I test drove 4 vehicles yesterday...

[uh50]

Yeah I said fuck it shoot and bought a 2022 Ridgeline RTL I love it it is way nicer than the Maverick I might buy the Maverick for my daughter when my order finally gets built.

Chris, I hope you don't mind that I made a slight edit to your post for this reply. Please understand that I've completely used my lifetime's allocation of such words up and I've bought all exemptions that are authorized. I no longer have a choice, shoot, has to work for me now.

I've always liked the Ridgeline and have seriously considered buying one, on a couple of occasions. Chose to buy other things instead...probably a mistake. There's no denying the Ridgeline is a very refined midsize truck with Honda's great 3.5 V6. One syndicated Dallas car reviewer says that Honda's ICE are the best ever made and there's no reason it will not go 250,000 miles.

And, I love your Ridgeline and I'm sure you will enjoy driving it immensely.

I even considered a Ridgeline before ordering my VB EB XL Maverick. It came down to price. Most of the Ridgeline I looked at were around $40k+. After all, refinement, comfort, and reliability come at a cost. At 75, I don't need a truck that'll make it to 250,000 miles. Driving less than 5,000 miles a year, I don't need super refinement, comfort, or a lot of tech, although my XL is comfortable enough.

Since Honda made it look more like a truck, it is truly great looking. Again, great choice, which you could be driving when a lot of Mavericks are being crushed.

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[jmav]

Seems odd to me. By the numbers, Maverick (2.0 Ecoboost) has 36.9" legroom, Santa Cruz has 36.5".

As far as front seat leg room goes the Maverick feels like it has more than my wife's 2019 Ridgeline.

 

[bomberxl]

I have a family of 5 that have had no issues with the maverick since September 2021. I am 6"1, my wife is 5"8, we have a 9 month 70lb puppy that sits shotgun on the floor up front, and 3 kids in the back. You get a ton of space and fuel economy for under 30k period.

With 3 kids (4, 2, and 1) I was worried about fitting everyone in a truck smaller than a half ton, but I've been impressed with the Maverick.

You need slimmer designs, but a booster, front facing and rear facing seat all fit comfortably.

Lack of a split 60/40 rear bench is my only complaint. It's nice being able to flip the seat up and still have a car seat installed.

 

[Mikknj]

Chris, I hope you don't mind that I made a slight edit to your post for this reply. Please understand that I've completely used my lifetime's allocation of such words up and I've bought all exemptions that are authorized. I no longer have a choice, shoot, has to work for me now.

I've always liked the Ridgeline and have seriously considered buying one, on a couple of occasions. Chose to buy other things instead...probably a mistake. There's no denying the Ridgeline is a very refined midsize truck with Honda's great 3.5 V6. One syndicated Dallas car reviewer says that Honda's ICE are the best ever made and there's no reason it will not go 250,000 miles.

And, I love your Ridgeline and I'm sure you will enjoy driving it immensely.

I even considered a Ridgeline before ordering my VB EB XL Maverick. It came down to price. Most of the Ridgeline I looked at were around $40k+. After all, refinement, comfort, and reliability come at a cost. At 75, I don't need a truck that'll make it to 250,000 miles. Driving less than 5,000 miles a year, I don't need super refinement, comfort, or a lot of tech, although my XL is comfortable enough.

Since Honda made it look more like a truck, it is truly great looking. Again, great choice, which you could be driving when a lot of Mavericks are being crushed.

I really like the Ridgeline - But the 40K price is a show stopper. That said. I also don't like the traditional transmission. The eCVT in my Maverick is so incredibly smooth - and I'm always in the right gear. It's the number 1 reason I love my Maverick The driving experience in stop and go traffic here around NYC is exceptional. So The Ridgeline remains my second choice - but only if the Maverick doesn't work out ( 40 MPG helps as well )

 

[Nw_adventure]

With 3 kids (4, 2, and 1) I was worried about fitting everyone in a truck smaller than a half ton, but I've been impressed with the Maverick.

You need slimmer designs, but a booster, front facing and rear facing seat all fit comfortably.

Lack of a split 60/40 rear bench is my only complaint. It's nice being able to flip the seat up and still have a car seat installed.

Full house -)

 

[nubbuchadnezzar]

I like my Mav (XLT Hybrid) and it's exactly the truck I need for me and my family. That said, I think it's worth the $26K I paid for it, not $40K like some are trying to sell them for. I'd have a hard time justifying the purchase when there are nicer and more comfortable vehicles out there for $40K.

If you're considering an Ecoboost for $40K, I'd suggest buy something else which is a bit nicer. Also, as others have pointed out, once your son starts driving, I wouldn't expect him to be riding in the back of your new vehicle very frequently.

 

[gte105u]

Let me ask this, would a $37k Maverick EB Lariat Lux FX4 at msrp not be worth it? I know it's not the cheap hybrid anymore. But I'm looking for the compact truck with the creature comforts of a daily commuter. Do you guys think I'll be disappointed at MSRP with the truck at this price?

And besides the Santa Cruz and stretching to Ridgeline what else is there? I don't want a Ranger, F-150, Colorado, Tacoma etc. I'm looking at Maverick for size, bed, car like ride, amenities (ACC) but still some ruggedness and reasonably affordable. Not sure what else I could look at I haven't....

Edit - again thanks all for input and keeping the discussion constructive. Really has been helpful.

 

[Yoliber]

With 3 kids (4, 2, and 1) I was worried about fitting everyone in a truck smaller than a half ton, but I've been impressed with the Maverick.

How tall is the driver in this set up?

 

[Yoliber]

Let me ask this, would a $37k Maverick EB Lariat Lux FX4 at msrp not be worth it? I know it's not the cheap hybrid anymore. But I'm looking for the compact truck with the creature comforts of a daily commuter. Do you guys think I'll be disappointed at MSRP with the truck at this price?

And besides the Santa Cruz and stretching to Ridgeline what else is there? I don't want a Ranger, F-150, Colorado, Tacoma etc. I'm looking at Maverick for size, bed, car like ride, amenities (ACC) but still some ruggedness and reasonably affordable. Not sure what else I could look at I haven't....

Edit - again thanks all for input and keeping the discussion constructive. Really has been helpful.

I think you'll be happy either way between the 3. If you compare with the base price, higher trim packages always look bonkers in terms of value, but if you compare it to cars that are the most equivalent, it get's better.

I'm looking at the Lariat Lux Hybrid at around $33k and I think it is worth it. Esp because a Escape Hybrid starts at $30k.

Now for your case, an equivalent Bronco Sport is about $38.6k and that vehicle is much shorter with the 3 cyl engine. (OuterBanks + Tech Package + CoPilot). Or $34.7k with cloth seats (Big Bend + Tech + Copilot).

IIRC, the Santa Cruz is $40k fully loaded and the two stand out features for me is the tonneau and the ventilated seats compared to the Maverick. Maverick with the same style Tonneau pretty much brings it in line with pricing.

I would say that my parents have an odyssey and the 9 speed is god awful. I think it's the ZF9 that uses dogs in the lower gear so it's kind of jerky. Engine is nice, but man that transmission kills it for me. I'd look into it, the ZF9 is pretty infamous and has a history of failing. Talking about transmissions, the Santa Cruz uses a DCT, which has a lot of pros but also a few quirks. I'd look into it.

 

[Nw_adventure]

Let me ask this, would a $37k Maverick EB Lariat Lux FX4 at msrp not be worth it? I know it's not the cheap hybrid anymore. But I'm looking for the compact truck with the creature comforts of a daily commuter. Do you guys think I'll be disappointed at MSRP with the truck at this price?

And besides the Santa Cruz and stretching to Ridgeline what else is there? I don't want a Ranger, F-150, Colorado, Tacoma etc. I'm looking at Maverick for size, bed, car like ride, amenities (ACC) but still some ruggedness and reasonably affordable. Not sure what else I could look at I haven't....

Edit - again thanks all for input and keeping the discussion constructive. Really has been helpful.

I think its totally worth it and I get a little tired of folks saying well if you are getting within $5k of 40k look for something nicer- What if folks dont want an SC, dont want a telluride, dont want a Tacoma, dont want a Frontier- Dont want a larger Ridgeline - etc. There is not alot of cross shopping if folks want a smaller vehicle with a truck bed- Pay for what you want, dont just under pay for a lesser trim because folks say oh it isnt worth it-

 

[gte105u]

I think its totally worth it and I get a little tired of folks saying well if you are getting within $5k of 40k look for something nicer- What if folks dont want an SC, dont want a telluride, dont want a Tacoma, dont want a Frontier- Dont want a larger Ridgeline - etc. There is not alot of cross shopping if folks want a smaller vehicle with a truck bed- Pay for what you want, dont just under pay for a lesser trim because folks say oh it isnt worth it-

Don't forget pretty solid fuel economy even in ICE. I honestly am not sure what else would be a similar alternative in the $40k range besides SC maybe Ridgeline, much less be nicer for the money. I don't want bigger, I don't need to tow more, I don't want a harsher ride. A top of the line truck at 37k is pretty darn good. The fact it will have skid plates and some degree of off road chops on top of refinement is great. And I don't think the SC is nicer as much as different. Different strengths (bed trunk, ventilated seats, warranty) different weaknesses (no dials, less off road chops, less fuel efficiency) but similar. From there the next closest is still a pretty big difference (Ridgeline). After that it's a different animal completely.

 

[bomberxl]

How tall is the driver in this set up?

5’11”

 

[stoptothink]

I did........WOW and the KIA's. When I look at Craig's List for Kia's and Hyundai's with over 125K miles there are basically none. Many with "new engine"

Maybe my father-in-law would sell you his '09 Hyundai accent...with 280k miles. We gave it to him 6yrs ago when we bought our jetta. He beats the tar out of it, commuting in stop-and-go traffic 100+ miles a day. We beat the snot out of it for 6yrs before giving it to him. It has had zero work outside of normal maintenance and still drives like a top.

My sister also drives an elantra with 150k+ completely trouble free miles and my parents previous vehicle was a Sonata, that my step-father crashed and totaled at over 200k trouble-free miles. Kia and Hyundai have been near the top of almost every reliability ranking for over a decade now.

 

[LessFrequent]

They have to have the best warranty so you would be tempted to buy one. Just Google Hyundai fires.

https://www.reuters.com/business/au...-recall-expands-earlier-call-back-2022-07-08/

I see what you mean...

 

[gte105u]

So I fly to Denver today for work. What do I see when I get to the rental lot but one of the options is a Ridgeline. I grab it so I can do an extended test drive for next couple days.

First I notice it seems to drag, especially off the line. Feels like a turbo lag, but no turbo. I put it in sport mode, same thing. I see it's is Eco mode, which doesn't turn off even when you activate sport. Much more responsive after Eco is off.

Having luggage, going in to meet someone at a restaurant. I can throw my carry on bag and backpack into the bed trunk easy. Very convenient for out of sight storage.

As I'm driving on the highway with ACC, we come to construction. Slow way down, nearly to a stop. The ACC cuts off saying too slow. Apparently the Ridgeline ACC is not stop and go... That may be the fatal flaw in my getting one. Glad I drove as a rental probably never would have realized that.

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