Honda Ridgeline Crew Cab

Honda Ridgeline Crew Cab
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Full 2013 Honda Ridgeline Review

What's New for 2013

The 2013 Honda Ridgeline gets a standard rearview camera for all trim levels.

Introduction

If you're using a pickup for a trade or serious towing, then a conventional pickup still is the way to go. But if you only occasionally require the utility of a pickup, the 2013 Honda Ridgeline is worth considering.

There are plenty of full-size pickups with beds barely longer than the 2013 Honda Ridgeline's 5-foot box and with the same 50-inch width, so the Ridgeline's no less capable as a cargo hauler than many run-of-the-mill crew cab battlewagons. At the same time, it gives you a much more manageable footprint. And while you still enjoy a high-set seating position and admirable ground clearance, the Ridgeline's fully independent suspension and lighter, car-based structure make it more nimble than most conventional pickups.

Honda keeps the Ridgeline simple with a single four-door body style, one engine and an all-wheel-drive system for all models. The 2013 Ridgeline's cabin is wide and spacious and loaded with versatility for cargo and passengers. But for the higher driving position, you could be in any number of Honda's cars or crossovers -- if they also had the bed out back, handy in-floor storage locker and a tailgate that swings or drops down traditional-pickup style.

The Ridgeline has some notable drawbacks, though. Its lighter-duty suspension and structure makes it more of an urban hauler that gets you through difficult weather or mild off-pavement excursions than a true off-roader. The Ridgeline's V6 power also falls short of the V8s or turbocharged V6s in full-size domestic pickups, and its fuel economy isn't so great, either.