The Toyota Tacoma and Honda Ridgeline are both apart of the mid-sized pickup truck segment, and that’s about where the comparisons end. The Toyota Tacoma is one of the most traditionally built models on the market in this class with its body on frame construction, live rear axle and excellent ground clearance that has made it one of the most popular ever built. The Honda Ridgeline uses a unibody construction and a transversely mounted engine to be a truck that can drive in a similar fashion to a car and give you the smooth ride that doesn’t feel like a pickup truck.

Toyota Tacoma

In true Truck fashion, the Tacoma offers you a variety of choices when you’re looking for a great truck to do what you need. There are two cab choices, two engines, three transmissions, and the choice of either RWD or 4WD. This makes it possible to have a Toyota Tacoma for nearly every customer. The top engine is a 3.5-liter V6 that brings you 278 horsepower and 265 lb.-ft. of torque. This is the engine you’ll love and it gives you more than enough power to tow up to 6,800 pounds when equipped the way you want.

If you’re looking for a truck that feels like a truck, this is the one you’ll want between these two. The 4WD system has been one of the most admired on the market and this truck offers you a great way to get where you need to go and to bring with you what you want such as a heavy load. This is a truck that has a reputation for quality and reliability to be a truck that should last you a long time even if you take it out on the trails and let it be one that offers you a lot of fun.

Honda Ridgeline

The first thing you’ll notice about the new Ridgeline is the fact that it looks like a truck now and no longer like the model from the first generation.   The feeling you get when driving this truck is similar to what you’d have while driving the Accord. There is only one engine offered for this truck and it’s a 3.5-liter V6 which offers up 280 horsepower and 262 lb.-ft. of torque while only being able to tow 5,000 pounds with this pickup truck. There is also only one transmission offered and it’s a six-speed automatic.

While this is an AWD or FWD pickup truck, the place the Ridgeline stands out from the other midsized trucks is with the features and amenities. You have the benefit of an in-bed trunk for smaller items, a tailgate that moves in two directions, speakers that can be installed in the bed to make this a great choice for tailgating and a full suite of driver assistance items that make this a truck that does drive and feel like a car but offers you the capabilities you need when you are a true weekend warrior.

The Verdict

In the mid-sized truck segment, the idea is to have a truck you can be comfortable with on a daily basis that you can load up on occasion with the items you want. This makes the Ridgeline the clear favorite. If you do plan to head off road every weekend or need more real truck power and performance, you’re going to want the Tacoma, but for the average weekend trucker that might bring home a few plants or tow a small load once in a while, the Ridgeline will do the trick and be a comfortable choice on a daily basis.