2006 Honda Ridgeline Road Test

Industrial and architectural in theme, the 2006 Honda Ridgeline’s head-turning styling is definitely odd, and from various angles with changing daylight you can see subtle design cues that are not always evident – or appealing. Given the bold and intriguing look, the standard steel wheels and optional alloys are rather tame in terms of appearance, making the Ridgeline a prime candidate for a visit to the wheel-and-tire store. Also, we’re not fans of the way the tailgate is shorter than the sides of the cargo bed, as if the two teams that engineered these parts suffered an utter failure to communicate. On a positive note, at least the Ridgeline isn’t boring.

Structurally, Honda says the Ridgeline boasts 20 times the rigidity of a traditional body-on-frame pickup thanks to its unique “closed-box” unibody construction. Engineered to offer the load-carrying benefits of a ladder frame and the rigidity of a monocoque design, the 2006 Honda Ridgeline is built upon two fully-boxed longitudinal frame rails fortified by seven high-strength steel cross members in a unitized body. Of course, since Honda doesn’t have a rear-drive platform in-house, and since the Ridgeline would have become prohibitively expensive if Honda had built a traditional truck from scratch, it had no choice other than to create this hybrid foundation, which ii calls a “closed box” unibody design. According to the PR folks, the spin is that it’s unique in its segment.