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2017 Honda Ridgeline: A sleeper or a snooze?

Ah, yes... "Baby Steps," an expression that describes gradual improvements in what preceded. Overused for sure, but it clearly describes Honda's approach to the 2017 Ridgeline. Now that the news embargo is over we will be seeing a slew of preliminary road tests. Time to dig a little deeper, examine Honda's thinking and to see where Honda might go with this new truck. Honda set a number of goals with the new Ridgeline: 1) Sell more trucks. 2) Appeal to current Ridgeline owners who are ready to trade for a new truck. 3) Sell more trucks. 4) Expand their market share by attracting new buyers who hated the styling of the old Ridgeline. 5) Sell more trucks. 6) Convince skeptics that the Ridgeline is indeed capable of doing truck tasks. 7) Sell more trucks. My take is that this new Ridgeline is about 80 percent there; as the saying goes, "Close but no cigar." I'm really curious as to how this truck might evolve. There have been rumors that a regular cab model with a long bed may be in the works. Will we see it? Who knows — but by having such a model available, it would go a long way in terms of convincing (some) critics who say it's nothing but a "Pilot with a bed." Then there's the "youth market." Honda has gone on record saying they're not interested in courting them; a huge mistake in my opinion. Hopefully they'l re-think that and offer a legit off-road model with all the requisite goodies like more ground clearance, 2-speed transfer case, skid plates, tow hooks, larger all-terrain tires —5 of them, meaning no temp spare tire! It doesn't have to be a rock-crawler, but at least give it more capability to be considered an alternative to the 4x4 competition. Another area that needs to be re-thought is that Honda is offering seven trim levels. That's crazy. Most of them are so close to one another that it makes decision-making difficult. Cut it back to three of four trim levels, max. Makes life much easier. But yes, I think this truck, even as it stands, will be a sleeper in its segment and will do reasonably well in terms of sales. I think truck customers have seen and gotten used to the old Ridgeline, and have found — for what it was intended to do, it's really a pretty good truck. This new one certainly builds upon that — and it's no longer ugly. That's all good in my book. Related Video: Image Credit: Honda Honda Truck open road

Honda CEO says we shouldn't expect any new sports cars

It wasn't so long ago that Honda was known for its sporty two-door models, with models ranging from the Civic del Sol to the Prelude and from the Acura Integra and RSX to the Honda S2000. But look at its range today and all you'll see are the Civic and Accord coupes. Honda has essentially let competitors like the Scion FR-S/Subaru BRZ and Nissan 370Z take the place it once claimed as its own. But if you were hoping Honda would fight back with a new coupe or convertible of its own, we're afraid you're going to have to downgrade those hopes to pipe dreams.
While in Japan ahead of the Tokyo Motor Show, Autoblog had a chance to sit down with American Honda CEO Tetsuo Iwamura (pictured at right). When we asked about the potential for a new sports coupe or convertible in the Honda or Acura lineup, he pointed to the current Civic and Accord coupes - not to mention the upcoming new NSX - but said that Honda has no replacement for any of the aforementioned models (or a rival for the FR-S or 370Z) in the pipeline, saying only that the company is monitoring potential demand.
What Iwamura-san did note was that he's a personal fan of the new S660 roadster (pictured above) set to be unveiled tomorrow, and he is pushing (or at least hoping) that it will come to North America. Given that he's head of both Honda's American office and its global automobile operations, one might think that the only person he would have to persuade is himself (well... himself, and potential buyers), but the sporty droptop looks to be about kei-sized, which sadly suggests that it may be too small for American tastes and perhaps not designed with US crash-test standards in mind anyway.

Remembering the glory days of the Honda Civic Si

In addition to watching host John Davis slowly age over his decades on the show, MotorWeek's Retro Review series on YouTube allows us to look back on some of the favorite models of yesteryear to see their evolution toward present day. Take the 1989 Honda Civic Si for example, which is newly featured. The name is still on the market, and the current model boasts 205 horsepower and 174 pound-feet of torque from its 2.4-liter four-cylinder. However, the current Si is being left behind in power by other performance compacts like the latest Volkswagen GTI, Subaru WRX and Ford Focus ST. Back in 1989, the Civic Si was still something of an upstart in the hot hatch ranks and definitely had something to prove. Remember, this was a about decade before the tuner boom of the late '90s gave these Hondas massive popularity. Though, the writing was on the wall for eventual success, based on the MotorWeek review. The show called it "stylish" and was attracted to vehicle's sharp handing, even with no power steering. Like today, power was lacking compared to major competitors like he VW GTI, but Honda's 1.6-liter four-cylinder with 108 hp and 100 lb-ft still received some praise. As always, it's fascinating to see how these now beloved models stack up when looking back. The high-performance Civic might be due for another surge in popularity too, if the forthcoming Type R from Europe ever makes to the US. News Source: MotorWeek via YouTube Honda Hatchback Performance Classics Videos honda civic si