Toyota loses ground to Honda

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.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=117079

P.S. Here in Woodbridge, VA The Toyota dealer is next door to the Honda dealer, but are owned by a different person/company!

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.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=117079

P.S. Here in Woodbridge, VA The Toyota dealer is next door to the Honda dealer, but are owned by a different person/company!


HOnda makes great cars indeed, but any Survey that has the Saturn VUE as a winner isn't worth my time.

Wasn't the Ridgeline LAST year's winner. That truck has been out for some time now...feels like it must be headed into it's 2nd or 3rd model year.

How does the ridgeline keep winning awards??? I've driven one. Tacoma's are better (and cheaper too!)

How does the ridgeline keep winning awards??? I've driven one. Tacoma's are better (and cheaper too!)
Ridgeline keeps winning awards because the judges keep on being :fruit::gaydumbo:??

Just a thought

Consumer Reports liked the Ridgeline better that Toyota's truck and rated it the best pick-up truck

^^^ So are you saying that because Consumer Reports said so, then that opinion is the ABSOLUTE TRUTH?

Take what they said as a grain of salt.

Consumer Reports liked the Ridgeline better that Toyota's truck and rated it the best pick-up truck
*cough cough :bullshitz 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 :D

Edit: Did I mention I hate CR?

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....

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 :cool:



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 :D

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 :cool:

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? :)

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/Drives/LongTerm/articleId=105797

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.

And once again.... this thing keeps winning awards how????

That mag. article is :lol:

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 (http://www.edmunds.com/apps/vdpcontainers/do/vdp/articleId=106629) 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 :lol:

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'.

Why do u try to understand it if it is NOT GM... ?? U are hurting urself.
U won't live long like this.
Once again, "Don't try to understand anything that is not GM." Got it? or did I confuse you more?
I mean u r confused enough about life already.


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).

I am sure if they put these features in your GM crap, they will go very far.... :lol:


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).

Why r u not famous?
U must be doing something wrong.
I mean u seem to act very smart and know what the truck industry should or should not do.

Hey Rav, how about you quick fucking up every damn post in this forum? Sheesh! I'm trying to read posts about trucks and vehicles and all your doing is cutting down what other people say? Let him post his "GM fanboy" shit or whatever you want to call it and IGNORE IT! The post will move on.

I'm sure you'll tear me apart now. Go ahead. It'll just make you look more like an asshole.

Tell ya what, I won't even bother to read your response.

Oh, this is not good. Not good at all.

Hey Rav, how about you quick fucking up every damn post in this forum? Sheesh! I'm trying to read posts about trucks and vehicles and all your doing is cutting down what other people say? Let him post his "GM fanboy" shit or whatever you want to call it and IGNORE IT! The post will move on.

I'm sure you'll tear me apart now. Go ahead. It'll just make you look more like an asshole.

Tell ya what, I won't even bother to read your response.


I use the ignore list for a couple of members. You should try it as well. :thumbup: :cool:


Anyways, i am not a truck guy so i don't know what most people look for in a truck. From the reviews i have read, the editors call the truck a suburban guy's truck. So basically if you own a construction company you are not really looking to get the Ridgeline, but if you tend to go to home depot from time to time for some minor stuff the truck will be good for you. That's the basic jist that i get.

I use the ignore list for a couple of members. You should try it as well. :thumbup: :cool:


Anyways, i am not a truck guy so i don't know what most people look for in a truck. From the reviews i have read, the editors call the truck a suburban guy's truck. So basically if you own a construction company you are not really looking to get the Ridgeline, but if you tend to go to home depot from time to time for some minor stuff the truck will be good for you. That's the basic jist that i get.

So basically it's a chick's truck.

thats the thing, its just opinion, if theirs were the absolute truth then why is honda allegedly discontinuing it

I use the ignore list for a couple of members. You should try it as well. :thumbup: :cool:


Thanks for the tip. I have well over 3K posts at a "classic truck" forum and quite a few at another and this is the first time I've ever even considered using this. Works like charm though ;)

So basically it's a chick's truck.

I've always thought that about it too :lol: (not that it's a bad thing, there's a lot of hot chicks out there driving full and midsize trucks! )

thats the thing, its just opinion, if theirs were the absolute truth then why is honda allegedly discontinuing it

Can you somewhat verify this??? I know sales were bad... but to scrap the whole project? Not 100% on this but I've "heard" that mitsubishi has already nixed the "raider" pick-up (I personally don't think it will be missed.)

thats the thing, its just opinion, if theirs were the absolute truth then why is honda allegedly discontinuing it


Yes. Can u verify this?

I just called the HONDA dealer. They have not heard about any such thing... :lol:

Honda worked hard for the truck and they can't just dump it but REPLACE it with a better one. One just can't enter a segment and decide next day to not be a participant in that segment, especially if u r as successful a manufacturer as Honda.

Yes. Can u verify this?

I just called the HONDA dealer. They have not heard about any such thing... :lol:

Honda worked hard for the truck and they can't just dump it but REPLACE it with a better one. One just can't enter a segment and decide next day to not be a participant in that segment, especially if u r as successful a manufacturer as Honda.



Going along with that it also costs the company millions if not billions to do such a thing. First it cost a lot in the developmental stage such as concept, testing, marketing etc. I heard the opposite...I heard the Ridgeline was selling well. Oh well!:thumbup:

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.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=117079

P.S. Here in Woodbridge, VA The Toyota dealer is next door to the Honda dealer, but are owned by a different person/company!

It doesn't matter how many awards a company wins if its vehicles aren't selling. I believe Autoline Detroit showed sales figures for last month and Toyota was up 20%. I think the only other company to show an increase was Ford, but only marginally. Everyone else was down, including Honda, whose sales dipped, if I remember correctly, almost 8%. Awards are nice, but the bottom line is sales!