2006 Honda Ridgeline Photos & Pictures

According to "Webster's New World College Dictionary," the word "truck" means "an automotive vehicle for hauling heavy loads along highways, streets, etc." Its slang use is to "walk in a carefree, leisurely manner'," i.e., the truckin'-on-down-the-road lifestyle of burbling chrome-grilled showboats quaking on suspensions designed for thousands of pounds but never supporting more than a surfboard or two in shiny unscratched beds. Our 2006 Truck of the Year winner offers an intriguing third idea as a people and cargo hauler that's as responsive as a car, but for once doesn't beat you up. Perhaps the public means truckin' when it says it needs a truck and will perhaps cast the Ridgeline into the dustbin of automotive history. But our vote's that--like the 1976 Accord--it's going to leave a lasting impression.

Center console is reconfigurable. Smart touches include a rubber mat to keep small objects from rattling.

Four cargo lamps floodlight the bed at night. The rear two illuminate the bed's trunk.