Who Has a Rtle 2019 Ridgeline in Blue
| First Drives
2021 Honda Ridgeline RTL-E First Drive: Plainly Appealing, Even Without HPD Hardware
The new Ridgeline sans HPD upgrades is still a Ridgeline—and that's good.
When Honda revealed its updated-for-2021 Ridgeline pickup late last year, and when it gave us one to drive and another one to test a few months later, it showcased the midsize pickup truck with its $2,800 HPD package. Short for Honda Performance Development, HPD is Honda's performance parts subbrand that furnishes accessories and other mostly style-focused upgrades for a variety of models, including the Ridgeline. Although the HPD Ridgeline setup's gold-tinged wheels, plastic fender flares, more aggressive grille, and rear quarter-panel graphics look cool—and exaggerate the 2021 Ridgeline's more trucklike snout and wider stance—we'd yet to drive or experience the updated pickup without the HPD add-ons.
So What's the Non-HPD Ridgeline Like?
Having finally spent a week in a regular 2021 Honda Ridgeline without the HPD option, we can say the pickup doesn't necessarily need the HPD accessories to look butch. The work Honda's stylists put into the nose, giving it a blunter appearance and blockier detailing, still shines through even on the luxury-focused Ridgeline RTL-E you see here.
Even the new, chunky five-spoke wheel design won't make you feel too bad about skipping the HPD versions; these 18-inch rims are included on every Ridgeline save for the entry-level Sport or any model equipped with the HPD package. And just as on the HPD-equipped Ridgeline, the new wheels stick out a little wider than on the 2020 Ridgeline. Additionally, the tires are beefier and give the pickup truck a more confident stance. The new dual exhaust outlets that poke through the bumper's lower half give the rear more presence, in addition to a Ram 1500-lookalike syndrome.
HPD getup or otherwise, the new Honda Ridgeline behaves much the same as the old Ridgeline. The ride quality remains excellent, again thanks to a fully independent suspension. Firm body control allows for reasonably composed hard driving (for a pickup) yet supple bump compliance. Even the new, more aggressive tires, which retain an SUV-like all-season tread pattern but add aggro blocks where the tread meets the sidewall, fail to introduce any fresh grit in the Ridgeline's well-oiled comportment. Those tires do, however, give off some noise, just like the narrower rubber the Ridgeline used before; road and tire noise are Honda signatures, and unfortunately the updated truck doesn't do more to stifle either.
Honda's 280-horsepower 3.5-liter V-6 engine is smoother than butter, and again it works through a nine-speed automatic transmission that delivers prompt and smooth gear changes. One big change for 2021 is that every Ridgeline now comes standard with all-wheel drive. The less expensive front-wheel-drive variants of the Ridgeline Sport and RTL trim levels are gone; the RTL-E trim evaluated here already included all-wheel drive as standard fare.
We didn't have a chance to tow anything with the 2021 model, but given the lack of powertrain changes, expect the Honda to do fine with loads nearing its 5,000-pound towing limit—provided the trailer isn't any taller than the Ridgeline itself. In past experiences, even lighter trailers that are of taller profile leave the V-6 huffing and puffing as if hitched to a drag chute. Such is the downside to the V-6's relative lack of down-low torque and general power.
The Inside Is Money
Next to its sublime ride and crossoverlike handling, the 2021 Honda Ridgeline's interior continues to make the case for skipping over more traditional body-on-frame pickups. The cabin floor is flat front and rear, meaning when you flip the rear cushions to their vertical, out-of-the-way position, there is a huge open space left behind. What you put in that space is limited only by the size of the rear doors and the height of the cabin. In RTL-E guise, the Ridgeline includes leather seats that are heated in front, a wireless phone charger, navigation, a 540-watt audio system, and the nifty "bed exciter" external speaker widget that uses actuators to vibrate the pickup bed in such a way as to produce sound audible outside of the vehicle. Go ahead, impress your friends at your next tailgate party.
Everything inside the Ridgeline is assembled tightly and precisely, again, more like you'd find in a nice car at this price point, not the usual so-so build quality and hard-plastic materials you might expect from an average midsize pickup costing the same money. The RTL-E's leather and other finery merely ladles this impression on thicker than does the entry-level cloth-seat Sport variant.
For 2021, this comfortable and upscale environment is enhanced with one physically tiny upgrade with a huge impact: a volume knob. Gone is the old Ridgeline's fiddly touch-sensitive slider for controlling audio volume. The infotainment system otherwise remains the same (all Ridgelines now get the 8.0-inch touchscreen previously limited to upper trims), which brings us to one of the interior's only major letdowns: The infotainment's graphics and touch response times. Unless you're running Apple CarPlay, in which the display mimics your phone's layout with reasonable sharpness, the touchscreen's resolution is wasted on low-rent graphics that almost appear pixelated. It's a bit confusing, given the screen itself seems capable of greater visual precision than what the operating system gives it.
We still think the Ridgeline's general formula holds up, though, and now having driven and looked at the 2021 RTL-E in person, we think the truck's appeal survives not getting the flashier HPD gear. After all, every Honda Ridgeline delivers decent fuel economy (we saw about 21 mpg during a few hundred miles of mixed use), a slick driving experience, a practical interior, and impressive flexibility thanks to the dual-action tailgate and "trunk" embedded in the bed floor. Plus, skipping the HPD kit saves you just shy of $3,000, which is roughly the difference between the entry-level Ridgeline Sport and the next-level-up RTL, or between the RTL and the nicer-still RTL-E.
Looks good! More details?| 2021 Honda Ridgeline RTL-E | |
| PRICE | $43,645 |
| LAYOUT | Front-engine, AWD, 5-pass, 4-door truck |
| ENGINE | 3.5L/280-hp/262-lb-ft SOHC 24-valve V-6 |
| TRANSMISSION | 9-speed auto |
| CURB WEIGHT | 4,500 lb (mfr) |
| WHEELBASE | 125.2 in |
| L x W x H | 210.2 x 78.6 x 70.8 in |
| 0-60 MPH | 6.3 sec (MT est) |
| EPA FUEL ECON | 18/24/21 mpg |
| CO2 EMISSIONS, COMB | 0.96 lb/mile |
| ON SALE | now |
Source: https://www.motortrend.com/reviews/2021-honda-ridgeline-rtl-e-first-drive-review/
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