Consumer Reports has once again ranked the Honda Ridgeline as the most reliable pickup truck in their latest issue.
Also, the Chevrolet Avalanche which I've seen compared to the RL, I'll never understand why, has fallen and no longer receives Consumers Reports recommendations.
Which issue of CR are you referring to?? The last one I saw rated the Ridgeline as the best value in a mid-size truck, and rated the Avalance as the best value in a full-sized truck.
No matter, the only thing that's important is that the Ridgeline is still tops.
Yep, the latest issue of Consumer Reports rated the Ridgeline as the 'best value' in a pickup truck.....not just a mid-sized truck. And yes, the Avalance has fallen from grace and is no longer recommended by CR. But hey, no one here is surprised.
Does anyone have as true invoice price for a 2010 fully loaded ridegline with navi, the works. I have been given the opportunity to purchase one from a dealer below invoice due to a severe dealership OOPS and I want to be sure that I am getting a fair deal. Can anyone help with this.
Think the closest you're going to get is looking at edmunds.com. Don't forget to figure in $700 or so for delivery charges unless you've already accounted for it.
The RL is rated the number one vehicle in the "Pickups:Compact" category with a score of 79 followed by the Nissan Frontier (score of 67) and Toyota Tacoma TRD (score of 63).
In the "Pickups:Full Sized" category, the Chevrolet Avalanche LT was rated tops (score of 74) but is not recommended due to below average reliability. The next was the Chevrolet Silverado (70), Tundra (69), F-150, (68).
Reliability and owner satisfaction for the RL, much above average and ownership cost average. Writeup praises the roomy cab, easy access and smooth V-6. Primary criticism is pronounced road noise; however, this criticism was cited for every Honda vehicle in the ratings (except the Crosstour which has not been tested).
But how can one trust a survey that gives a Hummer top points for "Style." They must be mad! If American Motors had made a Pacer Pick-up it would have won.
The worst part of any Honda is the rattles. All three of my Honda's (07 Pilot, 08 Civic and 09 Ridgeline) all have rattles but what I absolutely love about them is that I count on them 100% to take my family & I to work every day with zero problems.:act024: I had a 94 Explorer, 99 F-150, 01 Mustang, 97 Mustang and a 95 Grand Marquis and none of them ever rattled but all of them had me busy making countless repairs (I lemon lawed the 99 F-150, head gasket leaking oil dealer refused to repair the truck):act043: Since I bought my first Honda a 03 Element I have done nothing but add accessories, rotate tires and change oil. It's crazy!! So I will gladly accept the rattles and interior noise for peace of mind and clean hands!! Consumer Reports is dead on about the Honda ownership experience that’s why my driveway is full of Honda’s today and not Ford’s. The best part is that all my Honda’s were all built in the USA it’s a win win situation!!! I don’t feel unpatriotic by driving a Honda.:act035:
It's amazing you say that because just about every car on the market has rattles of some kind. Only the most expensive cars are super quiet and if you really listen they rattle too.
I had a Honda 2000 CR-V that I pulled behind a motorhome. On top of its use as a toad, I drove it another 125,000 miles without any rattles. Although certainly underpowered, it was a solid little car.
I also had a 1996 Honda Accord for 4 years before the CR-V. It had ample power and for those 4 years, I didn't have a single rattle. Again, it was a solid little car.
Now, I have a 2010 RL RTL. Although it's still brand new with only 1000 miles on it over the past couple weeks, it has yet to show any rattles. The build quality feels and looks very similar to my previous Hondas - perhaps even more solid in some ways. The dash feels firm, the doors shut tight and everything is working, closing, opening, turning and performing as it should. It feels just as solid as my previous Hondas, perhaps even more so in many ways, so I don't expect it to become a rattle-trap.
I hope my expereinces have calmed your fears somewhat.
Only Rattle I get out of my RL is the loose Washer Fluid Neck that needs to be fixed. and Has 43K on it.
Sometimes I think folks ether have Uber Sensitive hearing and never turn on the radio or they just expect a 35K Truck to sound like a 80K Benz.
Main rattle I've noticed is in the driver's door. Haven't tried to figure out the cause, it's not that annoying and my RL is much quieter than the 93 silverado or 96 explorer I had.
Since I put 2 10's underneath the rear seat though, I have noticed my rearview mirror rattles a lot when the bass is turned up.
Occasionally my water bottle makes some noise and I think that finally after all these years and miles I have a rattle but then I realize it is the water bottle and I just reposition it and the rattle goes away.
This made me think of that guy who worked at a Cadillac factory, and every once in a while placed a Coke bottle in the frame rail of the vehicle he was assembling with a note inside stating " I hope it cost you alot to find this!" ... I wonder if he got fired and now works at HOnda?
I had the annoying tweater cover and sun visor rattles when I first got my truck. Those were taken care of under warranty and have not returned. I have a rattle in my sunroof, that is tempurature dependent, and only happens when I have the sun shade pulled back. So, it doesn't happen all the time.
I'll tell you what...as far as rattles go...I am very anal when it comes to rattles in a vehicle. My wife calls me "obsessed", so if my vehicle has a rattle, I do whatever it takes to fix the dang thing. My RL has so many less rattles than any GM or Chrysler I have even owned. Is the vehicle perfect? No, but it has far few rattles than any vehicle I have ever owned.
I have a rattle that sounds like plastic against plastic that comes from the glove box area. Drives me nuts, and I can't seem to correct it. :act047: I've greased all the connecting parts, but nothing works fixes it. f I hit the glove box door, it goes away for a time, but then, like a bad penny, it comes back. I've also tried foam weatherstripping and tapes to no avail.
'07 RTL, 22,000 miles, the only time I hear a rattle is when I have a 20 oz. bottle of Diet Coke in the cup holder. It's obviously too soon to tell about longevity, but in almost every other respect this is the best vehicle I've owned.
I've had 8 Hondas, and had very few rattles. Great considering most of them had 100,000+ mile when I sold them. Most pushing 150,000, one with 225,000. One rattled like crazy but it had been totaled and rebuilt so I can't hold that against Honda!
Currently #7 '01 Honda CR-V EX has 105,000+ miles and no rattles. #8 is an '06 Ridgeline RTS and has 54,000 miles and 1 (one) intermittent rattle on the passenger side dash. It sounds like the tray on top of the dash but doesn't do it often enough to really bug me or make it worth my effort to find. I think it's a combination of a specific vehicle speed and road conditions that cause something to vibrate momentarily.
These two are, by far, the nicest Hondas I've had. I wouldn't trade them for anything (except another Honda!).
.... we have an 03 CRV and it has had one intermittent rattle for some time. I've been able to isolate it, but not cure it completely. The origin is around the front attachment point for the roof rack (we don't have the roof-rack!) and the garnish piece that runs down along the side of the front windshield.
There is a nut after you lift the trim piece that requires a very slim open end wrench to tighten it. Turns out the the plastic section (that runs down to the side of the front windshield) is cracked under that nut. So I put a bigger washer under it to try to snub any vibration. It helped a little.
That's probably the worse thing I could say for this reliable little car that never seems to give up. It has over 70K on it now, and feels like it is just broken in.
I've had Hondas now and then, and came back because I still think they have the right formula for most fussy drivers. Plan to have a RL in June, but the CRV is not going anywhere. It will be our town commuter when we don't have carry tree plants or what my wife might find at a yard sale that won't fit. The RL will take over that task as well as more fun on road trips.