Honda Ridgeline

[douglasfir]

Don't laugh... I spend a lot of time at work driving full size body-on-frame trucks on Forest Service roads and four wheel drive has saved my butt in a number of situations. Not as familiar with "all wheel drive" and what it's capable of off the pavement. I know the Ridgeline is a series of concessions compared to a "real" truck, but for a number of reasons I'm considering one.

How limiting would a Honda Ridgeline be on the rough Forest Service roads of Western Colorado compared to a basic F150 with 4x4 low?

 

[wingmaster]

I like my Ridgeline and haven't had trouble for some light to moderate offroading. Putting on skid plates, A/T tires, and maybe a 2" lift could make it extremely capable. For heavy-duty offroading I'd opt for something else.

Might trade it in next year though, I really liked the under-bed trunk for storage when I first saw it but it's actually a pain to access when I load up my bed with heavy coolers and gear. Another downside is a full-size A/T tire doesn't fit in the spare tire compartment in the trunk. I had to find alternative ways to store it, none of which are clean solutions

 

[JFK]

Don't laugh...

I think you already know the answer to your question.

 

[Broomd]

Like the idea, but if your FS roads are anything like ours in ID, it's a bridge too far.

The boulder stretches are just too much without some real ground clearance and serious suspension.
Overall the RIdgeline is a great vehicle, I'm in the market to upgrade wife's Lexus RX 350 and I've been more than tempted to get her into a loaded Ridgeline for our rough roads and for the hauling she does with her gardening, feed, grain etc. for the livestock and layers.
Honda's proud of the new one$ for sure.

 

[GunsAreFun]

I would think ground clearance and approach angle would be your limiting factors more than 4x4 vs AWD, especially in dry conditions.

Any reason why your not looking at the more traditional light trucks? I’m not an off-road expert…far from it…but the Ranger and Tacoma both have better clearance and approach/depart angle and available with standard 4x4. I honestly sometimes wish I had a Tacoma instead of a Tundra for some of those less maintained roads. The more narrow and shorter wheel base would be quite handy.

 

[PathFinder]

Some guys will also put this in the laugh category, but it's unlikely they're spending much time in 4 low themselves...
A Subaru will do it better if you don't need the bed. Why? Manual trans has the better AWD system. Add a Torq locker, 2" lift, A/T or M/T tires and a small winch. It will go about anywhere a stock pickup will go, and has more ground clearance than a stock GM. On paper, it has more ground clearance and bigger tires than some SxS.
If dead set on the Ridgeline, it will probably go most places with a quality A/T under it. AWD system is a bit limiting but it takes a bad trail or a substantial amount of snow to cause a real issue.
I have a Tacoma on 37s and almost never use it except during lion season because the Subaru can go just about anywhere most of the year. I didn't think I'd be able to hunt out of the Subaru as much as I do, but I only needed the Tacoma for two trips out of a couple dozen this year.

Sent from my Pixel 6 using Tapatalk

 

[Beagle1]

In a badly rutted road or in deep snow clearance will be your biggest problem.