2007 Honda Ridgeline Los Angeles

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If you're contemplating a multi-use or commuter pickup, the 2007 Honda Ridgeline should top the shopping list, assuming you can embrace its unusual styling. From its look to its tailgate and storage innovations to its combination of body-on-frame isolation and unibody stiffness, the Ridgeline is unique in the pickup truck world. Ridgeline is pleasant to drive in all circumstances, and as much truck as many buyers will ever need. The Ridgeline features an easy-to-reach, locking storage box under its bed. For 2007, Honda introduces the value-priced Ridgeline RTX model, which adds popular equipment such as alloy wheels and a trailer hitch for a nominal price increase compared to the base RT model. At the high end of the line, the 2007 Ridgeline RTL adds a power moonroof and XM Satellite Radio as standard equipment. The Ridgeline is sold in four different trim levels, with each model adding more standard equipment, there are no exterior badges to distinguish models. The two-way tailgate is unusual, but it works great. It will drop down in familiar fashion, top to bottom, and it also opens like a door, from right to left. There's a hidden latch on the lower right side and hinges on the left, so users don't have to lean across the tailgate to store or retrieve items in the bed or the storage trunk. The tailgate is retained by a conventional cable on the left and a patented, hidden retainer on the right.

Powering the 2007 Honda Ridgeline

All Ridgelines are powered by a 3.5-liter V6 engine, generating 247 horsepower, with a five-speed automatic transmission and Honda's VTM-4 all-wheel-drive system. This full-time all-wheel-drive normally proportions 60 percent of the power to the front wheels, but if conditions indicate it will automatically send as much as 70 percent of the engine torque to the rear wheels. Ridgeline also incorporates a limited-slip differential with lock feature. Its drivetrain, or the combination of engine, transmission and all-wheel drive, is impressively smooth and quiet. With four doors, five seats, AWD and independent front and rear suspension, the Ridgeline is a relatively heavy vehicle, but the 247-hp V6 engine is generally up to the task.

'07 Honda Ridgeline Design

The Ridgeline is the first mainstream pickup with fully independent rear suspension, which improves ride quality considerably. Other pickup trucks have traditionally been built with a separate nose section, cab section, and cargo bed, bolted to a separate ladder frame. Honda's pickup uses both a one-piece unibody and a steel ladder frame, welded together. Its cab and bed are built as one piece, with separate subframes for the engine, front suspension and rear suspension. It's smooth, quiet and very maneuverable, with a load of useful features. While it can't do the work of some full-size pickups, its 1550-pound payload and 5000-pound towing capacity are more than enough for many buyers. The Honda Ridgeline's uniqueness starts with its appearance. 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 different.

Inside the 2007 Ridgeline

Inside, the Ridgeline offers as much comfort, space and convenience as any half-ton pickup available. Bucket seats come standard in front with a center console. The driver and front passenger seats to be roomy, comfortable and supportive, with plenty of adjustment range for rake and travel. Honda's optional navigation system, with its DVD data base and eight-inch screen, is a paradigm for size, brightness, contrast and overall ease of use. The voice commands work well; alternately, the menus are simple, effective and easy to master. Although the Ridgeline's rear doors are shorter than the fronts, standard practice in this segment, there's no problem getting in or out, and the rear seat is nearly as roomy and versatile as those in front. It's actually comfortable for two adults, with a 24-degree backrest angle, more like a front seat.

Honda Ridgeline Lineup

The Ridgeline RT is the base model. It comes standard with black bumpers, black door handles and steel wheels, manually operated front seats, air conditioning, power windows and locks, cruise control and a 100-watt, six-speaker stereo with CD.

The RTX  is new for 2007.

The Ridgeline RTS adds painted bumpers, power front seats with manual lumbar support, a160-watt, seven-speaker stereo with six-CD changer and dual-zone automatic climate control.

The RTL adds still more standard features, including leather upholstery, a power moonroof and XM Satellite Radio hardware. The RTL can be equipped with Ridgeline's only factory installed option: Honda's DVD-based navigation system with voice recognition. There are also dozens of dealer-installed accessories available for all Ridgeline models.

Conclusions

Safety equipment is comprehensive. It includes multi-stage front airbags and side-impact airbags for front passengers, front and rear side curtain airbags for head protection and LATCH child-seat anchors for the three rear seats. Anti-lock brakes, traction control, vehicle stability assist and a tire-pressure monitoring system are also standard. For the latest updates on this model, visit the official Honda Ridgeline website.

Some information for this review was obtained from NewCarTestDrive.com