Looking for a 2-row crossover with more off-road cred than the rest? Honda has resurrected the Passport name for 2019 for their ruggedized mini-Pilot.
Here’s what Honda did: They took the 3-row Pilot, hacked 6 inches off the rear, widened the track, slapped wider tires on it and lifted it for better clearance. Honda’s tried-and-true 3.5L V6 and ZF’s 9-speed automatic hide under the re-designed front end and in the back we still get Honda’s “please don’t call it SH-AWD” torque vectoring AWD system. The “i-VTM4” (Honda-speak for SH-AWD) system is still one of the most advanced AWD systems on the market and the only one in this segment aside from Jeep’s Grand Cherokee that can send more than 50% of engine power to the rear axle without the front slipping. It also has the only true torque vectoring function in this segment and the rear axle acts as a limited slip differential in some situations. The result is an on-road designed crossover with more off-road cred than most shoppers will ever need. Is there a downside? Watch and see.