2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid Towing Capacity, Price

According to the latest reports and rumors from the web, The Ridgeline may reestablish its “unique-vehicle” reputation once again. Taking into account these sources, the hybrid version of the popular truck will hit the streets very soon. However, the competition on the market is stronger than ever, with body-on-frame rivals like Gladiator and Ranger. So, the Japanese company needs something good. The comfort-oriented 2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid may just be the right thing.

This model comes with a more efficient powertrain and a lot of improvement, safety features, and updated technology suites. But, we still don’t know when the precise release date or the price. We must wait for some official information on this matter.

2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid Exterior

In the term of design language, the upcoming 2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid won’t be too different than the standard model. However, we see a couple of distinctive changes to the exterior of the hybrid version. But, the overall appearance will remain pretty much the same. Surely, one of the most interesting facts about the hybrid model is that rides on a unibody platform.

That feature alone makes this model pretty unique on the market. Although the traditional body-on-frame trucks can tow more, the Ridgeline Hybrid offers far better ride quality. This is not surprising, taking into account that this model shares many things in common with crossovers like Passport or Honda Pilot.

Interior

The interior of forthcoming 2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid comes with a very similar layout as the previous version. The only notable difference is the new instrument cluster. In most part, the cabin styling is the same as in the standard model. But, one of the main characteristics of regular Ridgeline is the well-designed and composed interior. Why change something that is already perfect, right?

Furthermore, the good amount of top quality materials and excellent level of comfort makes this interior one of the best in the class. However, the level of standard equipment could be a little bit higher, at least as the base gasoline version. New Ridgeline Hybrid includes a push-start button, a 7-speaker audio system with two USB ports, Bluetooth, an 8-inch touchscreen and navigation.

Of course, the Apple CarPlay/Android Auto connectivity will be part of the standard equipment as well. But, if you want things like a power-sliding window, a moonroof, and tri-zone automatic climate control, these are available in additional packages.

Safety Features

One of the most improved aspects of the 2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid is the safety department. The regular gasoline version doesn’t include too many safety features in the standard package. As always, with a higher trim level comes much better features. For the moment, the rearview camera is the only standard feature.

But, if you choose a hybrid version you’ll get all kinds of advanced systems. The safety suite includes rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot monitoring, and front/rear parking sensors Also, the Honda Sensing suite of driving assistance is available. This suite adds collision mitigation braking, lane departure warning, lane keep assist, forward collision warning, road departure mitigation, and adaptive cruise control. All of the mentioned safety features will be standard for the Ridgeline Hybrid model.

Hybrid Powertrain

So, we came to the most important part of this review. According to the reports from the company, the 2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid could use one of the familiar hybrid systems. There are actually two equally good pretenders for this spot. First one is a four-cylinder system from Honda Accord. This unit offers excellent fuel economy.

However, it may be weak a bit for this model. On the other hand, a V6-based system offers more power and similar fuel-economy numbers. This unit will probably be used for new Acura MDX. The luxury crossover fuse a 3.0-liter 6-cylinder powertrain with a pair of electric motors. This combined output can produce around 321 hp. Such power will probably be quite enough to provide acceptable performance.

Yet, the towing capacity may still be lower compared to the regular gasoline model. But, this model is known for its great capability, not the towing capacity. We assume that future drivers won’t worry much about the towing. Furthermore, the fuel-economy rating will probably be slightly lower than for the MDX Hybrid, due to heavier curb.

The MDX model returns 27 mpg in the combined ride. Nonetheless, the EPA numbers will be much higher, in comparison to the standard gasoline version. The regular Ridgeline returns 18 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway.

2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid Release Date and Price

Despite the fact that many reports around the web are suggestion than the new 2020 Honda Ridgeline Hybrid will hit the streets very soon, the fact is that the official release date is still unknown.

So, when the new model makes a debut on the markets, we assume that the starting price will be around $5,000 higher, compared to the base gasoline model. Therefore, we expect that the price will start around $35,000.