Anyone out there have both to finally settle the MPG gripe?

I too expected better MPG but then again I am used to the 05 Accord, Drive it like I stole it & that thing barely goes below 30MPG

Is the Odyssey a 4WD like the Ridge?

They are darn near the same all around, The Cylinder shutdown is only avalibe on the high end Touring Pak

I have both and they weigh about the same but the Ody has much better aerodynamics so it's going to be the clear winner in mpg contest. Best I've ever done is 26mpg in the Ody doing 70-75 on flat freeways, I don't really keep track in the Ridge as I'm not too worried about it and it doesn't have a handy trip computer to do so anyway, grrrr. Best I've seen around here is 22mpg for the Ridge.

I bet I could get that too but I cant seem to keep my foot out of it!

Drive it like I stole it & that thing barely goes below 30MPG

LOL that made me laugh :D

Ody is not a 4x4. AWD consumes more gas.

I have both. They are two completely different vehicles. It's not a fair comparison. For the record, I get 20 mpg. in the Odyssey, and 11 mpg. in the ridge around town. On the highway the Odyssey gets about 23 mpg. and the ridge gets 20 mpg.

Wouldn't the Pilot be a more accurate comparison?

These Ridgelines are big, heavy 4WD vehicles. They are a great blend of power and efficiency.

The Big 3 have some catching up to do!

Anyone out there have both to finally settle the MPG gripe?

I too expected better MPG but then again I am used to the 05 Accord, Drive it like I stole it & that thing barely goes below 30MPG

I can only compare the 2000 ody we traded for the ridgeline had over 100,000 miles on it.

25-26 miles per gallon on the highway, it was awsome on gas, 17-18 around town so we were happy with it. we have 2005 pilot too, just slightly better than the ridgeline line on gas, not many highway miles yet though.

Good point BlueVette. The Pilot would be more accurate, rated a little higher at 17/22 mpg. The 4WD weighs about the same. The difference in EPA MPG is probably aerodynamics and gearing.

I am no fan of the Big 3 but the 2007 Tahoe mileage figures are impressive. 2WD Tahoe has 16/21 mileage rating with 320 HP and and 340 lb ft of torque. The vehicle weighs 5400 lbs, almost 1000 lbs more than the RL. Honda deserves credit for engine excellence but GM's V8s are impressive combinations of power and efficiency. I honestly believe the RL would get better mileage with a larger, higher torque engine.

We too have both. Driving under the same conditions:


02 Odyssey - mixed driving - 18 mpg
06 Ridgeline - mixed driving - 16 mpg


02 Odyssey averages 23 mpg on road trips - have seen as high as 26, as low as 20.

Haven't really had the ridgeline on a pure road trip most it's been is 50% mixed and 50% highway and that has been 18 mpg.

2 mpg difference for all the RL brings is amazing considering it's a truck, much higher profile, higher off the ground, larger tires, and all wheel drive.

This post is starting to sound like a broken record. We have an:

06 Odyssey w/cylinder cut off - 26 to 28 hwy, haven't tracked around town.
05 Ridgeline - 15 city, haven't done any long highway yet.

Wasn't too happy with mileage on Ridgeline, but as stated above, AWD cuts into mileage. I do miss my wifes 91 Accord getting 26 city and 35 hwy. Sold it with 200k and it didn't burn any oil. Just not enough space with kids.

...2WD Tahoe has 16/21 mileage rating...

If those are the EPA numbers, the next question is: does anybody actually get those numbers in the Real World? I had Tahoe Lust until they started hammering them together in Mexico and the Build Quality deteriorated. (NO! That's NOT a racial thing! Mexican-built VW's and Toyota's are just jim-dandy! But, Ramchargers from south of the border were junk. Build quality varies from manufacturer to manufacturer there, too).

And I had a lad in a 2006 Durango, with the Hemi, look me dead in the eye and tell me that he gets 27 mpg between Las Vegas and Long Beach...including Cajon Pass.. I don't think I'd care to play cards with anyone who can lie that smoothly.

I DO agree that the mpg's would be better with a V-8 of similar or slightly more displacement in the RL, but then the emissions might not be so nice.

Thinking of recording the sound of my 4.7L SOHC semi-Hemi in the RAM at 4000 RPM onto a chip so that I can have the RL play it back real loud when it shifts down. I miss the V-8 rumble and snarl... but that's all I miss.

Who knows (Tahoe real world mileage like the EPA numbers)? But its obvious that almost no RL owner gets the EPA mileage either. The funny thing is that my 1995 Mazda Millenia S and my 2000 Jag S-type regularly EXCEEDED their EPA highway number driving 75-80 MPH. I have never seen 21 MPG in my RL at 70 MPH.

My 2000 F250 V10 achieved 14-15 at 75MPH, which I think is decent considering its size and weight.

Anyone out there have both to finally settle the MPG gripe?

I too expected better MPG but then again I am used to the 05 Accord, Drive it like I stole it & that thing barely goes below 30MPG

I haven't gone through all the posts in this thread but I DO own both the 05 Ody and the 06 RL. The Ody gets better MPG. It's lighter and is front wheel drive. It's a no brainer.

Interesting hard data:

Curb weight:

RL RTL: 4498 lbs
2006 Odyssey EX-L: 4537 lbs

The Ody is about 40 lbs heavier. I expect its advantage is mostly aerodynamics and the new VCM. Or the RL is just bad....

You also have to remember that the RL engine is tuned for better low end torque due to it's being a truck capable of hauling heavier loads. That alone is going to cause a difference in mpg.

I own an '05 Ody and a RL, bought on the same day.

The Ody gets an average of 24 mpg. My RL has been averaging around 19 mpg.

When we took the Ody on a cross country trip, we never got better than 24.5 mpg. So it's been constant for us.

My RL was averaging 18-18.5 mpg before my first oil change/tire rotation. Afterwards, it's been getting 19-19.75 mpg.

Hope this helps or answers your question.

i have a 04 odyssey lx, on i-84 east going 68 mph ( no air ) get 25.7 to 26.2 depending on wind. the ridge rts doing the same 18.2 to 19.8 . 04 has 25000 plus miles, the ridge 5360 miles. the ridge was doing worse,did the idle relearn and it helped.

How did you do the idle relearn?

honda of st johns in portland or. said to, disconnect battery overnight , connect battery. start engine and allow to reach normal temp. and wait 10 minutes after your cooling fan cycles to drive. on rts you must recode radio.

after i did this , i made a point of accelerating slowly and tried to get the trans to shift around 2000 rpm which didn't happen often befor. seems to shift at a lower rpm in town now.