Honda sells a lot of CR-Vs. The CR-V leads U.S. sales for the automaker. Parents buy them. They haul groceries. They never break down. This is not interesting.
The Ridgeline is a midsize pickup truck that Honda makes for people who want a truck but don't want anyone to think they own a truck. The bed has a cooler in it. The tailgate opens two ways. It's engineered for men who ask their wives for permission to buy power tools.
Honda just announced they're stopping production of the Ridgeline temporarily. The future of the truck had been "in flux" which is corporate speak for "we're not sure anyone actually wants this." They're also teasing a new American-built pickup truck. Different truck. Same segment. Same buyers who will walk past it at the dealership and lease another CR-V.
Retail traders saw this headline and immediately checked if Honda stock moved. It didn't. They checked if Ford moved because trucks. It didn't. They checked if their Rivian calls expired worthless yet. They did.
The new pickup will be built in America. Honda wants you to know this. They put it in the press release. They're very proud. The Ridgeline was also built in America, in Alabama, where it currently sits not being built temporarily because the future is in flux.
Here's what happens next. Honda will unveil the new truck. It will have a cooler in the bed. The tailgate will open three ways now. Automotive journalists will call it "refined" and "comfortable" which are code words for "your contractor will laugh at you." Then Honda will sell dozens of them per month while the CR-V moves 30,000 units because parents need to haul groceries and groceries don't care about brand heritage.
The Ridgeline's temporary production stoppage is permanent until someone notices it's gone.
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