Honda Ridgeline MPG vs speed graph: fuel economy with & without cargo trailer

[MetroMPG]

Another one to add to the pile. My brother's 2007 Ridgeline that he uses for his HVAC business:



Note: the '07 Ridgeline is rated by the EPA at:

• City: 15 mpg (US)
• Highway: 20 mpg (US)
• Combined: 17 mpg (US)
• source: Model 1 Vehicle Characteristics

I'll post the full details later, but it's pretty close to the same conditions & test method as the Corolla speed vs. mpg graph.

The truck has a full hard tonneau, and I inflated the tires to max sidewall.

Edit: here are the raw figures:

Without the trailer:

W (mpg US) ... E (mpg US) ... Avg
 
29.2 ... 28.3 ... 28.75
28.0 ... 30.0 ... 29
24.7 ... 27.2 ... 25.95
27.2 ... 29.2 ... 28.2
24.8 ... 26.6 ... 25.7
22.4 ... 24.3 ... 23.35
20.4 ... 21.1 ... 20.75
19.7 ... 21.4 ... 20.55

With the trailer:

W (mpg US) ... E (mpg US) ... Avg
 22.5 ... 25.4 ... 23.95
21.8 ... 24.2 ... 23
17.6 ... 18.9 ... 18.25
12.9 ... 16.7 ... 14.8

Conditions, route & methodology:

Weather conditions: 29 Dec '08, 34 F / 1 C, wind SSE 9 kts, pressure 29.6 in.

Route: 2 lane highway, straight, dry & nearly level

Methodology:

Speed was set once per pair of bi-dir runs with cruise control, cancelled with the brake between runs. Truck was brought up to speed & leveled off before passing a "start" marker (road sign) where the ScanGauge (not calibrated against refuelling) was reset. Reading was taken after passing a "finish" marker and cruise was cancelled.

Traffic conditions: There was no traffic in my lane and very little in the oncoming lane. (More than a few runs were done with me being the only car on that stretch of road.) If anyone caught up & overtook me, or if I caught up to another car, I ditched that run and did it again to avoid aero interference.

---

See also ....

• Tested: speed vs. MPG, 2008 Corvette Z06 (505 hp)

• Tested: speed vs MPG - 2006 Toyota Corolla automatic

• Tested: speed vs. MPG in top gear (1998 Geo Metro / Pontiac Firefly)

[skyl4rk]

Automatic?

[bhazard]

Arent they all?

[MetroMPG]

Yes, they're all automatics. I think it's a 4 speed/overdrive.

Here's the type of trailer used:

[RidgelineRookie]

I don't have a tonneau and have to baby mine to break 20mpg.

What's the secret?

[PaleMelanesian]

My 04 Odyssey 3.5 V6 is a 5-speed auto. I'm almost positive this is the same.

My results match, especially the dip at 43 mph. The shift points are 10, 20, 30, and 45 mph. See that last one? It doesn't match. The 40-45 mph span is just painful as the engine revs but won't shift. I generally try to keep it below 40 or above 45. You can do a quick D-N-D shift and get it to shift sooner, down to about 42 mph.

[MetroMPG]

Ridgeline Rookie: I haven't driven the truck for a full tank, so I can't tell you what it's capable of.

Note that the figures in the graph are taken from bi-directional runs of about 1.6 km each way.

But I'd say you could easily beat 20 mpg for a highway tank, not even using any special driving techniques. You just have to keep the speed down.

[MetroMPG]

Originally Posted by PaleMelanesian

My 04 Odyssey 3.5 V6 is a 5-speed auto. I'm almost positive this is the same.

Same specs on the Ridgeline - 5-speed.

My results match, especially the dip at 43 mph.

The truck will hold top gear below 43 after it has engaged, so I could have accelerated above 45, then dropped down to 43 (70 km/h) and that would have undoubtedly been the high point in the graph.

But I decided to do the runs straight up, no messin' around.

[PaleMelanesian]

Originally Posted by MetroMPG

The truck will hold top gear below 43 after it has engaged, so I could have accelerated above 45, then dropped down to 43 (70 km/h) and that would have undoubtedly been the high point in the graph.

But I decided to do the runs straight up, no messin' around.

Again, same behavior here. Doing the D-N-D shift makes it think it was already in 5th, and it'll drop right down and hold it. I use this all the time.

I agree with your decision to go straight up.

[MetroMPG]

How in the world did you figure out the D-N-D trick?