Honda’s Most Off-Road-Capable SUV Ever Is Bucking Trends in More Ways than One

Honda bills the Passport Trailsport as its most off-road-capable SUV ever, and it’s for good reason. 

Between integrated underbody protection, a torque-vectoring i-VTM4 all-wheel drive system, specially tuned suspension and front and rear recovery points (amongst a presentation’s worth of other dealer-worthy talking points), it brings a lot to the table.

Moreover, the Passport Trailsport is also noteworthy in that it’s still rocking V6 power when much of the competition has moved to electrified hybrids and smaller turbo fours. 

Honda

In any case, while there’s no denying that such traits make the SUV a unique offering, it’s nevertheless continuing to buck trends.

A brand standout 

After all, the Passport is one of few Hondas putting up positive numbers at the moment. While the SUV’s March performance took a slight dip with 4,979 sales compared to 5,558 sales during the same period in 2025, it’s still showing a 20.1 percent improvement on the year, up from 11,698 to 14,045.

Honda

Of course, those figures can’t compare to the brand’s other standout, as the Accord (up from 30,612 to 37,717) was another model demonstrating impressive gains. Nevertheless, it’s quite the achievement when you consider it in the context of other vehicles in the lineup, as the declines are widespread.

Moreover, even though some models, like the Civic and the Pilot, are down by just a few points, others are exhibiting much more significant double-digit declines. 

For instance, as is the case with most EVs following the discontinuation of tax credits, demand for the Prologue has taken a monumental nose dive. Honda has managed to move just 3,319 this year compared to 9,561 in Q1 of 2025.

Honda

However, even mainstay vehicles like the compact HR-V and the family-hauling Odyssey are feeling the hurt. The former was down by 24.2 percent in Q1 and 26.2 percent in March, while the latter was down 16.4 percent and 29.4 percent, respectively.

Going to Japan

If your head’s not already spinning because of numerical overload, you’ll want to make sure you’re sitting down, because there’s an even more remarkable aspect of the Passport’s performance.

Honda

That would be the particular allocation of sales within the model range. According to Honda’s report, the Trailsport trim accounts for 80 percent of Passport numbers, and that’s a figure the automaker has been citing regularly since last year.

Mind you, while the base RTL starts at $44,950, the Trailsport climbs to $48,650, and it doesn’t take much to push the total even higher with the $52,650 Elite and the variety of optional equipment add-ons.

It’s a unique kind of appeal, even compared to Honda’s other enthusiast offering in the 2026 Prelude. Between its controversial price point and hybrid powertrain, not even that revived nameplate has managed to achieve the same kind of success, as its sales are at a mere 795 cars for the year.

Honda

Toward that end, the Passport Trailsport is performing so well, in fact, that Honda is importing the SUV (specifically the Elite) to Japan.

As such, even though it’s a vehicle designed for US roads and available exclusively in left-hand-drive configuration, it’ll join the likes of the Gold Wing GL1500 as one of few American-built icons making the jump to Honda’s home market.

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