2022 Honda Passport is ready for stage rally competition
A team of Honda engineers is taking the rugged new Honda Passport rally racing. Honda unveiled its 2022 Passport stage rally truck specially built for competition by the Honda Performance Development (HPD) Maxxis Rally racing team, highlighting the rugged capability and durability long engineered into Honda light trucks.
Showcasing the 2022 Passport’s rugged new design, the rally truck made its racing debut at the Lake Superior Performance Rally (LSPR) in Michigan on Oct. 15 and 16. It will compete in the American Rally Association (ARA) series of closed-course rally events through the 2022 season in the Limited 4WD class.
A key example of the Honda “Racing Spirit,” the HPD Maxxis Rally racing team is made up of Honda associates based at the company’s Ohio-based Auto Development Center. The team is a subsidiary of the larger Honda of America Racing Team (HART), which consists of associates from development and manufacturing facilities across North America.
With modified street vehicles reaching speeds of well over 100 mph on natural-terrain closed courses that include gravel, dirt, mud and snow over routes covering hundreds of miles, the ARA National and Regional Championship series are intensely competitive. At the LSPR race, the Honda Passport rally truck was driven by Honda engineer Chris Sladek, a suspension test engineer based at the company’s Ohio-based North American Auto Development Center, and co-driven by Gabriel Nieves, a chassis design engineer based at the same facility.
For maximum traction and performance, the Passport rally truck is fitted with BRAID Winrace T rally wheels (7.5″x17″) wrapped in either Maxxis’ stage rally-proven RAZR M/T or RAZR A/T tires (265/70-R17), depending on event conditions. Custom-fabricated 1/8″-inch thick aluminum oil pan and rear differential skid plates protect the underbody, as well as high-density polyethylene panels covering the fuel tank and other components. Carbotech XP12 brake pads and high-temperature racing brake fluid provide consistent braking performance in demanding rally environments.
Incredibly, the Passport’s production 3.5-liter i-VTEC® V6, 9-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters, intelligent Variable Torque Management (i-VTM4™) all-wheel drive system, and all suspension components are left unmodified for competition; the only addition is an automatic transmission fluid cooler from the Passport’s available tow package. The driver uses the transmission’s Sequential mode and paddle shifters for enhanced control, and the Passport’s Intelligent Traction Management system’s Sand Mode is utilized for optimal torque distribution and performance on loose surfaces.
“The fact that we didn’t have to make any modifications to the 2022 Honda Passport’s drivetrain or suspension for such punishing terrain and competition speaks volumes to the capability and performance that comes standard in the Passport,” said Honda engineer and rally racer Chris Sladek.
