Honda Ridgeline vs Toyota Tundra
Jason Lancaster | Sep 15, 2008 | Comments 55
The differences between the Honda Ridgeline and the Toyota Tundra demonstrate the fundamental difference between the understanding each of these Japanese manufacturers has of the North American truck market. After spending decades selling mini-trucks and three-quarter size versions of their domestic competition’s pickups, Toyota decided to target the not-so-big three and develop a full-size pickup that was every inch the equal of the perennial class-leading F150 and Silverado. The Tundra has been a definite success in that regard, even surpassing the competition out of Detroit in terms of certain features and capabilities.
Honda, to put it mildly, decided to go another route. With no history of selling trucks in the United States, the Ridgeline appeared out of nowhere as a sort of combination pickup truck / SUV hybrid that claimed to be a full-size truck but fell short in several crucial areas – most notably horsepower, towing capacity and, well, size. In terms of exterior dimensions, the Ridgeline follows the old Toyota game plan of trying to offer big features with a small footprint. Sadly, in the minds of truck buyers, the length, width and height of a vehicle make a difference, and when seen side by side the Ridgeline is clearly dwarfed by the Tundra.
Here’s an approximate proportional view of the Tundra and the Ridgeline side by side.
Honda has chosen to outfit the Ridgeline with only one engine choice, a 3.5 liter V6 which is rated at 247 horsepower. Not only is this a full 120 horsepower less than the available 5.7 liter V8 in the Tundra, but historically, pickup trucks have offered a wide range of drive train choices in order to satisfy the individual needs of buyers. Both vehicles offer variable-valve timing in order to improve fuel consumption, yet the Toyota’s 13 miles per gallon in city driving and 17 miles per gallon on the highway compare favorably with the Ridgeline’s 15 / 20 rating – especially when you factor in the 2 extra cylinders and 50 percent greater available power. The Ridgeline also has a smaller box and less than half the towing capacity of the Tundra.
It seems obvious that the Honda Ridgeline is not a serious player when it comes to the full-size pickup truck game. So what exactly is it? Well, to put it simply, the Ridgeline is a pickup truck for people who don’t buy pickup trucks. With its vast array of storage compartments and locking “trunk,” it’s a mini-Chevrolet Avalanche. With an independent rear suspension and smaller dimensions, it’s the kind of truck that won’t intimidate drivers moving up from a Honda SUV. In this sense, it is quite successful – the driving characteristics are more similar to a crossover than a pickup, yet it offers a degree of cargo storage that isn’t found in any other Honda sport-utility vehicle. The ride height lets buyers feel more confident on the road, and the four-wheel drive system adds an air of legitimacy to the entire package.
The Tundra and the Ridgeline are clearly not competing for the same share of the market. In fact, it’s not really easy to see if the Ridgeline has any competition at all in the niche that Honda has carved out for the vehicle. Full-size truck buyers will most likely steer clear of the Ridgeline based on its specifications alone, but it could definitely hold some appeal to those in the mid-size segment, or anyone wanting to fulfill their fantasy of pickup truck ownership without having to extend their driveway or find a bigger parking spot at work.
Filed Under: Toyota Tundra Reviews and Comparisons
Oh, look, One for me and one for my wife. How cute.
I think the Ridgeline should go head to head with the Avalanche. That would be a great comparison.
I agree with Mickey. The Ridgeline almost even looks like the Avalanche.
Funny, you make fun of the Avalanche as you get into your TuRD. Now, that is funny!
Andrew as usual, a good comparison of both vehicles there would be better than a Tundra with the Ridgeline. Being both vehicles can’t compare to a truck. I’m sure when compared the two Andrew you wouldn’t like the results. Your Avalanche has a serious problem with the back seal when you dropped the window and back panel. The gaskets for some reason don’t do their job and fail to seal causing many leaks. This is straight from a Chevy Tech at my local dealership. Who happens to be my neighbors son. So I do talk to him quite regular about Chevy.
The major things I can see are. 1. Who buys a pkp truck to race? 2. If imitation is a form of flattery, the Avalanche should be proud anf the Toy should be jealous. 3. Does everyone who buys a pkp truck buy it to pull stumps on the farm or trailer houses to the lake? 4.In 6 years the Tundra will be a pile of rust who’s engine sits awaiting a use in someone’s garage while the Honda will still be bought and sold as a running functioning truck.
Bobby apparently you missed the point…. Have you ventured out where you lived? They are more trucks on the road than you know. Also hate to bother you but your honda isn’t a truck. Maybe along the lines of a Tonka Truck.
Mickey, you missed the point. Honda is not trying to compete with the toyota tundra. They are after the market share that does not need the stump puller. They are after the person that wants the refined ride of a car that has a bed for hauling and a 4 wheel drive for traction. I don’t own a Honda Ridgeline. It was made to support the wrong countrie’s economy to be considered by me, much the same as your Tundra was.
Didn’t Subaru already try this with the brat? Had one in high school it was fun and reliable. There’s a market for the ridge , but I think it’s small. I personnally think it’s wierd looking.
I think the Avalanche is much more of a truck than the Ridgeline. The Ridgeline is a small truck for small truck buyers, and in that sense it’s just fine. However, why Honda masquerades the Ridgeline as a half-ton is beyond me. Clearly, it is not competitive with a true truck offered by Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Nissan, or Toyota.
Ridgeline is a girlie truck.
I also agree that the Ridgeline is not a serious truck. It’s underpowered, and as mentioned over rated. There is a niche for it though. I see a lot of them around here and although I’d never own one, I don’t find them repulsive in any sense of the word.
Bobby J I guess we don’t have americans making any toyota’s in the good ole USA… Well here’s news for you. Go on and buy a Big 3. They needed it. Who’s wanting a bailout?
Mickey, when the hourly employees are paid, the utilities are paid, and the expenses are paid, there is something left called the profit. If you buy Big 3, the profit stays in the U.S.A., goes into improvements and promotes our economy. If you buy Toyotas, the profit goes right back to Japan and promotes their economy. Now I’m completely suprised I had to explain to you the diferences in made in America and made for America.
Mickey, just so you can save yourself 3 more days of typing, save your headliner story for later. Everybody that can read has already numerous times, we all know that even though GM has made hundreds of thousands of cars and trucks without headliner problems, yours was the only one that nobody in the world could fix to your expectations. You should have just quit pulling it down to try to get your truck replaced.
If you want walls put up around the country to keep everything in Bobby we won’t survive. Your Big 3 won’t survive without outside help. Your profiy may stay here but you pay Mexicans to build part of your product. The big problem people want efficiency, quality, and performamce out of their vehicles. When the Big 3 finally produce that then Bobby you will have what you want. As long as we depend on foriegn oil most americans want fuel efficient vehicles now. As long as we have freedom of choice I don’t think this will go away. Your Big 3 wants 50 Billion to pay for their R&D to help them get fuel efficient and emisssions standards required by the government. What have the Big 3 been doing? We already bailed out Dodge & Chrysler before. Bobby I’m not worried about where Toyota profit goes. You would have to say this about most if not all electronics i.e. TV’s, stereo’s etc, cement, marble, granite, and even some types of wood. Personally Bobby I wouldn’t be in a Toyota if both Ford and Chevy customer service pushed me away. Both trucks had a problem which I had to have fix 11x for Ford and 10x for Chevy. Both promised replacements and then I was kicked to the curb. So why would I want to buy another when I was treated like dirt. Maybe you would but I won’t. To me customer service is what keeps a customer with that manufacturer.
Mickey, Everytime we buy a widget that is made in China, Japan, Indonesia or Korea there will be one less dollar staying in America. Walmart has put so many mom and pop stores out of business it’s not funny, and it’s not because it’s better quality. It’s because it is cheaper. I’m just as guilty as everyone else, half the crap I buy is made elsewhere. When we finally learn, I’m afraid it will be too late. Toyotas new Prius will require it’s battery charged every ten miles, it has been getting subsidies from Uncle Sam to help it sell. GM’s new Volt will get 40 miles out of it’s battery before a charge is needed. Toyata is putting up quite the ruckus so that GM won’t receive a subsidy to help them sell. Why? Because they know that when the public has a choice of 10 mile battery versus a 40 mile battery, they’re Prius sales will soon die, except for those that prefer to buy imports. How can we let Japan run what our government does. Do you have even the slightest idea what would happen if the workforce of the big 3 were to instantly become unemployed, do you care?I’m not against imports completely, I ride a Japanese motorcycle because American motorcycles are not in the same league. I almost bought a Tundra in February but I did a lot of research first and after reading about torque converters, piston knock, tailgates, rust, stereos and tin can bodywork I changed my mind. 7 mos later, Toyota still won’t admit to bed bounce even existing, and I didn’t even know that chrome could rust till I read about on your forums and seen it first hand on new trucks at the dealers lot. I could see myself in a Tacoma but the way Toyota rushed the Tundra into the market and the flaws that continue to show up, I will play the wait and see game before I bail out on the USA for a tundra.
Bobby – I don’t get it man. You say you don’t want to support the “wrong country’s economy” but you drive a Japanese motorcycle. So it’s OK for you to buy foreign but nobody else should do it? You talk about profit being left over after expenses, but as far as not-so-big 3 shareholders are concerned, there hasn’t been a profit generated in years. You dislike Wal-Mart because they put a bunch of small companies out of business, but Wal-Mart is an American company just like GM, Ford, and Chyrsler. All the Wal-Mart profits stay here – what’s the problem? How many times can you contradict yourself? I agree with your comments about the Ridgeline, but you’re losing me when you say it’s bad to buy a Toyota.
Never mind, I never could express myself. But be careful what you are wishing for, you might just get it. If the not so big 3 go belly up, it will be too late to save your economy after that. I’ll go away now.
You’re right about one thing, I was wishing for a truck that didn’t have to be in the shop every month for an issue. Right you are in I got what I wished for. I can’t complain about my truck at all. If I have an issue I bring it up and my dealer has fixed all 3 issues I had with the truck being all were minor repairs. This ties the best truck I had so far which was a 98 Silverado. I had over a 100,000 miles on it and a day shy of 5 years when I got hit from behind and it pushed me into a city bus totalling it. I bought my Crewmax Limited July 07. I have 39,000 miles on it. Once it reaches my 98’s miles then I will preach out loud. Right now it’s doing it’s job, which is staying on the road.
Mickey you aint gonna like this pic. [IMG]http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e381/arveejay/toyotaridgeline.jpg[/IMG]
All I was saying earlier is that you should not buy a Toyota because it is a Toyota, you should buy it because you feel it is better quality.
This comparison reminds me of the old saw about bringing a knife to a gunfight.
A knife is better than nothing, but when things get down and dirty, give me the .44 mag any day.
Lets see, we could chop the top off the Sienna, add a few gimmics instead of a decent size bed and then sit back and call it a pickup.
NOT!
Tote Barr – Keep em’ coming! You’re batting 1000! 🙂
My dad owns a Honda Ridgeline and it’s the best truck he ever owned. Me and my two brothers can fit in the back very comfortably (two of us are over five feet). My dad sometimes will tow a 13′ whaler or a 2500 lb pop-up camper. It’s a very nice truck for the average guy. The tailgate can come down of swing out for easy storage. I bet you in a few years that hydrolic tailgate on the toyota tundra. The ridgeline does have a small bed but can surprisingly fit more than you think (a couple of dirt bikes or a big a.t.v). It may not be to powerful but it only has a 3.5 liter V6 and still has a good 5000 lb. The Ridge also has a really powerful cooling system for towing and an independant suspension. If you put a 5.7 liter V8 on it, it would pull the tundra straight across town. Also remember the ridgeline has 15 – 20 mpg vs. the 13 – 16 on the tundra. For those of you who say the rideline’s not a truck, I disagree. It may not be as powerfull as the others but this will be the one with 200,000 mi and last 12 years. This truck has five star crash rating and a wicked four wheel drive system. We go on the beach once and a while and you can’t even tell your on it. It hasn’t slipped of got stuck once. I’m sure the tundra is a very nice truck and very powerful, but as Bobby said, whos gonna pull more than about 8000 pounds?
I bet you in about 5 years the hydrolic tailgate on the tundra will be just like any other tailgate. (thats what I meant to say)
Stephen want to try again. My sticker in the window which I do still have has 16 – 20 mpg on a 07 Crewmax Limited which is better than your ridgeline V6 and still having a beast of a V8. I have more room in the back seat than you have and my back seat reclines also with the back glass down. The two don’t compare Stephen. I sure my truck will reach the same mileage. I have 50,500 miles now. As for cooling system you seen the superbowl ad for Tundra then that answers that. As for Bobby he had his own agenda about American made products. As for towing people have different needs and some do tow near that 10,000lbs just going camping in a 5th wheel. So Stephen you need to use all the towing power you can get when towing something like that. Yes my tailgate will be fine. You have to remember others use cables to hold theirs and the cable corrodes……….
Stephen – I appreciate your enthusiasm for the Ridgeline, and I think it’s a fine vehicle. However, a full-size half-ton truck – as Honda likes to claim – it is not. Not even close. The Ridgeline is not in the same class of vehicle as an F150, Sierra/Silverado, Ram, or Tundra. The Ridgeline sits somewhere near the Ford Explorer Sport Trac and the Dodge Dakota – not quite big enough to be a full-size, not quite small enough to be considered a “light truck.” Incidentally, you and your family should enjoy the Ridgeline as long as you can. I’m betting that Honda drops the slow-selling Ridgeline very soon…
Micky, you do have a point about the towing. And Admin has a point about the size. I guess it’s not a full size pick-up and it has kind-of a short bed. I will say though, I see about just as many Ridgelines as Tundras where I live. Maybe I was a little too enthusiastic about the rigeline, I just really like it. What model Tundra do you have Mickey?
07 Crewmax Limited in Nautical Blue. My truck was features here on Tundraheadquarters I think back in either Feb or March 2008. Look for Mickey’s traveling Crewmax. Since this article I started looking at ridgelines on the highway and they don’t look to bad but it’s not what I was looking for. I haul wood and Palm trees to my house. A 12 ft palm wouldn’t work well in a ridgeline. I had two of those and two 6 footers also. They were the washingtonia type palms to go with my 15 ft Queens I got last year and used my crewmax for. Strapped those puppies down and had the wife follow with her flashers on. I did use a red flag also and did a whopping 35 for 5 miles to the house from Lowes. But if you read Consumer reports this years ‘s top honors go the Avalanche.. Yes the Avalanche is the best truck according to them. Not to mention they rated the Avalanche as the third worst gas mileage vehicle. The hummer was the worst followed by a SUV then the Avalanche. Funny you would rate a truck the top honors but it’s the worst thing on gas and this day and age of gas prices going up again what was C/R thinking? Also I don’t rate the Avalanche and Ridgeline as trucks anyway. So now my ability in believing C/R words on anything is out the door. Steve enjoy your ride. As long as you are happy that’s what I call piece of mind. You can’t beat that. Happy Trails…..
I would consider the rigeline and the Avalanche as trucks but are small pick-ups. I did see in consumer reports that the Tundra had only good reliability and was pretty expensive. It had very good performance though. I personaly think it looks cheap. The rigeline has excellent reliability and very good owner cost. I like the Rigeline better but do think the Tundra is a pre sick truck.
Steve – Good points – I understand where you’re coming from.
Is the Tundra on Toyota’s recall list?
Wait a minute. They made a 3/4 ton Avalanche. So how is that small truck? Last time I checked 3/4 is more than 1/2, so where is Toyota’s 3/4? As for Ridgeline, its better than any Toyota! How many Ridgelines have been bought back? How about resale? Need we say anymore?
When we bought our Ridgeline, the salesman said that the Ford f-150 has twice the structural rigidity of any other truck and the Ridgeline has 4x the structural rigidity of the F-150! The 2008 Honda Ridgeline also won the 2008 Baja 1000 in the mini trucks series. The largest difference in tuning for the baja Ridgeline was the shocks and tires (info from honda.com). I think that Toyota has probably lost alot of their customers from the recall and many of them will turn to honda. Zac, you have a point about the sizes and the resale.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I see tons of Ridgelines around, probably as many as Tundra’s. My dad works with 3 or 4 guys that own Ridgelines and they all LOVE them. I don’t think Honda will drop the Ridgeline any time soon.
If they put a V-8 in them that gave them more towing capacity they would out sell everything! That’s their only flaw.
Yeah, I was thinking that too. They should make the bed a foot longer also or make a larger, more powerful model all together.
Zac and Steve – I appreciate the enthusiasm for the Ridgeline, but there’s simply no contest. The Honda’s resale is great, the frame is rigid, and the quality is just what you should expect from Honda…but it’s really not a half-ton. Not even close. Comparing the Tundra to the Ridgeline is like comparing a 747 to a Cessna – they’re not the same vehicle for the same user…that’s what our comparison was trying to show.
You know Toyota and GM teamed up and it seemed to help GM but Toyota took the other road. Maybe Honda would be willing to show Toyota how to make a Truck! You know a dependable, reliable, quality truck. One that isn’t in the dealership 48 hours after purchase having the motor tore down! But on the bright side if you buy a Toyota at least when the warranty is long gone and the frame is no longer safe to drive you can have them buy them back for 150% of the book value! That’s until the customers who love them so much forces them in to chapter 11, maybe GM will give them pointers on that! Or you can just buy a solid truck (any truck not made by Toyota) and not have to worry about it!
Jason, if they are not the same and no comparison they why did you do this post? “Honda Ridgeline vs Toyota Tundra Posted by Jason in September 15th, 2008”   No contest, one drives one stays either on the dealer lot or in the service department. Pick one! Greg everyone has to start somewhere, it won’t be long. Oh Jason if you want to compare airplanes Honda makes them too. What classifies a half ton??
I understand that the Ridgeline and the Tundra aren’t really in the same class of truck, and that the Tundra is bigger and more powerful. You showed that the Tundra and the Ridgeline were totally different. There are some things that you could compare between them though. Things like interior, handling, offroad capability, and so on. I just want to let people know, that the ridgeline is a truck and I would challenge any truck to a comparo against it (full size, mid size, or light duty).
Hey Jason, you said that the Avalanche was more of a truck than the Ridgeline. The Avalanche can pull more than the Ridge and it might be overall bigger, but you should see the tiny bed in that thing. It’s so SKINNY and I don’t even think you could fit a piece of plywood in it. I know were talking about the ridgeline and the tundra but I want to say that bigger doesn’t necessarily mean that something can hold more. I think that the Ridgeline’s bed is bigger than the Avalanches. If you get the Tundra in the comparable cab to the Ridgeline’s, the bed isn’t really that big. If you put a toolbox in the bed, than it’s really not that much bigger than the Ridgelines! The Ridgeline has a lockable in-bed trunk so you don’t have to put a toolbox in the bed.
Greg – The Honda’s quality is great, but the fact is that I can’t use the Ridgeline to pull a big boat up Floyd Hill here in Colorado. If you think Honda should show Toyota how to build a truck, don’t you think they should have a V8 first? BTW, if they want to install a jet engine in a truck, I’ll be the first one to call it awesome!
Zac – Because there are some people under the mistaken impression that Honda and Toyota offer similar trucks. Honda’s advertising has a little bit to do with that: https://www.tundraheadquarters.com/blog/2009/04/20/americans-hate-japanese-pickup-trucks/
Steve – To be clear, I’m not saying the Ridgeline isn’t a useful truck. All I’m saying is that it’s not in the same class as a Tundra. I’d put it side-by-side with a Tacoma – a perfectly good truck with enough capability for most people. Still, no Ridgeline owner should say “I’d put my Ridgeline up against any half-ton” with a straight face. The best quality vehicle in the world does me no good if it sits at home because it can’t do the work I need it to.
Jason: You could compare these two trucks in different ways than just being work horses. I do understand though, that the Ridgeline doesn’t stack up to the Tundra, or any other large pick-up as far as power goes. You’re right that the Ridge is not a heavy duty pick-up. The Tundra is not in the same class as the Ridge either. The Tundra might beat the Ridge in a towing contest, but the Ridge might beat the Tundra in an off road or handling contest. I liked the comparo, but these trucks (like you said) are not built for the same purpose. Are you sure that Honda tried to pull the Ridge off as a half ton? Honda seems pretty conservative to me, like in their mpg.
Greg and Zac: Why do you think Toyota has bad reliability? (or are you just saying that Tundra’s will be “in the shop” because of the recall?)
I looked up the link you told Zac to read.The Ridgeline is everything the add says it is. It’s powerful. Its funny, my dad just raced a Tacoma today and kicked its but. Consumer Reports has the Ridgline to 60 in 8.6 seconds. This truck can also tow as much as any other mid sized truck out their. The Ridgelines payload is just over 1500 lbs which is comparable to the Tundra crewmax’s 1665 lbs(with the 5.7 liter v8). The Ridge is also nimble, wicked nimble. Car and Driver did a test between the Ridge and a few other COMPACT trucks, look it up. C and D said that ” the ridgline topped the chart in every subjective handling catagory”, not to mention it won (go to c and d.com/ go to reviews/more comparisons/pick ups/compact pick up trucks with ridge, colorado, frontier, etc.). From my own experience, this truck handles like a sports car. I used to have an F-150 and the thing almost made you sick going around corners. I wouldn’t underestimate honda, or the Ridgeline. This add is totally accurate
Steve – I think the ‘nimble’ argument should come with a disclaimer: The Ridgeline is nimble for a pickup…but it’s still a pickup. Compared to most passenger cars, the Ridgeline isn’t nimble. Incidentally, the skid pad numbers between the Tundra and the Ridgeline are pretty close. The Ridgeline is a good truck.
BTW – Honda’s website mentions “half-ton” a few times. While it’s true the payloads are similar, that’s also true of the Tacoma. The difference is towing – Ford says that 40% of their truck sales are a result of towing needs, which means that nearly half of all truck owners buy a truck to tow…which explains why compact pickups don’t dominate the segment.
Yeah, you have a point about about the towing. I’m suprised that Honda and Toyota claim their trucks to be half tons(I looked it up).
Honda is trying to compare trucks to trucks when they say “nimble”. There not going to compare the Ridgeline to an accord or camry(even though thats what some people think it is).
The Ridgeline has staying power, baby! Honda announced yesterday they are continuing to produce the Ridge! This is the PERFECT truck for people who do not need a full-size truck.
The people who don’t understand the Ridgeline nor its target audience were dead wrong.
Bryon O – As I said on the other post, Honda didn’t announce that they were going to build a new model – only that they have no plans to cancel the truck right now.
Honda plays things close to the vest, so they could still very well cancel the Ridge just as we predicted in 2010. Don’t forget – in Dec. 2009 Honda was supposedly going to continue the Element. We all know how that worked out:
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/1.....e-element/
I heard rumor about the Ridgeline being discontinued after 2011, but since you say you heard this same rumor a year ago I won’t take it with any seriousness. Isn’t the Tundra with the V8 a lot more expensive than the Ridgeline? If price doesn’t matter, I’m sure there’s a “truck” out there that’ll beat the hell out of all the vehicles mentioned in all the responses above. As far as value goes, the Ridgeline seems quite a good deal. Yes, they’re going after different market segments, that’s no reason for pointless attacks on either (any of them) vehicle. Most of you sound like little kids who have to have their way and everybody else’s choice is just insane. About the Element, that was one of the ugliest vehicles to EVER hit the streets and was destined to be killed off.
After looking it up, Mickey’s Crewmax Limited has an MSRP of $40k, while the Ridgeline is $28.4k Not quite a reasonable comparison. Hell, might as well buy a Porsche Cayenne and have the top chopped off if $ is immaterial. For those of you who don’t recoqnize sarcasm, there is was.
Spencer – Apples to apples, a leather loaded Crewmax is $45k. A leather loaded Ridgeline? About $35k. The Tundra is going to be discounted a bit (you get zero percent for 60 months), but still, it’s more.
The point of the comparison, however, is that the trucks are very different. If you price a more standard SR5 Tundra to the RTS Ridgline, the difference is much smaller…before you factor in the better financing.
The point is, it’s not quite as far off as it sounds.