hi new to the forum... read this post about the ridgeline and figured i would give my 2 cents. i own a 2006 ridgeline and have had the 2" lift on now for about 9 months with no issues what so ever. i do take my ridgeline through some pretty tough logging roads with numerous mud holes and deep ruts. i have really never had an issue. by no means do i think this truck is capable of true offroading/rock climbling. but for what i do it works perfect. i love the way it looks drives and rides. i have taken it on numerous camping trips and fishing trips with no problems at all. i have also tackled the beaches of the outer banks. i passed many lifted "real" trucks that were stuck. personally i think driver error is to blame for people getting stuck on the beach. i know most people on this site think the ridgline is a joke with no real purpose but most would be surprised if they actually drove one. if anyone would like i can post pics of mine.
Ridgeline as ExPo vehicle?
- Thread starter GroupSe7en
- Start date
FreeManDan
Adventurer
post pics now, make people say wow :Wow1:
teotwaki
Excelsior!
Just what I was thinking. Stop worrying about raising the bridge when you can lower the water :elkgrin: Store repair parts and other rarely used things in the spare tire compartment.
Yes. Pics please! Truxx lift or... ?
jh504
Explorer
This reminds me of something that I always used to think about. What if back in the 70s Honda got into the U.S. compact 4x4 truck market? What if through the 80s Toyota actually had a real competitor? What would the Honda and Toyota trucks be like now if they had competed against each other for all of those years? I think a compact 4x4 Honda would be pretty sweet if they would actually build it right.
FreeManDan
Adventurer
I think car companies deliberately avoided competing in each others marks, case in point VW rabbit truck. 50mpg, front wheal drive, never offered in 4x4 in the US, small tires, niche mini truck not quite comparable with a toyota mini truck. The adventurous mini truck buyer must have been an unnoticed demographic, not worth competing over...until nissan names their truck "frontier":costumed-smiley-007
Any way, I didn't mean to hijack the thread. I'm still waiting on pics as I believe ridgeline is a contender for the moderately adventurous. It could help you escape suburbia on a friday afternoon.
RMP&O
Expedition Leader
What in the world are you talking about!? Nothing purpose built on a frame in decades? What world do you live in??
Race cars and trucks generally have a custom built frame/chassis that is designed to save a human beings life! Pannels (body) are simply riveted on or screwed/bolted on around a tube frame that is heavily reinforced. Not only is it safe to have a lot of steel around you it also makes changing pannels between races easy so they car/truck is not always smashed up or costing a lot to do body work on reguarly.
To the oringinal poster....if you are finding yourself wanting lift, bigger tires and other mods. You bought the wrong vehicle!
If you want to take it camping down a gravel road on the weekend, heck anything will do. Use whatever makes you happy for that.
As far as expedition....maybe I should go look the word up because sometimes on this forum I get confused as to what people think the meaning of the word is.
RMP&O
Expedition Leader
Nissan was in there in the 1960s, here in the USA. But Mr. K didn't like the 4x4s, he was into sports cars. So Nissan and Toyota signed a deal in about 1969. Nissan got the sports car market here in the USA and Toyota got the 4x4 market. Things would be much different in the USA had this deal not been done.
Look at Australia....and maybe you can imagine what we would have in the USA had Mr. K not been in love with his SPLs and Z cars!
Correct me if I am wrong but up to about 1980 Honda was mainly making motorcycles....
BTW, I am sure people are going to say....what deal!? It wasn't public but we have got the details from the mouth of Mr. K himself. Most of you won't even know who Mr. K is but he brought Datsun and later Nissan to the USA in the early 1960s.
i will get pics up soon. my wife has the camera at work with her today. it seems like the ridgeline is pretty much hated around here. maybe i should keep my posts to a minumum. lol. i came here to find info and was told this is the place to be.
the lift is truxxx. i have general grabber at2 tires. safari rack. hella lights and thats pretty much it. like i said its no offroad machine but it works for me.
the lift is truxxx. i have general grabber at2 tires. safari rack. hella lights and thats pretty much it. like i said its no offroad machine but it works for me.
I don't think anyone is hostile per say - if you ask about Toyota's lack of diesel engines or the Hilux in the US - that could get hostile :coffeedrink: .
On the contrary, I think Expo members like to see what people can do with different platforms. From what I read though (here and on a Honda forum) few people have found satisfactory off-road mods for the Ridgeline or Pilot.
nwoods
Expedition Leader
I drove a Ridgeline extensively for a weekend, put hundreds of miles on it. I really liked the way it drove, it felt just like an Accord. Tons of storage. The 4WD system worked okay, and provided sufficient traction to get up a steep loose dirt hill that challenges stock XJ's, but the lack of clearance was a significant problem...it was a noisy accent as I scraped my way along. Coming down that same hill was too exciting due to lack of low range. I ultimately decided against it not just for it's lack of off road prowess, but for little things... the window sill is rounded off, so you can't put your arm on it, and the lack of telescoping steering wheel created problems for me too. I was willing to put up with those if the dealer could have hooked me up with the suppliers of Honda's Baja Race truck, but no..... 
jh504
Explorer
If it works for you then there is nothing wrong with it. You can use a Subaru Outback or a 250 dirt bike if it works. Keep on testing your Honda. If at some point you exceed what your Ridgeline is capable of, then upgrade.
jh504
Explorer
Driving a new LC70 off the showroom floor would be a dream come true.
Stoked, please post your pics and tire size. I am currently planning my tire/lift modifications for the truck. Totally up in the air of what to get at this point, but the OEM tires have a thousand or so miles left in em. :ylsmoke:
GroupSe7en
Adventurer
I'm really pleased to hear that you have a lift that you like - one that you are actually using. What tires are you running?
Pics would be great.
Pics would be great.