2022 Honda Passport launched in the US, headlined by new TrailSport model

Even though the minimalism movement is gathering speed, America continues to be home to the big and wonderful. Cars are still very much part of the bigger-is-better ideology, which is why you'll find models engineered just for the US, with footprints so big they'd struggle to fit properly within Asian or European parking lines. 

One such car is the Honda Passport, an SUV which makes the CR-V look puny with BMW X7-like dimensions. It's a unibody off-roader unlike ladderframe SUVs like the Toyota Fortuner and Ford Everest. And it isn't even Honda's biggest SUV in the States - that honour goes to the three-row Pilot.

For 2022, American Honda Motor has updated the Passport with more aggressive styling with the new TrailSport spec pictured. On top of the textbook silver skid plates and orange accents inside and out, the TrailSport also has 10mm wider tracks (front and rear) than the standard Passport for a meaner stance. Off-road ability comes primarily from Honda's i-VTM4 torque-vectoring AWD capable of sending up to 70 percent of torque to the rear wheels, with four modes to tackle sand, snow, mud and paved roads. We reckon it'll hold up relatively well against KL's notorious flash floods too.

This system draws power from a 3.5-litre V6 engine which develops 280bhp and 355Nm of torque, which isn't great in terms of specific output considering Honda's very own Civic Type R generates more from less. But for all its sizeable appeal, the Passport isn't about power. It's about practicality on the open road, with a whopping 1,430 litres of cargo space (70 litres more than before) and the ability to tow up to 2.3 tonnes for your great American road trip. 

It's a pity you can't buy a Passport in Malaysia. Or can you?