Toyota, which had seven segment winners in the 2005 edition of the annual Strategic Vision vehicle value survey, took only three categories in this year's study.
Honda retained its overall top ranking, taking top honors in the small-car category for the Civic and in the compact-pickup segment with the Ridgeline. Honda Motor was also named the best overall corporation.
Toyota, which had seven segment winners in the 2005 edition of the annual Strategic Vision vehicle value survey, took only three categories in this year's study.
Honda retained its overall top ranking, taking top honors in the small-car category for the Civic and in the compact-pickup segment with the Ridgeline. Honda Motor was also named the best overall corporation.
Consumer Reports liked the Ridgeline better that Toyota's truck and rated it the best pick-up truck
*cough cough Cough cough*
I know what your saying is completely true, but I don't think the overall general public agrees (nor do it sales #'s) They actually cut back production last year. I see about 5 of these trucks a week. I see about 20 different tacomas a day
Ratings != Reliability ....................... Just FYI...
They have also rated Volkswagens best sometimes but in reliability sections very poor.... so think about it................................................ .................................................. .................................................. ...............................................
Not saying Ridgeline is not reliable but saying..... Toyota is about reliability so let's not the "ratings" idea mess that up in our heads.
Ratings != Reliability ....................... Just FYI...
They have also rated Volkswagens best sometimes but in reliability sections very poor.... so think about it................................................ .................................................. .................................................. ...............................................
Not saying Ridgeline is not reliable but saying..... Toyota is about reliability so let's not the "ratings" idea mess that up in our heads.
Nah, it's just davinp's typical attempts to be controversial. I believe in what he said as much as I believe what Consumer Reports has to say.
The Ridgeline is the automotive press' darling. I'll never for the life of me understand it, especially when the public has spoken, and they ain't buyin'.
To me, cute little features and 10,000 cubby holes in the interior only get you so far. ESPECIALLY in a truck. ESPECIALLY when that truck blew out all four ball joints during a magazine test driving 35 mph on a dirt road (true story). Besides, the locking trunk in the bed idea is wonderful until you actually load something in the bed (it IS a truck, duhhh...) and the tailgate that opens down or swings out is not revolutionary...in fact I believe that has been a feature on a handful of trucks from yesteryear that ironically did not get much hype (go figure).
It's strange how CR is being put down here....I thought CR was essentially the Bible in these parts....
__________________
2001 Camaro SS
310 RWHP, 330 RWTQ stock @ 12,000 miles
28 mpg highway
ESPECIALLY when that truck blew out all four ball joints during a magazine test driving 35 mph on a dirt road (true story).
Do you have a link to that source? I'm very interested to read up on that, and laugh at the Ridgeline at the same time
Quote:
Originally Posted by Z28Wilson
It's strange how CR is being put down here....I thought CR was essentially the Bible in these parts....
Depends on who you talk to. Personally I don't believe in CR 100%. In fact I don't care much for any type of surveys or ratings. Forgive me if that's a crime.
Depends on who you talk to. Personally I don't believe in CR 100%. In fact I don't care much for any type of surveys or ratings. Forgive me if that's a crime.
Me either. I do have a subscription to motor trend (and even with them you have to take their tests and results with a grain of salt) but it is also a very informative magazine about what's out there and what's on the horizion.
My girlfriends dad gets CR. It's good bathroom reading, and that's about it
Do you have a link to that source? I'm very interested to read up on that, and laugh at the Ridgeline at the same time
Sorry, it wasn't the ball joints, it was the struts. And it was at much slower speeds! I guess this is what you get when you try to build a 4x4 pickup on a modified Accord platform?
One incident that led us to question the Ridgeline's adeptness as a true truck involved its ability to withstand off-road use. Senior Consumer Advice Editor Phil Reed took the truck camping in Death Valley, California, and was disappointed with the outcome. The road to the campsite was a long, but relatively flat stretch that seemed well within the Ridgeline's capabilities. Its surface was rough washboard but certainly nothing that couldn't be handled at modest speeds by a modern truck. "I adjusted my speed to minimize vibration and eventually settled between 10 and 15 mph. I held my speed down and steered around the worst of the holes and ruts."
Unfortunately, his tame driving didn't render the Ridgeline damage-free. On the return trip, Phil realized that the Ridgeline seemed to be handling a bit strange, and took it directly to the dealer. A check revealed that all four struts were blown out and needed to be replaced. According to the dealer the repair didn't qualify for warranty work, but nonetheless, Honda agreed to cover the repair as a "one-time, good-faith" gesture. Needless to say, had they not done this our faith in the Ridgeline and Honda's willingness to stand by it would not have been good.
Note that this thing also had 6(!) non-scheduled dealer visits in 24,000 miles.
__________________
2001 Camaro SS
310 RWHP, 330 RWTQ stock @ 12,000 miles
28 mpg highway
And once again.... this thing keeps winning awards how????
That mag. article is
To elaborate further on the article:
"Honda later sent us a letter letting us know that their engineers had examined the damaged struts and concluded that we must have driven at very high speeds for an extended period of time to cause that kind of damage. "We would welcome the opportunity to have you test the Ridgeline against other competitor(s) on the same course that you drove," concluded the letter. With that in mind we traced Phil's Death Valley route in our long-term Toyota Tacoma crew cab. It's equipped with the TRD Sport package designed to give it improved performance on the road without degrading its off-road capability. We drove the exact same route at varying speeds and experienced no damage of any kind. Given the fact that Toyota has been building trucks for decades, we weren't all that surprised."
That sums it up right there!
"After the struts were replaced, the Honda Ridgeline took some heat from editorial staffers for not being a "real truck" with body-on-frame construction, or a V8 engine for that matter. However, while our photographer, Scott Jacobs, was cruising through California and the Southwest, he managed to get between 20 and 22 miles per gallon on his road trip. A big V8 is nice, but it's rarely going to get that kind of mileage in a pickup truck."
That's BS right there too. Fullzise trucks with V-8's are fast aproaching that mark. The new GM trucks with DOD show preliminary ratings of 21-23 mpg highway. If Toyota builds a hybrid Tundra, they may even best that! There's also talk of Diesel 1/2 ton trucks by 2010.
Conclusions? The Ridgleline is a useless modern day el camino
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Cough cough*
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