2019 GMC Sierra 1500 vs 2019 Honda Ridgeline

A pickup truck isn’t a pickup truck without a little muscle under the hood. You have all that room in the cargo bed and a trailer hitch for a reason. You need an engine that can put those tools to use.

The 2019 GMC Sierra has a base V-6 engine that is 4.3 liters and gets 285 horsepower. It also produces 305 lb-ft of torque. That is plenty enough to be able to tow most anything you need. That amount of torque gives the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 enough pull to be able to safely and efficiently get your trailer going to wherever you are going.

The 2019 Honda Ridgeline, on the other hand, falls a little short of the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500. The Ridgeline’s V-6 engine is significantly smaller, only 3.5 liters. Though it gets comparable horsepower, 280 hp to the Sierra’s 285. However, the Ridgeline’s torque output is far below the Sierra’s at only 262 lb-ft to the Sierra’s 305.

If you are looking for an engine that can perform in size, horsepower and torque, the 2019 GMC Sierra is the clear winner in this round.

Unless you are using your pickup truck for its utility, any old engine will do. If you are using that truck bed and trailer hitch, then you want a truck that can get you optimal performance. That comes from either what you can haul in the cargo bed or what you can tow behind your pickup truck. And, with the right pickup truck, a little of both.

More people will use the cargo bed than attach a trailer. It is much more accessible and you will more often than not only have to use the bed for your hauling purposes. Unless your work specifically requires the use of a trailer, the bed is usually sufficient for hauling purposes. Therefore, you want the most out of your pickup truck’s bed before you look at towing capacity.

The 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 has an enormous truck bed. It measures 79.44 inches long by 22.4 inches high by 50.63 inches wide. That makes for a total of 71.7 cubic feet of cargo space on the standard box. That is a lot of room to haul building materials, weekend toys or whatever it is you will use your 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 for.

The 2019 Honda Ridgeline’s bed comes in at 64 inches long by 16.7 inches high by 60 inches wide. That only equates to 33.9 cubic feet of cargo space. That is less than half of the total space afforded by the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500.

Furthermore, the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 has a significantly higher payload capacity. The Sierra maxes out its cargo payload at 2,543 pounds, while the Ridgeline tops out at 1,586 pounds. That is nearly a full thousand pounds less than the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500. It is pretty clear that the Sierra has the better bed for hauling your gear.

As for towing, the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 has a maximum tow capacity of 9,800 pounds, while the 2019 Honda Ridgeline can only tow 3,500 pounds. That is a glaring disparity. That is also a direct result of the torque being significantly higher on the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500.

As if that wasn’t enough, GMC also introduced its all-new MultiPro Tailgate this model year. At the top-center of the regular tailgate is another smaller tailgate. It can be lowered while the main tailgate stays in the upright and locked position. It also features a load stop which can be deployed out of the smaller tailgate. This allows for the MultiPro Tailgate to be configured in six total configurations. It effectively extends the bed even further than the 79.4 inches it already sports. It also allows for easier loading and unloading and safer transport of certain materials. It is a first of its kind on pickup trucks and, perhaps most importantly, cannot be found on the 2019 Honda Ridgeline.

So, when it comes to the business end of the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 and the 2019 Honda Ridgeline, the Sierra takes another win.

As impressive as the cargo bed of the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 is, you will inevitably spend far more time in the cabin. While it is admittedly not as roomy as the cargo bed, it is still plenty spacious enough to stretch out for the commute home after a long day’s work. But how does it measure up to the 2019 Honda Ridgeline?

For starters, the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 has seating for up to six, while the 2019 Honda Ridgeline can only seat five. A work truck such as this needs to have plenty of seating for an entire crew, if necessary, or at least as many as possible.

The 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 offers a much more roomy interior than does the 2019 Honda Ridgeline. The Sierra has 43 inches of head room in the front seat, and extends for 44.5 for leg room in the front seat. Neither head nor leg room in the 2019 Honda Ridgeline even reaches 41 inches. The Ridgeline does offer slightly more leg room in the back seat, but the Sierra has more than an inch more head room in the rear, 39.9 inches to the Ridgeline’s 38.8. Unless back seat leg room for your work associates is a deal breaker, the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 wins yet again.

While utility and power are paramount for work trucks, comfort should not be ignored. After a long day on the job site, you have a few moments of respite in your pickup truck. You want to spend that time in as much comfort as a work truck can afford. The spaciousness of the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 will give you just that.