MotorTrend: Chevy Colorado vs. Ford Ranger vs. Honda Ridgeline vs Toyota Tacoma

Gecko

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Link: https://www.motortrend.com/cars/che...ger-honda-ridgeline-toyota-tacoma-comparison/

Last Place: Toyota Tacoma. In last place is the supremely disappointing Toyota Tacoma. The Tacoma is all hat and no cattle; it looks fantastic, but whether you haul air or hay, it's let down by a cramped cabin, narrow bed, grabby brakes, and an engine and transmission that work in tandem about as well as a pack of cats and dogs.

Third Place: Ford Ranger.
In third place, in a surprise to us, is the Ford Ranger. As we saw on the farm, the Ranger is capable. Its stellar powertrain has more than enough power to tow and haul, its platform handles weight well, and its extra-wide bed proved to be incredibly useful. But on the road, the Ranger doesn't measure up to our top two finishers. Its suspension tuning is (at best) compromised toward a duty cycle this truck will rarely see in America, and its cabin is cramped and dated. "The Ranger, being the newest truck here, somehow manages to feel the oldest and least refined," Walton said.

Second Place: Honda Ridgeline.
The second-place Honda Ridgeline is slavishly designed around the idea of the lifestyle truck, where it excels. But it's relatively (and surprisingly) capable, too. Its pickup box is exceptionally large for its size, and the dual-use tailgate is a much more elegant solution to the problem of unloading a pickup bed than the overly complicated multiposition tailgates on some full-size pickups. There's still room for improvement, though; we'd like to see a dedicated tow-haul mode and something done to improve ride quality when hauling.

First Place: Chevrolet Colorado.
Our unanimous winner for best midsize pickup truck is the Chevrolet Colorado. The Colorado so effortlessly walks the fine line between being a lifestyle pickup and a work truck. It has plenty of power for work or play, a buttoned-down ride that doesn't beat you up on your daily commute, a good back-seat package, and an incredibly functional bed. It's the uncompromised pickup—the one that drives like a compact but hauls like a heavy-duty. "It's like these guys are truck-building experts or something," Evans deadpanned. "Not hard to remember why this is a two-time Truck of the Year." No, it's not. As for how it measures up to the (Jeep) Gladiator in the arena? We're as eager as you are to find out.




A particularly damning review of the Tacoma, but also very accurate based on my personal experience.
 
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They have the same 2GR-FKS with atkinson's cycle. However, they are tune differently.

Tacoma was tuned for more low end torque. The truck itself is mediocre at best. Push the ECT it gets okay. More quirkier.

Mike Sweers even said it himself. "Atkinson cycle kills the engine" Something along the lines.
The fuel savings with the 3.5L2gr-fks is non-negligible when compared to the 4.0L 1GR-FE.
Like nissan, I honestly felt that if toyota kept the 4.0L 1GR, it would have not only saved them money but would have been a real winner.

I do understand that toyota had to meet emissions and corporate engine standards for future quotas, but this tacoma can be quite frustrating to drive.
 

mmcartalk

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Having reviewed and/or test-driven all four of these trucks myself, I basically agree with MT's conclusions.
 

Ian Schmidt

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Is the so-called "Chevy shake" still a thing on the Canyon/Colorado? I know it was bad on the '15, '16, and '17 models at least.
 
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I can relate. It seems like by just reading the headline that they did not test any off road capabilities which would make the Tacoma second or first place. But I know from experience that the brakes are worse than an erratic grandparent who freaks out. The engine is essentially dead under 4k RPM (the only surprise to this is that it has Rolls-Royce level of quietness), but honestly it is like nobody is home. Go a tad over 4k RPM and that V6 screams and you gotta press the gas real hard to get some oomph. It is a relatively fast car for a truck, but I am not sure you should have to work a truck to be able to get a wave of torque. Normally that should happen at 1-2k RPM, not 4k.

This car is seriously flawed no doubt. But it's capabilities off road or any extreme terrain will simply blow you away, and for that reason I can forgive it. It has a certain personality that I like, but I can see why it can be less liked than the Ranger or the Colorado.

I still don't rate the Ridgeline. It's still a piece of **** in my eyes. Not a real truck at all. And what bothers me is that these publications are trying to stuff it down consumer's throats.
 

mmcartalk

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I still don't rate the Ridgeline. It's still a piece of **** in my eyes. Not a real truck at all. And what bothers me is that these publications are trying to stuff it down consumer's throats.

It doesn't necessarily have to be stuffed down consumer's throats. My ex-pastor has a 2Gen Ridgeline (bought it brand-new, with the all-black trim package)...and loves it. I agree, though, that it is not going to sell in F-150 or Silverado numbers.
 
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It doesn't necessarily have to be stuffed down consumer's throats. My ex-pastor has a 2Gen Ridgeline (bought it brand-new, with the all-black trim package)...and loves it. I agree, though, that it is not going to sell in F-150 or Silverado numbers.

I can see where you're coming from. I don't deny the Ridgeline is a *shudders* good at hauling some things and can be zippy, but would your ex-pastor be comfortable hauling or carrying thousands of pounds that the other trucks do with no sweat? Can the Ridgeline honestly be able to off road as well as the other trucks?

I totally get with what you mean. Certain cars match with certain lifestyles, and probably your ex-pastor isn't planning to do any of those things I mentioned above and just wants to carry things here and there and be a little more utility-focused than something like the Pilot or Odyssey. But I am struggling to accept the Ridgeline as a truck. Mainly because it is a unibody architecture and we all know how much its capabilities are hampered because of that. If they manage to innovate something with a unibody that can honestly match or blow away a BOF truck's capabilities, then I am on board.