Color it competitive!

With minor upgrades like extra skid plates and steel bumpers, the colorful Passport and Pilot takes its spot in the 2023 Rebelle Rally, joining 65 vehicles in the all-female off-road competition which spans 1,500 miles of rugged off-road terrain through California and Nevada.

The Rally began Oct. 12 and runs through Oct. 21.

In the race, the vehicles are largely unchanged, showing their raw capability and durability that only Honda trucks possess!

Stand-outs in unique body wraps that are an eye-catching combination of pink, yellow and blue with a pop of stylized dusk, water and rocks, the design of these vehicles is inspired by pop art style and are the creation of the Honda Design Studio. They are, in fact, the boldest designs ever of Rebelle Rally entrants, with the exterior graphics showcasing a unique terrain on each vehicle.

To compete in the Rebelle Rally, minor mechanical changes are made to these SUVs. For ex-ample, the Pilot gets custom-fabricated steel bumpers and Maxxis RAZR AT tires. For the Pass-port, it is equipped with steel skid plates, front recovery points and a set of Maxxis RAZR AT rubber. The TrailSport, considered Honda’s most off-road capable SUV ever, is already equipped with trail-ready all-terrain tires and expanded all-wheel-drive system capabilities.

The Honda Passport TrailSport will also compete in the X-Cross category. There, it will show-case the performance of the model’s new off-road tuned suspension with increased articulation.

Not your traditional race in that it is not a race for speed, the Rebelle Rally includes competitors who navigate to checkpoints without using GPS or other modern technology. Instead they go back in time in many ways, utilizing maps and compasses to find a path to the finish line each day of the competition. In addition to what is a very grueling race, the Rally takes drivers through unforgiving desert conditions of the American Southwest.

The Rally is used as a means to allow Honda engineers to further explore the rugged perfor-mance of off-road components in extreme environments.

Honda engineers along with journalism Mercedes Lilienthal will pilot the entries with the Rally holding the title of the longest competitive off-road rally at more than 1,500 miles.

“It’s an honor to be a part of the Honda TrailSport triple threat this year,” Lilienthal said. “I’ll be relying on the Pilot TrailSport’s torque-vectoring i-VTM4 all-wheel-drive system and other tech and capability features to help me get through tough terrain, but it also takes a good driver to pick the best lines to conquer tricky trail sections.”

Ohio-based Honda associates Liz Long, who works as a chassis reliability test engineer at the Honda Auto Development Center in Ohio, and Hillary Tate, a project administrator of design and construction for Honda facilities across North America, will be behind the wheel of a race-pre-pared Honda Pilot TrailSport in the X-Cross category. Serena Halterman and Nicole Rotondo,

Honda Performance Development IndyCar trackside engineers will pilot the Passport TrailSport as part of their first competition at the Rally.

All of the Honda racers will share the end goal of accruing the most points and reaching the fin-ish line each day. This year’s race boasts the largest field to date with 65 vehicles taking part.

Follow the team along online, cheering them along virtually as they travel from North Lake Ta-hoe to the Imperial Sand Dunes on the Mexico border by visiting www.rebellerally.com/live/.

Racing is at the heart of Honda and spans decades of experience. The Honda of America Rac-ing Team or HART, founded more than 30 years ago, is among the longest-running associate-driven activities in Honda’s rich history. This team encompasses the majority of the company’s associate-led racing teams in North America.

HART finds it spot in a variety of motorsport competitions that span road racing, club-level events, rally or off-road racing and even karting!

Honda Performance Development Inc. or HPD also possesses a rich heritage in creating, man-ufacturing and supporting Honda Racing and Acura Motorsports customers since 1993. A wholly owned subsidiary of American Honda Motor Co., the HPD leads all of Honda and Acura’s high-performance racing programs in North America. HPD is known for its speciality designs as well as its development of powertrain, chassis, electronics and performance parts, as well as technical and race support.

In all their glory and powered by sheer capability, the Honda Pilot and Passport Trail-Sports will show their stuff. Follow the all-women off-road Rebelle Rally today as they color it competitive!