The Honda Ridgeline Is Getting More Rugged: What We Know About the Third-Generation Truck

What does a good value look like when you're buying a new vehicle in 2026? Apparently, there isn't just one answer. Cars.com recently named three Honda models as Top Finishers in its 2026 Best Value New Cars awards: the 2026 Honda CR-V LX in the Compact SUV category, 2026 Honda Passport RTL in the Mid-Size SUV category, and 2026 Honda Ridgeline Sport in the Mid-Size Pickup Truck category. That's a compact SUV, a larger adventure-ready SUV, and a pickup truck earning recognition under the same affordability study. For shoppers at D'ELLA Honda of Glens Falls, it also means you can start with what you actually need from your next vehicle instead of choosing between practicality and value. Browse our New Honda Inventory to compare your options, check our current New Vehicle Specials, or Value Your Trade before visiting us in Queensbury. Cars.com Looked at More Than the Sticker Price A lower starting price helps, but Cars.com's Best Value New Cars methodology goes further. Eligible vehicles are recommended by the Cars.com editorial team and equipped with a collection of features the publication considers must-haves. Those include an automatic transmission, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, blind spot monitoring, forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection, brake assist, and lane departure warning. Cars.com also considers median and starting vehicle prices, including destination fees, along with EPA fuel-economy ratings and estimated fuel costs. 2026 Honda CR-V LX: Value in the SUV Sweet Spot For plenty of drivers around Queensbury and Glens Falls, the CR-V is probably the easiest of the three to picture in everyday life. The 2026 Honda CR-V LX was named a Top Finisher for Best Value Compact SUV. Its MSRP of $30,920 sits well below the $46,303 average new-vehicle transaction price in America cited by Honda from J.D. Power data. Its compact-SUV format also lands in a useful middle ground. You get the passenger and cargo versatility people want from an SUV without automatically moving into the size and expense of a larger three-row vehicle. Efficiency is another part of the equation, and Honda continues to offer the CR-V with both gasoline and hybrid powertrains. Honda was also recently identified in the EPA Automotive Trends Report as the full-line automaker with the highest fleet average fuel economy among automakers producing a complete lineup of gasoline-powered and electrified vehicles in America. If fuel economy is high on your shopping list, you can compare available Honda CR-V and CR-V Hybrid models in our New Honda Inventory. 2026 Honda Passport RTL: When You Need More SUV Maybe compact isn't what you need. The all-new 2026 Honda Passport RTL earned Top Finisher recognition in Cars.com's Best Value Mid-Size SUV category. Passport gives shoppers another direction to go within the Honda SUV lineup, particularly when additional size and capability are priorities. It's also where this trio becomes more useful than a generic “affordable cars” list. Someone shopping for a Passport probably isn't cross-shopping it with the CR-V simply because one costs less. If your weekends regularly involve more gear, more adventurous destinations, or the kind of Upstate New York plans that don't end when the pavement does, the larger Passport may be worth the additional room in the budget. Browse our available Honda Passport Inventory or see whether any current Honda Specials line up with the model and trim you're considering. 2026 Honda Ridgeline Sport: The Pickup Made the List, Too Then there's the 2026 Honda Ridgeline Sport, a Top Finisher for Best Value Mid-Size Pickup Truck.More importantly, choosing the truck doesn't mean stepping outside the same Cars.com criteria applied elsewhere. Ridgeline had to combine its pricing with the required technology and safety equipment considered in the Best Value evaluation. For someone who actually needs a truck bed for home projects, outdoor equipment, or weekend plans around the Adirondacks but doesn't need a traditional full-size pickup, that gives the Ridgeline a very different job than either Honda SUV above. Explore our New Honda Ridgeline Inventory to see what's currently available at D'ELLA Honda of Glens Falls. Three Winners, Three Very Different Shopping Lists The useful thing about Honda putting three vehicles on this list is that you don't have to force yourself into one kind of vehicle to shop with value in mind. Need the everyday flexibility of a compact SUV? Start with CR-V. Want a larger SUV with more room and capability? Passport earned its own spot. Actually need a pickup? Ridgeline Sport made the list, too. And because Cars.com considers pricing, fuel economy and estimated fuel costs alongside a defined set of safety and connectivity features, each one had to bring more to the evaluation than an attractive starting MSRP. Compare the CR-V, Passport, and Ridgeline at D'ELLA Honda of Glens Falls The 2026 Honda CR-V LX, Passport RTL, and Ridgeline Sport all earned Top Finisher recognition in Cars.com's Best Value New Cars awards, giving three very different kinds of Honda shoppers another reason to put these models on their lists. Visit D'ELLA Honda of Glens Falls at 313 Quaker Rd. in Queensbury, NY to explore the Honda lineup in person. You can also browse our New Honda Inventory, compare current Honda Specials, Value Your Trade, or get started with our online financing resources before your visit.

It's easy to assume the safest vehicle in a lineup is also the most expensive. Honda's latest IIHS results tell a different story. Four 2026 Honda models earned Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), and three of them are among Honda's most affordable vehicles. The Honda Civic Hatchback, Honda HR-V, and Honda Accord all start under $30,000, showing that advanced safety isn't reserved for flagship SUVs or luxury price tags. For drivers throughout Queensbury, Glens Falls, Lake George, and the surrounding Adirondack region, it's another example of Honda's long-standing commitment to making safety accessible across its lineup. Which Honda Models Earned Top IIHS Safety Ratings? Honda earned four IIHS safety awards for the 2026 model year: 2026 Honda Passport – TOP SAFETY PICK+ 2026 Honda HR-V – TOP SAFETY PICK+ 2026 Honda Civic Hatchback – TOP SAFETY PICK 2026 Honda Accord – TOP SAFETY PICK While every award is impressive, what stands out is where those vehicles sit within the lineup. The HR-V, Civic Hatchback, and Accord aren't niche models or premium trims. They're some of the vehicles drivers shop most often because they combine everyday practicality with long-term value. Now they also carry some of Honda's highest safety recognitions. These Awards Are Harder to Earn Than They Used to Be IIHS doesn't hand out Top Safety Pick awards simply because a vehicle performed well once. Its crash tests continue to evolve, becoming more demanding as vehicle technology improves. For 2026, Honda's award-winning models earned top GOOD ratings in the small overlap front crash test, the updated moderate overlap front crash test, and the updated side crash test, which now delivers 82% more crash energy than the previous version. That's important because it means today's safety awards represent performance against tougher standards than in years past. Safety Starts Before a Crash Ever Happens Crash protection is only part of the equation. Every new Honda comes equipped with Honda Sensing®, a suite of driver-assistive technologies designed to help drivers recognize potential hazards before they become collisions. Features such as Collision Mitigation Braking System™ with Pedestrian Detection, Forward Collision Warning, Lane Keeping Assist System, Road Departure Mitigation, and Adaptive Cruise Control all come standard. These systems aren't there to replace attentive driving. They're designed to provide another layer of awareness during busy commutes, long highway drives, and everyday traffic. Honda Has Been Building Safety Into Every Model Honda's approach to safety goes well beyond electronic driver assistance. The Civic Hatchback, Accord, HR-V, and Passport all feature Honda's Advanced Compatibility Engineering™ (ACE™) body structure, which is engineered to help distribute crash energy during a collision. Advanced airbag systems, front seatbelt pretensioners, and other occupant protection technologies work together to help protect passengers in a wide range of crash scenarios. Honda has also installed Honda Sensing® in more than 10 million vehicles across the United States since introducing the technology in 2014, reflecting the company's long-term investment in making advanced safety available to more drivers. Affordability and Safety Don't Have to Compete For years, shoppers often had to choose between staying within budget and getting the latest safety technology. Honda's newest IIHS results suggest those priorities no longer have to compete. When three of the brand's most affordable models also rank among its safest, it becomes clear that safety isn't treated as an upgrade reserved for higher price tags. Instead, it's built into the vehicles many drivers already have on their shopping list. Four More Reasons to Take a Closer Look at Honda Whether you're considering the versatile HR-V, the refined Accord, the sporty Civic Hatchback, or the adventure-ready Passport, Honda's latest IIHS awards reinforce something the brand has worked toward for decades: making advanced safety part of the everyday driving experience. The team at D'ELLA Honda of Glens Falls, located at 313 Quaker Road in Queensbury, NY, is happy to help you explore these award-winning Honda models and answer any questions about the safety technologies that come standard across the lineup. Some safety awards recognize engineering. These four awards recognize something even more meaningful: Honda's decision to make that engineering available in vehicles more drivers can actually afford.

The Honda Passport has always made sense on paper. But the redesigned 2026 Honda Passport feels different because Honda finally leaned fully into what people seemed to want from it in the first place: a tougher-looking, more capable SUV that still works comfortably for everyday driving. That shift is part of why Autotrader recently named the all-new Passport one of its “Best New Cars of 2026,” specifically highlighting its rugged redesign, spacious interior, V6 power, and balance between off-road capability and on-road comfort. Around Queensbury, Lake George, Saratoga, and the Adirondack region, that combination makes a lot of sense. Why the 2026 Honda Passport TrailSport Looks More Rugged Without Feeling Overbuilt Some SUVs try so hard to look rugged that they stop feeling usable day to day. Honda’s new Passport SUV avoids that. The redesigned body is boxier, more upright, and noticeably tougher-looking than previous generations, especially in the TrailSport trim, but it still feels clean and manageable instead of oversized or exaggerated. Autotrader editors specifically pointed to this redesign as one of the biggest reasons the Passport suddenly stands out more in a crowded SUV segment. The vehicle finally feels visually aligned with the capability Honda built into it. How the 2026 Honda Passport Uses i-VTM4 AWD and Steel Skid Plates for Real Off-Road Capability Honda also backed up the redesign with actual hardware. The new Passport TrailSport includes standard torque-vectoring i-VTM4® all-wheel drive, off-road tuned suspension components, steel skid plates, heavy-duty recovery points, and specially engineered all-terrain tires. That matters because many SUVs lean heavily on styling without offering much genuine capability underneath. The Passport feels intentionally designed for drivers who actually head toward trails, campsites, snow-covered roads, or mountain drives instead of simply wanting the appearance of adventure. Why the 2026 Honda Passport Works Around Queensbury and Everyday Traffic This is where the Passport separates itself from some larger or more aggressive SUVs. Even with the rugged redesign, the Passport still feels refined and comfortable during normal driving. Autotrader editors specifically mentioned how spacious, practical, and easy to live with the interior feels, especially for daily use. That balance matters for drivers around Queensbury and the Capital Region who may spend one weekend heading toward hiking trails or skiing areas and the next commuting through traffic or running errands around town. What Makes the Interior of the 2026 Honda Passport More Useful for Camping, Gear, and Daily Life The interior redesign plays a large role in why people are responding so positively to the new Passport. The cabin feels more durable, configurable, and intentionally practical without losing refinement. There’s a strong sense that Honda designed it around how people actually use SUVs, carrying gear, loading up for road trips, packing for camping weekends, or simply managing everyday family life. Autotrader editor Matt Degen even mentioned that if he were planning a car camping trip, the Passport would be one of his first choices. That kind of practicality tends to matter more long-term than flashy design trends. Why the 2026 Honda Passport TrailSport Elite Adds More Than Just Luxury Features The new TrailSport Elite trim adds another layer to the Passport lineup. In addition to the off-road capability already built into the TrailSport, the Elite version includes features like perforated leather seating, a 12-speaker Bose premium audio system, and the new TrailWatch™ camera system. It creates an SUV that still feels adventure-focused while offering the kind of comfort and technology many drivers want during long trips or everyday commuting. Why Autotrader Named the 2026 Honda Passport One of the Best New Cars of the Year The award itself makes more sense once you look at the full redesign. Autotrader’s editors praised the Passport for finally standing out visually while still keeping the practicality, V6 power, spaciousness, and drivability people already appreciated about previous versions. Instead of turning the Passport into something completely different, Honda sharpened its identity into something more intentional. That seems to be exactly what buyers were waiting for. If you’re exploring SUVs with stronger capability and everyday comfort, it’s also worth checking current Honda Passport inventory, financing options, and SUV specials at D'ELLA Honda while availability continues to grow. Where to Explore the 2026 Honda Passport Near Queensbury, NY You can learn more about the 2026 Honda Passport and Passport TrailSport at D'ELLA Honda. You can also explore current Honda SUV inventory, financing or trade-in options, and available Honda specials while comparing trims and capability features. The redesigned Passport feels like Honda finally committed fully to the idea of building a rugged SUV that still works comfortably every single day.