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"It's more than a Pilot on stilts."
"It's more than a Pilot on stilts."
Another historical nameplate has been revived. This time, its Honda's Passport, that has been known as this boxy tank that had insane off-road capabilities, but never shined because of the Honda-Isuzu partnership. But now that Isuzu is gone from the US for good, has Honda done enough to make the Passport its own?
Trim Levels
Trim Levels
Sport
Sport
MSRP $31,990
(AWD +$1,900)MSRP $31,990
EX-L
EX-L
MSRP $36,410
(AWD +$1,900)MSRP $36,410
Touring
Touring
MSRP $39,280
(AWD +$1,900)MSRP $39,280
Elite
Elite
MSRP $43,680
MSRP $43,680
Exterior Design
Exterior Design
You may notice that the Passport looks a lot like its bigger brother Pilot. Well, you are true. It is pretty much a Pilot without a third row and a smaller but taller size. Touring and Elite trims get full LED headlights as standard, where lower models do save the LEDs, but they become projectors. To differentiate the Passport from the Pilot, it gets "unfinished" trim accenting as well as quite a bit of body cladding. All grilles and body cladding are only available painted in black, which I believe makes for a cool and more butch look.
If you look at the side of the Passport, you'll easily see that it is really a shorter Pilot. That's because Honda loped off six inches from the rear overhang, and took out the third row, for class-shattering cargo capacity. The Passport also gets the "floating roof" treatment, and they offer different roof color choices in the Honda Accessories website. The Passport rides an inch higher for the most ground clearance of their whole lineup, at an impressive 8.4 inches, if you go for the optional AWD system. Extra body cladding also appears, and if you don't like the add-on fender flares, Honda does give you the option for three levels of "Adventure" and "Urban" style packages to give your Passport a more custom look.
The back of the Pilot (whoops, I said it again!)... takes directly from the Pilot. The only major difference is the huge rear spoiler, and the black bar going across the tailgate, cutting the small "tip" that the Pilot's taillights have. LED taillights come as standard, and a foot-activated liftgate is available.
Interior Design
Interior Design
Since the Passport shares the same look and platform as the Pilot, it's no surprise that it gets the Pilot's interior. It's clean and functional, and although Jakub from TheStraightPipes doesn't like the gloss black, I think Honda did a nice job with the interior, and the gloss black fits well.
Instead of a normal center console, Honda added front seat armrests, which allowed them to open up a panel and show their artistic flare. The center console is actually really large, so I have no doubt you can stuff a gallon of milk in there no problem.
The front seats sit really comfortable, and it has plenty of adjustability.
In back the Passport benefits from a sliding and reclining second row, and also fold completely flat for insane amounts of cargo capacity. The Passport measures in at a maximum 78 cubic feet of storage. That shatters the competition, where the Jeep Grand Cherokee can only hold 68.3 cubic feet, and the Ford Edge can only carry 73.4 cubic feet. If you have kids and worry about cargo room, I'm 100% sure that you will never have to fold the seats down because of the 41 cubic feet of storage.
Since Honda thinks of versatility, they included a button in the cargo area to fold the rear seats down. Not many vehicles offer that. Most make you run to the sides of the car to fold the seats down, while some actually include levers on the tops of the seats, but Honda thought of its consumers, and made that feature standard on every Passport model.
Interior quality is class-average, with nothing really standing out.
Safety & Technology
Safety & Technology
Honda made their full suite of Honda Sensing safety technology standard on every single Passport. It includes the Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS), Road Departure Mitigation System (RDM), and Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC), and Lane Keep Assist System (LKAS).
Honda has also introduced their new 8-inch HondaLink central tablet-mounted touchscreen with the latest software including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability. Wireless charging is only available for the Elite trim. The instrument cluster is nearly all digital, with a large center screen hiding both the tachometer and speedometer. The speedometer is only in numerical format, not in an analog gauge. It performs well and has very crisp and clear graphics.
The Passport hasn't been fully evaluated by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, but the Pilot earned Good ratings in five of six crashworthiness tests, falling just short in the passenger-side small overlap, earning an Acceptable, and earned top remarks for its LED headlights that provided great visibility. Overall the Pilot earned Top Safety Pick award for 2019, so there will be no doubt that the Passport will earn a Top Safety Pick award, but it could be docked for excessive glare from headlights since it rides an inch higher than the standard Pilot. For more info, click here to hyperlink to the site.
And just like that, I was right. The Passport doesn't earn any safety awards because of excessive glare from both headlight combinations.
For 2020, Honda tweaked the headlights on all Passports. Excessive glare was found in all headlight combinations of the Passport built before June 2019, which resulted in a Poor rating. But models built after June 2019 earned an Acceptable rating, as Honda readjusted the aim of the headlights to cut down on glare for oncoming motorists. Models built before June 2019 were rated poorly because of that reason. The tweak to the headlights brought back no glare that exceeded IIHS's threshold, and the Passport earns an IIHS Top Safety Pick award for 2019.
Driving Impressions
Driving Impressions
Although the Passport rides on the Pilot's platform that was introduced back in 2016, the platform was a great all-arounder. Despite riding one inch higher and having 20-inch wheels standard on even the base Sport model, it rides very well, but on moderate bumps, there will be light shudders coming into the cabin. Handling is really good, with a perfect amount of heft in the steering, feeling accurate and planted.
The Passport does not switch over to the Accord's 2.0 turbo and 10-speed, but instead uses the same exact 3.5L VTEC (Yes!) V6 paired to a ZF 9-speed automatic. Honda "reflashed" the transmission to make improvements for the Pilot last year, to smooth out rough shifts. It can still shift a tad rough at times, but it isn't very harsh and you'll barely be able to feel it.
Around corners, the Passport has quite a noticeable amount of body roll, but it still holds its ground well enough.
Honda's i-VTM4 4WD system works well, and has four distinct driving modes (Normal, Mud, Snow, and Sand), that alter the traction and stability control, transmission mapping, throttle sensitivity, and the 4WD system. If left in Normal, it does kick in when you floor it, to prevent wheel slip. It will let you have a little fun with the tires, but then it will kick in.
Performance
Performance
I'm glad Honda kept the 3.5L VTEC V6 in the Passport. Although I love turbocharged engines because of the high amounts of power that can be pushed from a small engine, the revolutionary VTEC makes a difference and makes sure that this naturally-aspirated engine gets the most of its available power, even if it is screaming at 6500 RPM.
The Passport has a lot of thrust when you floor it from a stop light, and it throws you back in your seat with nearly the same reaction as if you were to floor an electric car. The 9-speed clicks off shifts seamlessly, and keeps the V6 in the meat of its power band. It has a very powerful and rowdy engine, especially when the VTEC starts singing at 5500 RPM.
One of the Passport's negatives though is its fuel economy. Even in 2WD, the Passport earns an abysmal 20 MPG city and 25 highway. That's much farther behind than the most fuel efficient competitor, the Ford Edge, with a 22 MPG city and 29 highway economy rating. In 4WD guise, fuel mileage drops to 19 and 24, still behind the Edge 4WD which earns 21 and 28, respectively.
Once the Passport quiets down, it is a pleasant and quiet interior. The Lane Keep Assist System (LKAS) lets you take your hands off the wheel for about 15 seconds before it nudges the steering wheel (yes, I tested it), requiring you to grab it to make sure you didn't encounter a serious medical problem that renders you unable to drive. You can *almost* drive it autonomously guys. ALMOST!!!
Performance Figures
Performance Figures
3.5L VTEC V6
Horsepower (hp @ RPM)
280 @ 6000
280 @ 6000
Torque (lb/ft @ RPM)
262 @ 4200
262 @ 4200
Transmission(s)
9-speed ZF automatic
9-speed ZF automatic
Drivetrain
FWD or AWD
FWD or AWD
EPA Fuel Economy (city/hwy)
19-20 / 24-25
19-20 / 24-25
0-60 Time
6.2 seconds
6.2 seconds
1/4-mile (sec @ mph)
14.7 @ 94
14.7 @ 94
Final Verdict & REVIEWS Score
Final Verdict & REVIEWS Score
The Honda Passport may just be a smaller Pilot, but it does make for a solid entry into the midsize two-row SUV segment, but its price proposition isn't as good as the competition.
The Honda Passport may just be a smaller Pilot, but it does make for a solid entry into the midsize two-row SUV segment, but its price proposition isn't as good as the competition.
55/85 | Accumulated Score
55/85 | Accumulated Score
09 | Reliability
09 | Reliability
10 | Ergonomics
10 | Ergonomics
03 | Value
03 | Value
05 | Innovation
05 | Innovation
07 | Electronics
07 | Electronics
06 | Wow factor
06 | Wow factor
10 | Safety
10 | Safety
50/70 | Subtotal Score
50/70 | Subtotal Score
05/15 | Subjective Category
05/15 | Subjective Category
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