2000 Honda Passport Review

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Review:

BALBOA ISLAND, Calif. -- There's something to be said for testing a top-of-the-line model instead of having to grub around in the entry-level version. Since Honda, based an hour up the road, offers no fewer than five choices for its 2000 Passport sport utility vehicle, with the low-end two-wheel drive $22,800 LX at the bottom of the ladder and the luxury $30,150 EX-L at the peak, it was gratifying to slide onto leather seats, gaze at the wood-grain trim and know my fenders had special flares.

However, the truth is there's very little difference between all those noble models, the LX, EX and EX-L, aside from two and four-wheel drive systems. They're all four-door SUVs, share the same powerful V-6 engine, the same towing capacity and just about everything else. The major and most visual contrast is the location of the spare tire. The least expensive LX models hang the spare outside on the tailgate, while the upper end EX and EX-L hide it discreetly under the floor. A couple of other small differences: minimum ground clearance is 8" on the LX and 8.2" on the rest of the models. The high-end EX-L has a six-CD changer where it belongs -- in the dash -- and a moonroof, as do the EX models.

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