It seemed like a good idea at the time. Pickups were all the rage and becoming softer and more car-like as more and more people turned to them as daily drivers. Honda tried to get ahead of the game, but it hasn't exactly worked out. As Honda sources continue to seesaw on the unibody truck's future, it's time to ask what should become of the Ridgeline.
In February, we ran a report fresh off of the Chicago show floor declaring that a new Ridgeline would be coming "in 2011, for the 2011 model year" as Honda VP of Product Planning Vicki Poponi told PickupTrucks.com. Official word came quickly from Honda, refuting Poponi and declaring that there would be no new Ridgeline for 2011 and leaving the truck's future open-ended.
Honda's rebuttal left some serious questions unanswered. Is a redesign simply planned for a later model year, or is the truck going to be cancelled? Or has Honda even decided? Honda isn't talking, but we've picked up another report today from PickupTrucks.com indicating the Ridgeline isn't long for this world. Sources say that the truck won't be renewed after its lifecycle ends in 2012, which may make 2011 the last model year.
Honda PR Manager Christina Ra would only confirm that there would be no redesigned Ridgeline in 2011, again leaving the truck's future unknown
What we do know, though, is what we can see in Honda's own sales reports. When the Ridgeline debuted in 2005, we were so impressed by its left-field approach and impressive execution that we awarded it our coveted Truck of the Year award. In a world of sub-par Chevy Colorados, ancient Ford Rangers, and a small-truck segment that was mostly an afterthought for most automakers, Honda appeared to have a revolutionary new idea that would offer the casual truck buyer a nice compromise. Its V-6 engine and fully independent suspension offered car-like refinement while its four full doors, AWD, dual-action tailgate, and decent-sized bed with lockable in-floor box gave it a reasonable degree of capability that would appeal to the weekend warrior on home improvement runs and trips to the lake.
At first, it appeared Honda's unibody gamble paid off. The Japanese automaker had hoped to sell 50,000 trucks per year and it nearly did it out of the gate. Sales in 2005 hit 42,593 units and it would only take another year to hit the magical 50,000 mark with 50,193 units sold in 2006. That would be the Ridgeline's best year, though, as sales slipped back to 2005 levels the very next year. Still, 42,795 sales in 2006 could hardly be called a bad year, given the 50,000-sale target, but it would only get worse from here. Its compact size and relative fuel efficiency didn't help as much as you'd think when gas prices shot up in 2008. Sales continued to drop, with only 33,875 sold in 2008 and the freefall continued in 2009, when Honda only managed to move 16,464 Ridgelines.
That brings us to today, less than two weeks after Honda posted its March 2010 sales. March has traditionally been a good month for the Ridgeline, and sales were up 12.3 percent this year. That being said, 1,416 sales aren't a lot to get excited about when the truck posted its all-time high sales just four years earlier in March 2006 with 5,344 trucks leaving the lots. Through March, Ridgeline sales are about 10 percent below last year, foreshadowing a record low in sales in 2010. The Ford Ranger, meanwhile, faced a down year in 2009 with sales off 15 percent but still sold 55,600 copies. For perspective, Honda has sold 189,056 Ridgelines in the five years it's been on the market. Ford sold more than twice as many F-Series trucks in 2009 alone, and sales were down 20 percent that year.
Is there hope on the horizon? Rumor has it the next Dodge/Ram Dakota could be a unibody truck like the Ridgeline. Ford is rumored to be finally considering a next-generation Ranger that, while not unibody, could offer four doors like the Ridgeline. Was the Ridgeline simply too far ahead of its time? This may be the very question kicking around the halls of Honda's headquarters.
In the end, it will likely come down to cost, as most of these decisions do. It is unknown whether Honda has fully paid off its investment in the Ridgeline, though declining sales numbers make it seem unlikely. Either way, a significant redesign on this aging model would be costly, and Honda's experience so far doesn't encourage much hope for the Ridgeline's niche. Can Honda afford to keep building current-generation Ridgelines until Dodge/Ram and Ford make their moves, or will the wait-and-see approach prove too costly?
What do you think Honda should do?
Cut its losses and let the Ridgeline die, or roll the dice on a major redesign in hopes of rekindling the fire? Or, should the company wait out the competition and risk falling behind if the competitors' trucks do catch on? Give us your product plan in the comments below.
Source;
http://wot.motortrend.com/6631468/auto-news/honda-ridgeline-teeters-on-the-edge-what-would-you-do-with-it/index.html