2022 Honda Ridgeline vs 2022 Nissan Frontier

As they say, “better late than never.” After 17 years, we can finally call the Nissan Frontier an all-new truck. Mostly. While the 2022 model looks, feels, and drives completely differently from the 2021 model, it still rides on the same platform as that previous-generation truck, albeit an extensively modified version.

Old bones or not, it’s nearly impossible to confuse the 2022 model year Frontier with the old truck. Updated styling, an enhanced powertrain, a comfortable cabin, and real off-road capability combine to give it a notable advantage against a set of aging competitors from Ford, General Motors, and Toyota.

Honda isn’t known for pickup trucks, but that means it brings a different perspective to the genre. The 2022 Honda Ridgeline is like no other pickup on the market.

The Ridgeline isn’t just being different for the sake of being different, either. It uses the same unibody construction that gives crossover SUVs greater refinement than traditional models to offer increased comfort and better on-road handling than most pickups.

Since the Ridgeline’s debut, the Hyundai Santa Cruz and Ford Maverick have applied the unibody concept to smaller compact pickups, creating a new niche, but the Honda is a larger vehicle that competes with existing midsize pickups like the Ford Ranger, Jeep Gladiator, Nissan Frontier, Toyota Tacoma, and Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon twins.

The Ridgeline debuted for the 2006 model year and the current second-generation version dates back to the 2017 model year. It got a facelift for 2021, so it carries over to 2022 essentially unchanged. In Canada, trim levels include the base Ridgeline Sport, midlevel EX-L and Touring, and the range-topping Black Edition, which is what we sampled for this review.