Black Edition - I gave it another try

My local dealership got three Ridgelines in on Monday. One FWD and two 4WD. Two of the three sold today. The appearance of the RL was very good, both inside and out. The trunk seemed about the same size in the storage area, but the spare tire space was considerably smaller. I did like the bed material better. It almost has a non-slip rubbery quality. I could repeat most of the compliments and gripes echoed by many of our members. I focused on the rear door opening as so many others have. I'm about 6' 1"/ 195 lbs. My shoulders, although somewhat wide, barely fit through the door opening without turning to the side. It appears that the doors could open another couple of inches if the follower were longer, but the pic in the previous post illustrates how little the door opens. It doesn't seem as if it would take much to alleviate that problem. For now, I'll stick with my Durango and a trailer. Maybe the door issue will be fixed by the time the newer transmission comes online.

This is absolutely bizarre. Look at the pic below that I snapped at lunch today. I obviously did it for the car seat thread, but notice the angle of the door in relation to the seat. It looks to be opened noticeably wider than the images that you posted. Maybe it's just because of the different angle?

MarshallM said:

This is absolutely bizarre. Look at the pic below that I snapped at lunch today. I obviously did it for the car seat thread, but notice the angle of the door in relation to the seat. It looks to be opened noticeably wider than the images that you posted. Maybe it's just because of the different angle?

Click to expand...

The first picture I took, I was looking straight at the side of the truck. I opened both doors as wide as they would go to demonstrate the difference. The limited opening angle of the rear doors have been quite well documented by now - nothing bizarre about it. :wink:

I even tugged a bit on the rear door to make absolutely sure it would not open more. If you take a look at the front door you will see how wide it opens. Rear door - not so much.

It really messed up my plans. I was going to buy an RTS (I am not a fan of touch-screen radio the higher trims have). I want(ed) a mid-size truck but not "this" - whatever the Gen2 is.

Now I am stuck with considering full size truck (nothing else in mid-size truck market floats my boat), or perhaps waiting to see if Nissan will redesign their Frontier.

Tacoma's ride and driving position (and interior space) all suck (in my view), GM twins are likely to be unreliable, current Frontier is way too old etc. Though again, I am not sure when and how Nissan will redesign Frontier.

I like the Ford F-150. I rented it for a week (V8 5.0 engine). Rides smooth, lots of space, flat loading floor but it is a giant. Huge truck and I am not sure parking will be easy. On top of that I am not sure it would be reliable. Tundra, while reliable, has not so great IIHS crash test ratings and it is 11 year old design essentially.

So, I was counting on Honda to be the solution to my truck problem. Everything else except the fridge and the oven in my house is made by Honda :laugh:

But I refuse to award mediocrity and buy what I consider poorly designed and engineered half-assed product (GEN2). One of the reasons why I used to buy "everything Honda" was due to Honda's engineering magic, that unique quality, smartness, and reliability.

I love my 08 Accord and 08 Odyssey. I enjoy owning and driving well executed vehicles.

But Gen2 is a botched job (again, in my view - dont get excited) and it makes me sad that Honda lost its way. And apparently not with GEN2 only either. Lots of people complaining on MDX forums, Pilot forums etc.

I am considering buying a used Gen1 but they are NOT that easy to find and they do keep their price.