Honda Ridgeline and Tab 400

peterac50

We have been tab owners for 2 years + now. Our towing vehicle is a 2018 Honda Ridgeline. Its a great unibody construction truck (like the pilot), 4 wd, comfortable to ride in, and has great gas mileage. For the first year we owned a 320 and took it out west over the rockies etc. It towed great, no problems in the mountains, etc. This past year we upgraded to a 2019 400. We have towed our new tab all along the East coast - up into Canada and down through the Appalachians, Blue Ridge, and Great Smokey Mountains. No issues. This summer, we plan to head West again into the Rockies and I am specifically interested in the driving experience of fellow ridgeline or pilot owners (if the drive train and towing specs are the same) who have towed their 400 through the rockies. While the 4wd Ridgeline with towing package is rated to tow 5,000 lbs (including the passengers and payload), I am aware that while fully loaded we are within specs including tongue weight (we pack carefully), I also know we are pushing the upper limit of the Ridgeline's towing capacities. As noted, the Ridgeline has proven to be a great tow vehicle on the east coast, but I am wondering how it might do in the rockies. I'd love to hear from other Ridgeline owners who have taken their 400 through the mountains and how it went. I have the resources to upgrade to a larger truck, but don't want to do so if the experience of other Ridgeline owners suggests its not necessary. Thank in advance.

Michael49

I have a '19 Ridgeline and a 400. I've towed in the mountains of northern VT and NH but not the Rockies. You might want to check the Ridgeline forum on Facebook - there are people towing 4k TT's with their Ridgelines. I'll be heading out West with my RL and my 400 next year - I think as long as I take it slow I'll be fine - I'm always amazed at how many yahoos pass me on the highway with their huge TT's going 75mph. I tow my 400 the same way I ride a bike - slower uphill and faster downhill . We seem to be in an era where everyone thinks they need a dually to tow anything . Just take it easy and don't expect to be in the left lane going over mountain passes.

peterjoce400

We have towed our 2019 400 with the Ridgeline thru Sierra Nevada mtns. British Columbia to Yuma and back. Passes at 7000 ft to 200 ft below sea level. 
 Most recent road trip was Vancouver Island to Osoyoos then south following the Columbia River from source NE Washington State  (picture below is Death Valley, California April/2019 with temperature close to 100F ( one other T@B 400 there too) and out to Pacific Ocean, then home to Vancouver Island via Port Angeles.   Ridgeline will do it easy enough: but be prepared for gas burn in the high climbs.  Our 2011 averaged 21 litres per 100 km ( sorry don't know mpg.) overall with speeds held at 100 kph ( 55 mph). We did not use a anti-sway or wdh  and never had issue in even high cross winds. Having said that we have upgraded this winter to a Touareg 3 litre TDI which we will be trying out in February down to Arizona.    Our Ridgeline was an amazing truck that gave us perfect service for 7 years, with our longest road trip being a full 3 months across all western states and 4 western Cdn provinces.  Enjoy your adventures!

DougH

@peterjoce400 ; Nice. We test drove the Touareg TDI once and loved the massive torque.

peterac50

Thanks Peter. Great description of your experience. Loved the photos.

FrankandCarolyn

My name is Frank, no idea of our "screen name". We have a 2018 400 and a 2017 Ridgeline awd. In July August 2018 we took our first adventure from Pennsylvania to grand Teton,  Yellowstone, and on to Olympic in Washington state. No trouble towing over the rockies. Gas mpg about 11-13.  This summer we did have an event near home where the transmission overheated for a little while. It was the only time I had towed without a full tank of water, and I had loaded all the gear in the back of the Honda, and it was 95 degrees and  I wa driving 65 +. The trouble with the 2018/19 400's is the tongue weight is over 400 lbs so you start out at the upper reasonable limit of the 500 lb capacity of the ridgeline. That said. We plan on going to Arizona & Utah next April for a 5 week trip. I would advise doing the rear differential fluid change at 25-30 k miles and transfer fluid around 50. I had ny trans fluid changed after mt event this summer.  At 60 k.

ChrisFix

FrankandCarolyn said:

My name is Frank, no idea of our "screen name". We have a 2018 400 and a 2017 Ridgeline awd. In July August 2018 we took our first adventure from Pennsylvania to grand Teton,  Yellowstone, and on to Olympic in Washington state. No trouble towing over the rockies. Gas mpg about 11-13.  This summer we did have an event near home where the transmission overheated for a little while. It was the only time I had towed without a full tank of water, and I had loaded all the gear in the back of the Honda, and it was 95 degrees and  I wa driving 65 +. The trouble with the 2018/19 400's is the tongue weight is over 400 lbs so you start out at the upper reasonable limit of the 500 lb capacity of the ridgeline. That said. We plan on going to Arizona & Utah next April for a 5 week trip. I would advise doing the rear differential fluid change at 25-30 k miles and transfer fluid around 50. I had ny trans fluid changed after mt event this summer.  At 60 k.

Hi Frank,
Not to nitpick, but the Ridgeline AWD has a rated tongue weight of 600 lbs...
And for those looking at 2020 or later Ridgelines, the transmission is completely different than the prior years, and IMHO vastly improved, especially in regards to towing. The 2020 9 speed transmission with paddle shifting is a great match to towing trailers in the T@B400 size and weight.

FrankandCarolyn

Thanks ChrisFix! I checked the manual for my 2017 and verified the 600 on tongue wt. I would recommend any Ridgeline owner to carefully plan now you show your gear. I was careful in 2018 going over the Rockies and had no trouble. I did add some engine oil in Montana around 5000 miles into the trip. The manual also mentions a drop in total capacity of 2% for each 1000 ft of elevation, so another reason to plan the storage well. Other than that we love our Ridgeline, and it is a terrific daily driver. The in bed trunk is a campers dream!

BogieMeister

Just a fyi... I tow my 320 with a 2016 Pilot. While on flat roads there were no issues at all. However when it got hilly the transmission was constantly shifting up and down which caused a overheat problem. This eventually led to a hesitation when accelerating from a stop. When I explained the issue to the local Honda dealer they informed me that there was a software update available for the transmission. While performing the update they also changed out the transmission fluid as part of the update. Ever since then I have had no problems what so ever

tphaggerty

2019 Ridgeline here with a 2018 400. Across the country and back this year, over 8k miles. Through Yellowstone and up into the Bighorn National Monument, which is steep and winding. No issues, gas mileage was around 12 overall. Plus probably another 2k on other camping trips.  Extremely comfortable and quiet. We do use a WDH, although had some issues and didn’t use it for about 2k of the trip. 

The only issue is finding decent towing mirrors if you want them. I’m ok, but my wife would prefer to have real towing mirrors and it’s tough to find any that come highly recommended. I also wish the bed was a bit longer. Highly recommended in my opinion.

ChrisFix

tphaggerty said:

The only issue is finding decent towing mirrors if you want them. I’m ok, but my wife would prefer to have real towing mirrors and it’s tough to find any that come highly recommended. I also wish the bed was a bit longer. Highly recommended in my opinion.

I haven't found a need for towing mirrors...with the standard ones, I can adjust them so that I can see down both sides of the 400, albeit with a bit of head stretching at times, but I do have a clear and safe view down both sides.
And if I had my druthers, I'd like the truck bed to be deeper, not longer. The shallow bed is a trade off for the in-bed trunk (which is a feature that is hard not to love!), but an additional 6 inches of bed height would allow carrying all sorts of things, flush under the tonneau, that don't fit under the approx 15" bed side height.
Great tow vehicle for the 400 though, and I've not yet felt the need for any WDH...which is just one less thing to carry and deal with hitching/un-hitching.