I stated it can hold 52 gallons of water – so it is quite large.

Drawbacks:

The fuel tank is relatively small at 19.5 gallons. Since it only averages 20 miles to a gallon 

19.5 x 20 mpg you can safely drive about 380 miles in between fill-ups (leaving a 0.5-gallon cushion). The truck will warn you when you are running low on fuel.

Another drawback is the rear doors don’t flair out far enough or open as wide as the front doors. So you really can’t get large boxes or large items into the backseat area. I am used to my Nissan Frontier where the rear doors opened much wider. 

The nine-speed transmission is adequate for sure but you won’t be winning any street races with the Ridgeline. Truthfully it drives much more like an SUV than a truck. A good thing in my opinion but many feel it is not a Man’s truck. 

No blind spot sensors/warning in the mirrors unless you get the top trim version. For a starting MSRP of $42,000, I think the blind spot flashing lights in the mirrors should be included. 

Overall after driving the Ridgeline for 5 months now, I can surely say it is one of the most comfortable trucks, no, one of the most comfortable vehicles that I have ever driven. So many simple comfort points like the armrest in the center to the comfortable seats. The roomy interior to the trunk in the bed all makes this the best truck you can buy for pool service in my book. 

Shown in this video on the back of the truck are the Advantage Manufacturing PORTAVAC, Pressional Service Cart, Bottom Feeder Cart, Hitch, and T-Bar Mount. All can be ordered from advantage manufacturing https://www.advantageman.com/default.asp

Call: 1-800-636-8866

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