SDB1

It is obvious from this post that this person is under the age of 16 therefore probably isn't driving yet and therefore can't really form any unbiased opinions in the first place. By the way the bed is made of composite. It's not going to be rotting away any time soon!

I don't want to convince anybody of anything. I bought my Ridgeline for my own reasons. The sad part is that it seems as though alot of you that hate the Ridgeline are saying that nobody should buy it because it can't carry 3 tons of bricks to the jobsite or it won't pull a 45ft 5th wheel. All of these arguments are utterly rediculous because they are things that 85% of the truck buying community will never do, even if they own a V8 4 wheel drive 2ton Dually behemoth! I know that of the 6 American Trucks that I've owned over the years I've never loaded anything larger than a Big Block Chevy Crate motor in the bed. I know the Honda would have no problem fulfilling this task if I should need it. The other argument is gas mileage. I for one never even looked at the gas mileage for the vehicle. All modern engines get similiar fuel mileage now days so 1 or 2 mpg isn't going to sway me one way or the other. If I was really that concerned with mileage I would have bought a hybrid! I bought the Ridgeline because it offered more utility than my Pilot and was cheaper than a Silverado 4wd Extra Cab LT by $6K. Not that price was the deciding factor either, I just like trying a new vehicle every year or two so that when I get into a forum like this I can speak from experience instead of ranting like a fool about something I know nothing about!

Well, the other Ridgeline thread was shut down before I could respond to a few posts so I'll stick them here. I bought my Ridgeline because when I had my last truck ('02 GMC Sierra extended cab Vortec 5300) I found that I just used it more around town than in the dirt I also only used the bed maybe a half a dozen times while I owned it. The GMC was great on the street but didn't make a very good offroad machine due to the long wheelbase and 2wd with street tires. I am a member of the Ridgeline owners club and was directed here by evok. I also used to own and operate a classic car dealership for over 6 years so I am no foreign car whore! I just like different cars and will honestly give my opinions based on my real experience not on my personal bias. I won't say that any of the Current American trucks are inferior to the Ridgeline because they aren't. GM, Ford and Dodge all build great vehicles and I will more than likely buy another one in the next few years. Prior to the Ridgeline I was driving a '05 Pilot that I took over payments from a co worker. Having a family with two small boys the Pilot worked out very well and I ended up giving that vehicle to my wife to drive once I got the Ridgeline. The Ridgeline to me was basically a Pilot with a bed or at least that's how I wanted to use it. After driving it for the first time you quickly find out that it is night and day different than either the Pilot or the Odyssey. I own a pilot my father has an '05 Odyssey Touring edition (best friggin' mini van on the planet as far as I'm concerned) so I know what I'm talking about when I make the comparisons. When driving it you immediately feel how much tighter it is than the pilot or the Odyssey. By the way before I get cracks about how the whole family loves Hondas my dad also owns two Cadillac CTS', a 2004 Ford Thunderbird 007 Edition, and a the new Mercedes SLK convertible. I currently have nothing larger than a motorcyle to haul around (no not a Honda) so I figured getting another full size pickup would be a waste of the bed. Plus I didn't want a vehicle that was that big. Here are some of my gripes about the Ridgeline so far. 1- someone mentioned earlier the Ridgeline has a poor turning radius. It's about the same as my Sierra was but it's worse than my Pilot was. 2-cause of the way Honda designed the suspension system I don't think there will be any easy way to lift this vehicle. If I ever want to do that sort of thing the option isn't available to me. 3-While the V6 has plenty of power and hangs just fine with GM and Ford alternatives, I would have liked to see Honda put in a V8 engine. I think this is more mental than anything else as I am never wanting for power. I just think that a truck needs a V8. The Ridgeline costs about a Grand more than the Pilot but it doesn't have the rear entertainment system for the kids like the Pilot (it's an option). Things that I like. 1-The trunk in the bed is awesome. I hope all other truck makers will offer something like this soon. 2-The AWD system is front drive until you have a hard accelerations or traction loss situation and then transfers power to the rear wheels. There is no torque steer whatsover. 3-The traction control system is really neat when the road gets wet and slippery and can be deactivated to power through the Sand. 4- The spare tire in the trunk can slide out for easy access and if you are afraid you won't be able to access it while fully loaded it also mounts in the bed with included hardware.

Based on the exterior I'd say it's a toss up. The wing on the Cobalt is just bad and I prefer the Honda wing. If you can delete the wing on the SS then I'd buy one. The red on the cobalt looks too boy racer. I'd like to see both cars side by side in black. The interior in the Cobalt isn't even in the same league as the civic. I've seen both in person and when you sit in the civic you feel as if you're in a much more expensive model, where as the cobalt feels very entry level. Of course I've never like any GM interior other than the Corvette. Yes, the Honda Steering wheel is a bit over the top but the Cobalt's is rather plain and ugly as well. If performance was my only concern I'd go with the Cobalt. Gone are the days when Honda would outhandle the competition. GM has put together an extremely well balanced performance package that they can be proud of. Overall this car is an interior update away from stealing some Honda thunder. On a side note I don't know why GM doesn't fire their entire interior design team. I have walked away from more GM cars that were otherwise superior mechanically just because of dated interiors. Heck thats where you spend most of your time, give us something nice to look at! The CTS is one of those otherwise perfect cars that is just ruined by the nasty interiors. It's a good thing that car performs so darned well! CTS-V is my wet dream!

I am proud to say that I am Ridgeline owner. I was also born in Detroit and was a die hard American Loyalist until about 8 years ago. I'd say that now I have a broader outlook when it comes to my car buying decissions. Basically every major auto manufacturer has some excellent vehicles, but they also have some mistakes. People who are stuck on one side of the fence or the other are seriously missing out. On import forums I find myself constantly trying to break through and get people to at least take a look at some of their domestic alternatives. I guess the same can be said for the Domestic boards as well. I started purchasing Hondas in 1997 when I leased a Brand new Civic EX. My decision was purely financial and I was paying about $160 a month on a two year lease. What got me to come back to Honda surprised the heck out of me. When my lease was about to expire I was over my mileage and so I went to sell the vehicle on my own. Go figure, I sold it fo $2000 more than my payoff and had a nice downpayment towards my next vehicle. Anyway, the little civic was put together exceptionally well. It didn't have the best power but it had an awesome 5 speed and an engine that revved pretty high so it was an awesome little canyon carver. This little car would pull close to 1g with just a tire change and I could hang with BMWs and Porsches in the tightest twisties. Ever since that initial experience with a Honda I've always held them in high regard so throughout the years I've purchased several more. I've also in the last 12 years owned a 1997 Tacoma 4wd, 2002 GMC Sierra Full Size 5.3L Extended Cab, 1995 F150 2wd, 2004 and 2005 Honda Pilot, 1995 Chevrolet Corvette, 2003 Honda CRV, 2004 Cadillac CTS, 1998 Ford Explorer Limited, 1996 Dodge Dakota Extended Cab, 2000 Toyota Celica GT-S and a 2003 Acura RSX Type-S. My '02 GMC was a fantastic vehicle. GM makes terrific engines and even though this vehicle wasn't particularly good offroad (2wd with excessively long wheelbase), it was a thrill to drive on the road. That being said I chose the Ridgeline over a new GM produst because I can lease a loaded Ridgeline for a little over $300 a month (high resale value) and there aren't any decent leases on GM Trucks. Plus when it comes time to sell it I won't lose my butt on the Honda. After owning two Pilots the Ridgeline just made sense. The engine is just as fun as my GMC. The interior is just as comfortable as my pilot plus I can take my ATV or Dirtbike to Glamis Sand Dunes without a trailer. I also play alot of Golf and can keep two sets of clubs locked inside the Bed Trunk and not lose any space in the passenger compartment or bed. This alone was the decision maker when I decided to purchase the vehicle and I find I use it every day! Offroad the Ridgeline is only slightly less competent than my '97 Tacoma 4wd, but easily does better than my 2wd GMC Sierra. The sierra was too big for tight trails and would high center and get stuck at Glamis Sand Dunes. Yeah, a 4wd GM or Ford would do better, and I'd love to have one, but I wasn't going to spend $40K on a truck. On the road there is no comparison as the Ridgeline will absolutely smoke other trucks through the twisties! Overall, I'm extremely happy with my decision. Anyone who says that the Ridgeline isn't a truck hasn't driven one. Every day I drive it I smile and think to myself how great this thing is. It easily has surpassed my expectations of what I thought a Honda Pickup would be.