Honda considering pick-up truck to rival Toyota Hilux

Next-Gen Honda Ridgeline Previewed at 2015 Chicago Auto Show

We might see a new small pick-up truck from Honda soon, to rival Toyota’s long-dominant Hilux. A Honda executive recently disclosed the brand’s intention, describing the pick-up truck market as “attractive,” reported Australian portal CarAdvice.

Honda Asia and Oceania regional operations chief operating officer Noriaki Abe noted that the truck segment was a hard one to ignore and one that the brand needed to consider seriously. “The pick-up truck market is an attractive market and we believe that we have to look into this,” he said.

Heeding the fact that the demand of pick-up trucks were particularly great in markets such as Australia and Thailand. “If we see that there is enough volume to make our business viable then we would consider such possibilities,” Abe revealed.

The Honda Ridgeline was the company’s first attempt at a pick-up truck, with unibody construction as opposed to the regular body-on-frame construction of its competitors. It was built and sold in North America between 2005 to 2014.

The second-gen model, which will be slotted in to compete with other trucks such as the such as the Toyota Tacoma, the US-market Chevrolet Colorado and the like, is currently underway, and is slated to be unveiled sometime next year. While that might be the case, a right-hand drive model is reportedly not in the pipeline at the moment – this means that it probably won’t make it into showrooms in this region.

Instead, a new small pick-up tailor-made for the region is thought to be better suited to compete with the Toyota Hilux and Ford Ranger over here, although, as the brand has yet to lay out a business case on the table, a small Honda truck could still be many years away.

What do you think about a new Honda pick-up truck? Currently, despite strong sales of the Hilux and the lack of a competitor from Honda, the H brand already leads Toyota in terms of overall (not just passenger car) sales in Malaysia, so could you imagine what a Honda pick-up would do for the bottom line?

SPIED: 2017 Honda Ridgeline

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Graham Chin

Having spent a number of years as a journalist for a local paper, a marketing executive for a popular German automotive brand and a copywriter, Graham, a true-blue Sarawakian, knew he had to take the leap back into the motoring scene - and so he did. To him, nothing’s better than cruising for hours along a scenic route, in a car that’s designed and built for that purpose.

 

Comments

  • Think of all round quality, think of Honda. Think of reliable work horse, think of Toyota. Think of how to get rid of your lemon, think of HyunSsangKIA.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 8 Thumb down 3
  • Toyota vios on Nov 02, 2015 at 1:55 pm

    Junk design from Honda, truck need body on frame to withstand off road , unibody will break up

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 8
  • xxxxxxx on Nov 02, 2015 at 1:55 pm

    Honda Ridgeline, way better looking than the rest of pickups here.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 6 Thumb down 3
  • can rival Proton Exora Arena first.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 4 Thumb down 4
  • Sammy Loo on Nov 02, 2015 at 2:45 pm

    U won’t go wrong with sushi cars or even trucks. Body on frame or unibody, it will still fetch good RV.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 7 Thumb down 1
  • albag on Nov 02, 2015 at 10:17 pm

    i cant imagine they come out with a VTEC diesel engine

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
  • jesse on Nov 03, 2015 at 7:01 am

    The ridgeline is just a car with an open cargo space. if honda is serious then they have a lot of catching up to do. the tray needs to be seperate to allow for flat trays and service bodies, and if it’s meant to survive outside the city it needs a seperate chassis to soak up pot holes and corrogations without causing the whole car to rattle to pieces within 6 months of rural use.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
 

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