This Pickup Beat Ford's Maverick In Consumer Reports' Best Cars Made In America List

Word from CarEdge is that a whopping 117 different caller conveyance models person rolled disconnected accumulation lines crossed America successful 2026. There's an abundance of prime if you want to support home manufacturing — aliases to perchance shield yourself from nan worst effects of caller tariffs. 

But arsenic pinch cars assembled anyplace other successful nan world, not each American-made vehicles are built nan same. That's wherever Consumer Reports comes in; each year, nan non-profit statement compiles a database of nan champion vehicles successful each conception based connected their capacity successful its tests and personnel surveys. This year's compilation doesn't disagree overmuch from nan past fewer years', though nan Honda Ridgeline muscled retired perennial favourite Ford Maverick to go nan champion midsize pickup for 2026. 

The Maverick had been featured connected CR's annual "Top Picks" database betwixt 2023 and 2025. But successful nan U.S., Honda won out, and it wasn't nan only marque to shingle things up. Another caller entrant, nan BMW X3, besides softly snatched nan luxury compact SUV crown from nan Lexus NX. The 2 newcomers characteristic alongside regulars specified arsenic the Honda Civic, Toyota Camry, Subaru Crosstrek, and Subaru Forester successful nan apical ten.

Although nan Ridgeline's unibody building is not to everyone's taste, location are different reasons arsenic to why it received nan favoritism of being nan best. We praised its handling successful our reappraisal of the off-road-focused Honda Ridgeline Trailsport, but it's besides worthy noting that it's built disconnected of nan aforesaid level arsenic nan previous-generation Pilot. That allows its handling and interior comfortableness to besides consciousness acquainted to those coming from that different model. 

Output is good, too. Every Ridgeline comes pinch a people aspirated 3.5-liter V6 bully for 280 horsepower. All-wheel thrust is standard, and it comes pinch a nine-speed automatic transmission. It manages 30 horsepower complete nan Maverick's astir tin engine, nan 2.0 EcoBoost found in the sport-tuned Ford Maverick Lobo and nan much off-road tin Maverick Tremor. Its 5,000-pound maximum towing capacity besides thumps nan Maverick's by 1,000 pounds.

Thus, it's travel arsenic small astonishment that owners are happy pinch their purchase. Consumer Reports' information indicates that the Ridgeline is simply a high-scoring midsize pickup for driver satisfaction, pinch nan 2026 exemplary earning better-than-average scores. The 1 area successful which it wasn't rated truthful good is reliability, wherever it scored average. But this shouldn't beryllium excessively overmuch of a dealbreaker, fixed Ridgelines person mostly proved reliable complete nan years — arsenic you tin spot from this database of the astir reliable utilized pickup trucks you tin buy. 

According to Honda itself, almost two-thirds of nan brand's vehicles sold successful nan U.S. are from its American manufacturing facilities. Production of nan Ridgeline takes spot exclusively successful Lincoln, Alabama at the Alabama Auto Plant (AAP), which has nan capacity for 340,000 vehicles a year. 

The works covers 4.9 cardinal quadrate feet, and nan motortruck has been built there since 2009, after production for nan North American marketplace was moved from Canada. Likewise, accumulation of nan Ridgeline's 3.5-liter V6 motor is centered successful Lincoln, but nan nine-speed transmission is manufactured successful Gray Court, South Carolina — which is nan only transmission to beryllium made there.

The Lincoln works besides builds nan Honda Pilot SUV, Passport, and Odyssey Minivan alongside their engines. Like nan Ridgeline, each 3 person their transmissions produced astatine a abstracted plant, though it's the Honda Transmission Plant successful Tallapoosa, Georgia in their case. The Honda Accord and CR-V, for their ain part, are built successful plants based successful Ohio.