An All-New Honda Ridgeline Is Officially Coming, but There’s a Catch for Today’s Buyers

The next American-designed and built Ridgeline is expected within two years.

Hondaphile truck buyers act fast: Your beloved Honda Ridgeline will be

taking a gap year starting later in 2026, as Honda will be ending production of the second-generation model while the all-new, all-American version of the third-generation truck finishes its

gestation. We first reported on the pause a few months ago. Now we’re learning a bit more about its replacement.

Home Grown

As has been the case with the Truck of the

Year winning first-generation

(2006–2014) and second-gen (2017–present) trucks, the design will hail from the

same Honda Southern California styling studio in Torrance, while engineering development

takes place at the Honda Auto Development Center in Raymond, Ohio. And when

they’re good and done developing it, it’ll return to the same production line

it’s now rolling off of, the Honda Alabama Auto Plant in Lincoln, Alabama, where Pilots, Passports, and Odysseys are also built.

Still All Truck

Honda has shared the teaser image above, which indicates no adventurous

forays into form factors that deviate from the three-box truck paradigm. We’re assured

the new Ridgeline’s countenance will be “even more rugged.” Honda VP of auto

sales Lance Woelfer, recounting the Ridgeline’s legacy of introducing

innovative technologies (like the drop-or-swing door gate) added that “The next

Ridgeline will advance this legacy while gaining even more rugged design

and capabilities.”

Pure Speculation

None of this is official, but Woelfer’s comments could

certainly point to a typical Honda second generation of TrailSport enhancements

expanding on what

was originally offered for the existing Ridgeline, just as we’ve seen with successive Passport and Pilot TrailSport models. Look

for more aggressive tires that perhaps go up a size to 32s and offer improved

rock and mud traction with better puncture resistance. A more aggressive

suspension lift than today’s 1 inch is also likely, courtesy of longer springs with

revised dampers and maybe even hydraulic rebound stops. Improved underbody

armor seems likely as well, and it wouldn’t take much revision of today’s bumpers to further improve approach and departure angles above what the suspension lift provides.

Upgrading to Honda’s very latest electronic architecture

is also likely to bring improvements to the TrailWatch camera system (higher

resolution cameras, tire placement views, etc.), and more extensive off-road

modes. These could be enabled by upgrades to the i-VTM4 rear axle, like faster

clutch engagement, higher sustained torque, and improved thermal capacity. We’d

even like to see better one-pedal off-road control and perhaps some trailer

assist automation (hitching, backing, etc.).

As for what will power it, Honda is in the process of developing a hybrid powertrain that can be used for its larger vehicles like the Ridgeline, and it would be a good bet that it could power the new truck, in addition to the updated version of Honda’s tried-and-true 3.5-liter V-6.

How Long Will the Pause Be?

Honda is still advising us to expect the new Ridgeline “within

two years,” so we’re guessing it will arrive as a 2028 model year vehicle, but it could push to an early 2029 model as well.