Honda Pickup Truck

Anyone know anything about the Honda Pickup truck that is supposed to appear in the U.S. in 2004 or 2005?

-CB

 

try www.hondabeat.com

 

try www.hondabeat.com

 

Their server is painfully slow.
Dave

try www.hondabeat.com

 

Their server is painfully slow.
Dave

try www.hondabeat.com

 

something fishy in Vermont!

 

something fishy in Vermont!

 

And useless. Nothing about the Honda pickup there.

 

And useless. Nothing about the Honda pickup there.

 

HONDA CURRENT NEWS

Honda Unveils New Light Truck Models at New York Auto Show
Honda Element makes world debut; Production version of 2003 Honda
Pilot unveiled.

New York March 27, 2002 -- Two new and innovative vehicles that will
enhance Honda's presence in the booming light truck market are making
their debuts at the 2002 New York International Auto Show today.

On display for the first time is a production-ready version of the
Honda Pilot, an all-new Honda-designed and built family-oriented SUV,
featuring 8-passenger seating and the largest cargo carrying capacity
in its class. The Pilot goes on sale in June.

Also making its world debut is a pre-production version of the Honda
Element, an all-new light truck based on the Model X concept vehicle.
The Element, which goes on sale by the end of the year, targets young
buyers with an athletic lifestyle. The show also marks the
introduction of the Element name.

"Pilot and Element are two very different trucks for two very
different buyers," said Tom Elliott, executive vice president of
American Honda Motor Co., Inc. "As American consumers continue to
gravitate toward new and different types of light trucks, these two
vehicles will play an important role in Honda's lineup."

The Pilot features a 240-horsepower, 3.5-liter, VTEC V-6 engine and
Honda's patented VTM-4(TM) (Variable Torque Management 4WD) advanced
four-wheel drive system. The interior is the most versatile and
functional in the class, with two rows of 60/40 split folding seats
and up to 90.3 cubic feet of cargo space behind the front seats.

The Pilot will be built alongside the Acura MDX and Honda Odyssey by
Honda Canada Mfg. in Alliston, Ontario. Pricing will range from
$26,000 to $32,000 and sales of about 80,000 vehicles are expected
during its first 12 months on the market.

Element, with its straightforward exterior design and multi-functional
interior, combines the best features of a pickup truck and a SUV. The
Element delivers on themes featured in the Model X concept vehicle
unveiled at the 2001 North American International Auto Show in
Detroit. It received a strong response on the auto show circuit,
earning a fast track to production.

The Element is designed to serve as a combination dorm room/base camp
for active young buyers. The flexible interior hauls four adults and
their gear comfortably on road trips; or the rear seats fold away to
create a large and open interior capable of hauling surf boards,
mountain bikes, snowboards or just about anything else that can be
used during the course of a weekend. The rugged interior
is also easy-to-clean.

A key design feature of the Element is the center opening
"swing-wide" doors with no B-pillar for maximum cargo loading
flexibility. Honda also has targeted a Five Star side impact safety
rating for Element.

Based on Honda's Global Compact Platform, Element is powered by a
2.4-liter, 160-horsepower, i-VTEC, 4-cylinder engine. It will be
available with either front-wheel-drive or Honda's Real Time 4WD(TM),
and with either a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission.

The Element will be built at Honda of America Mfg.'s East Liberty
(Ohio) Plant. Element will go sale in December 2002, with first year
sales (2003) of about 50,000 vehicles expected. Pricing will range
from $16,000 to $21,000.

Media information and hi-res photography of Honda vehicles can be
found at www.hondanews.com. Consumer information is available at
www.honda.com

 

HONDA CURRENT NEWS

Honda Unveils New Light Truck Models at New York Auto Show
Honda Element makes world debut; Production version of 2003 Honda
Pilot unveiled.

New York March 27, 2002 -- Two new and innovative vehicles that will
enhance Honda's presence in the booming light truck market are making
their debuts at the 2002 New York International Auto Show today.

On display for the first time is a production-ready version of the
Honda Pilot, an all-new Honda-designed and built family-oriented SUV,
featuring 8-passenger seating and the largest cargo carrying capacity
in its class. The Pilot goes on sale in June.

Also making its world debut is a pre-production version of the Honda
Element, an all-new light truck based on the Model X concept vehicle.
The Element, which goes on sale by the end of the year, targets young
buyers with an athletic lifestyle. The show also marks the
introduction of the Element name.

"Pilot and Element are two very different trucks for two very
different buyers," said Tom Elliott, executive vice president of
American Honda Motor Co., Inc. "As American consumers continue to
gravitate toward new and different types of light trucks, these two
vehicles will play an important role in Honda's lineup."

The Pilot features a 240-horsepower, 3.5-liter, VTEC V-6 engine and
Honda's patented VTM-4(TM) (Variable Torque Management 4WD) advanced
four-wheel drive system. The interior is the most versatile and
functional in the class, with two rows of 60/40 split folding seats
and up to 90.3 cubic feet of cargo space behind the front seats.

The Pilot will be built alongside the Acura MDX and Honda Odyssey by
Honda Canada Mfg. in Alliston, Ontario. Pricing will range from
$26,000 to $32,000 and sales of about 80,000 vehicles are expected
during its first 12 months on the market.

Element, with its straightforward exterior design and multi-functional
interior, combines the best features of a pickup truck and a SUV. The
Element delivers on themes featured in the Model X concept vehicle
unveiled at the 2001 North American International Auto Show in
Detroit. It received a strong response on the auto show circuit,
earning a fast track to production.

The Element is designed to serve as a combination dorm room/base camp
for active young buyers. The flexible interior hauls four adults and
their gear comfortably on road trips; or the rear seats fold away to
create a large and open interior capable of hauling surf boards,
mountain bikes, snowboards or just about anything else that can be
used during the course of a weekend. The rugged interior
is also easy-to-clean.

A key design feature of the Element is the center opening
"swing-wide" doors with no B-pillar for maximum cargo loading
flexibility. Honda also has targeted a Five Star side impact safety
rating for Element.

Based on Honda's Global Compact Platform, Element is powered by a
2.4-liter, 160-horsepower, i-VTEC, 4-cylinder engine. It will be
available with either front-wheel-drive or Honda's Real Time 4WD(TM),
and with either a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission.

The Element will be built at Honda of America Mfg.'s East Liberty
(Ohio) Plant. Element will go sale in December 2002, with first year
sales (2003) of about 50,000 vehicles expected. Pricing will range
from $16,000 to $21,000.

Media information and hi-res photography of Honda vehicles can be
found at www.hondanews.com. Consumer information is available at
www.honda.com

 

On page 34 of the August 2003 issue of Car and Driver, it states:

Lacking a platform with th solid rear axle and ladder-frame construction of a
traditional pickup truck, Honda will nontheless produce a pickup-style,
sport-utility-type vehicle based on the unibody Pilot SUV. If the vehicle in
our illustration looks a bit like the Chevy Avalanche, that's not by accident.
The as-yet-unnamed Honda truck will have proportions similar to the Chevy's,
including the flying buttresses extending from the C-pillars. The Honda will
have four full-size doors (made possible by a longer-than-Pilot wheelbase) and
a five-foot cargo bed. Unlike the Chevy, the Honda will not have any sort of
pass-through between the passenger cabin and the bed. In this way the Honda
truck is more like a traditional pickup.

The truck which will be shown at next year's Detroit show in January will go on
sale in 2005, will be powered by virtually the same 3.5-liter V6 as the Pilot
is. It may however produce a more Acura MDX-like 260 horsepower. The truck
will use a version of the front-biased, full-time four-wheel-drive system from
the Pilot. So forget about a low-range transfer case. Honda wants the truck
to ahve an image independent of the Pilot, though, so every body panel will be
different. That starts up front with a blunt, butch front end including a
large Dodge Ram-like grille. Squared-off wheel wells and tire package, and
bulging fender flares complete the aggressive look. At least it won't have the
expansive cladding the Avalanche debuted with.

From the spy picture, I think the new Honda truck is ugly. Hopefully those who
will be attending the Detroit Autoshow in 2004 will agree and voice their
opinions to Honda. I think Honda can get away with building unibody SUVs but
Americans want a truck with a ladder frame. Truck buyers are gonna laugh when
they compare towing figures of Honda's truck versus its rivals from Nissan,
Toyota, Chevy, Ford and even Dodge.

Truck buyers buy trucks for many reasons. One if the macho image that it gives
them. The new Honda truck does not have the macho image. Second, they like
having the option of towing 8,000 or more at a moment's notice. I seriously
doubt a front biased, unibody "truck" will be able to handle such a task.

Don't get me wrong, I am not here to bash Honda. I just think if they are
going to do something then they should do it right the first time. Look at the
first Odyssey minivan compared to the current one. Also look at Toyota's first
attempt at a full sized truck to their Tundra now. American truck buyers want
big and brawny. Imagine how sales of the MDX and Pilot sales would be if Honda
didn't up the ante with more expensive VTEC engines over the more anemic V6
engines powering the original TL.

Lastly, the new Honda truck is going to need a V8 engine option. If it is
sized to compete against the Avalanche then the V6, no matter how nice it is,
isn't going to win over American hearts.

 

On page 34 of the August 2003 issue of Car and Driver, it states:

Lacking a platform with th solid rear axle and ladder-frame construction of a
traditional pickup truck, Honda will nontheless produce a pickup-style,
sport-utility-type vehicle based on the unibody Pilot SUV. If the vehicle in
our illustration looks a bit like the Chevy Avalanche, that's not by accident.
The as-yet-unnamed Honda truck will have proportions similar to the Chevy's,
including the flying buttresses extending from the C-pillars. The Honda will
have four full-size doors (made possible by a longer-than-Pilot wheelbase) and
a five-foot cargo bed. Unlike the Chevy, the Honda will not have any sort of
pass-through between the passenger cabin and the bed. In this way the Honda
truck is more like a traditional pickup.

The truck which will be shown at next year's Detroit show in January will go on
sale in 2005, will be powered by virtually the same 3.5-liter V6 as the Pilot
is. It may however produce a more Acura MDX-like 260 horsepower. The truck
will use a version of the front-biased, full-time four-wheel-drive system from
the Pilot. So forget about a low-range transfer case. Honda wants the truck
to ahve an image independent of the Pilot, though, so every body panel will be
different. That starts up front with a blunt, butch front end including a
large Dodge Ram-like grille. Squared-off wheel wells and tire package, and
bulging fender flares complete the aggressive look. At least it won't have the
expansive cladding the Avalanche debuted with.

From the spy picture, I think the new Honda truck is ugly. Hopefully those who
will be attending the Detroit Autoshow in 2004 will agree and voice their
opinions to Honda. I think Honda can get away with building unibody SUVs but
Americans want a truck with a ladder frame. Truck buyers are gonna laugh when
they compare towing figures of Honda's truck versus its rivals from Nissan,
Toyota, Chevy, Ford and even Dodge.

Truck buyers buy trucks for many reasons. One if the macho image that it gives
them. The new Honda truck does not have the macho image. Second, they like
having the option of towing 8,000 or more at a moment's notice. I seriously
doubt a front biased, unibody "truck" will be able to handle such a task.

Don't get me wrong, I am not here to bash Honda. I just think if they are
going to do something then they should do it right the first time. Look at the
first Odyssey minivan compared to the current one. Also look at Toyota's first
attempt at a full sized truck to their Tundra now. American truck buyers want
big and brawny. Imagine how sales of the MDX and Pilot sales would be if Honda
didn't up the ante with more expensive VTEC engines over the more anemic V6
engines powering the original TL.

Lastly, the new Honda truck is going to need a V8 engine option. If it is
sized to compete against the Avalanche then the V6, no matter how nice it is,
isn't going to win over American hearts.

 

its gonna need a ladder frame, rear drive, and a V8, or else itll be a niche
car, like the dodge rampage and vw rabbit pickup.

 

its gonna need a ladder frame, rear drive, and a V8, or else itll be a niche
car, like the dodge rampage and vw rabbit pickup.

 

Interesting pictures. The top one is clearly a development mule or complete
fake. (I'm guessing the latter.) The middle one is the best looking, but
Honda's NEVER look as cool as the prototype drawings. The bottom one is way
off base. It's not clear whether such a vehicle would be built on the MDX
or Pilot/Odyssey platform...if at all!

If you want an idea of how far off these are, look how the "spy drawings" of
the current Accord compared to the real thing. They're a better match for
the Mazda 6 than an Accord!

 

Interesting pictures. The top one is clearly a development mule or complete
fake. (I'm guessing the latter.) The middle one is the best looking, but
Honda's NEVER look as cool as the prototype drawings. The bottom one is way
off base. It's not clear whether such a vehicle would be built on the MDX
or Pilot/Odyssey platform...if at all!

If you want an idea of how far off these are, look how the "spy drawings" of
the current Accord compared to the real thing. They're a better match for
the Mazda 6 than an Accord!

 

They might not be the real thing, but I was sharing what I had found online
with the NG.

 

They might not be the real thing, but I was sharing what I had found online
with the NG.

 

Two words: Subaru Baja clone (OK, three words.)

I was hoping Honda would be releasing a REAL truck a la Toyota Tacoma or the
Nissan Fontier.

-CB