Compare the2022 Ford MaverickVS 2022 Honda Ridgeline

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Maverick are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Ford Maverick has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The Maverick has standard Post Collision Braking, which automatically apply the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

The Maverick’s optional driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

The Maverick has standard 911 Assist, which uses a global positioning satellite (GPS) receiver and a cellular system to get turn-by-turn driving directions or send emergency personnel to the scene if any airbags deploy. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a GPS response system, only a navigation computer with no live response for emergencies, so if you’re involved in an accident and you’re incapacitated help may not come as quickly.

Both the Maverick and the Ridgeline have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, rearview cameras, available lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rear parking sensors and rear cross-path warning.

There are almost 3 times as many Ford dealers as there are Honda dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Maverick’s warranty.

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the Maverick’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Ridgeline’s camshafts. If the Ridgeline’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

The Maverick has a standard “limp home system” to keep drivers from being stranded if most or all of the engine’s coolant is lost. The engine will run on only half of its cylinders at a time, reduce its power and light a warning lamp on the dashboard so the driver can get to a service station for repairs. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a lost coolant limp home mode, so a coolant leak could strand you or seriously damage the truck’s engine.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Ford vehicles are better in initial quality than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford 14th in initial quality. With 2 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 17th.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2021 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Ford vehicles are more reliable than Honda vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Ford 22nd in reliability. With 15 more problems per 100 vehicles, Honda is ranked 27th.

The Maverick’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 15 lbs.-ft. more torque (277 vs. 262) than the Ridgeline’s 3.5 SOHC V6.

On the EPA test cycle the Maverick gets better mileage than the Ridgeline:

Regenerative brakes improve the Maverick (except 2.0 EcoBoost)’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Maverick has a standard continuously variable transmission (CVT). With no “steps” between gears, it can keep the engine at the most efficient speed for fuel economy, or keep it at its peak horsepower indefinitely for maximum acceleration. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a CVT.

The Maverick has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Ridgeline’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For better maneuverability, the Maverick’s turning circle is 3.4 feet tighter than the Ridgeline’s (40 feet vs. 43.4 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Maverick has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Ridgeline (8.6 vs. 7.64 inches), allowing the Maverick to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged.

The Ford Maverick may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 800 to 850 pounds less than the Honda Ridgeline.

The Maverick is 10.5 inches shorter than the Ridgeline, making the Maverick easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The Maverick has .2 inches more front headroom, 1.9 inches more front legroom and .8 inches more rear headroom than the Ridgeline.

The Maverick has bed indentations that accommodate 2x4’s for two-tiered loading to help accommodate diverse loads; the Ridgeline doesn’t offer two-tiered loading.

The Maverick (except 2.0 Turbo) can be flat towed on all four wheels (dinghy towed), allowing recreational vehicle owners to bring it with them on the road. When they reach their destination, the Maverick can be unhitched and driven around locally. The Ridgeline can’t be towed flat on the ground.

The Maverick’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Ridgeline’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the Maverick and the Ridgeline have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the Maverick is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Ridgeline prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Maverick’s available exterior PIN entry system. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

The Maverick’s speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Ridgeline’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Maverick’s power mirror controls are mounted on the armrest for easy access. The Ridgeline’s power mirror controls are on the dash where they are possibly hidden by the steering wheel and are awkward to manipulate.

The Maverick is available in both front-wheel drive and four-wheel drive configurations. The Ridgeline doesn’t offer a two-wheel drive configuration.