Inside the School That Teaches Honda Employees How to Off-Road

Off-roading has always captivated a particular corner of the automotive market, and it seems like interest has exploded in recent years. Ford Broncos, Jeeps, and Toyotas (and to some extent, Subarus) are the off-road SUVs people think of most, but what about newcomers to the scene like Honda?

Historically, Honda has not been an off-road car brand. ATVs and dirt bikes, yes. Cars, no. But the introduction of the TrailSport trim in 2021 indicated the automaker was ready to join the fray. While the first Passport TrailSport was mostly off-road cosplay, the 2026 Passport TrailSport has legitimate trail-ready capabilities, even recently taking home a win in our comparison test against the 2026 GMC Terrain AT4.

Part of this evolution is owed to an internal, multi-day off-road school Honda offers to all its employees, whether they’re in PR, marketing, product planning, engineering, or even the executive ranks. MotorTrend was recently invited to attend the two-day basic course with a few other journalists—the first non-Honda people to partake.

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We saw for ourselves exactly how Honda teaches its own people how to off-road, and how serious the automaker is about making sure everyone who works on these products can do so in an informed manner born from firsthand experience.

Honda Wants in on Off-Roading

Around 2017, Honda started getting serious about entering the off-road market. Part of that endeavor included creating a top-level education program with three main goals, according to Pete Langseth, a senior engineer at Honda R&D.

“First is safety in the company,” he told MotorTrend in a recent interview. “Second, to build a professional atmosphere and perspective toward off-road driving so we can make better products. Third, proper leadership and development of the people that you interact with.”

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<em>te Langseth, left, during the classroom portion of Honda’s off-road school.</em>

Langseth has been at Honda since 2000 in various project management and leadership roles, but today he also works as a trainer for the off-road school. He teaches a minimum of 12 classes a year, and it’s clear off-roading is his passion. (Langseth recently received his International 4WD Training Association certification.)

“We wanted it to be in-house so we could promote cross-pollination education between groups,” he continued. Since members and chief engineers from the suspension, steering, electronics, and product planning teams all collaborate, Honda tailors each class to what folks want to get out of it. Because when it comes to building a car, nothing comes down to just one person.

Back to School

Honda offers schools for both dune- and trail-driving, and basic and advanced courses within those. In the two-day basic class, participants drive a vehicle on public off-road courses away from controlled proving grounds. The three-day, pass/fail advanced course is far more challenging because it teaches you how to lead a group of people on a trip.

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Based on the basic trail-driving course we attended, the courses are in-depth, interactive, and highly personalized.

Langseth and another Honda trainer lead the classroom portion of the class, the two showing us all the relevant bits of hardware on a Passport TrailSport they had placed on a lift. There was also a packet of information, the same one distributed to all Honda employees taking the course, that broke down the basics, such as defining the differences between four-wheel and all-wheel drive, as well as different types of suspension setups and how they all contribute to off-road driving.

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Then the instructors took us out to an obstacle course they’d set up at one of the Overland Experts locations: a private off-road facility in North Carolina. The variety of different obstacles were meant to train drivers on most everything we’d come across on the trails, and before anyone was even allowed to drive anything, Langseth had us walk the entire course with our hands out like Gullwing Mercedes so we could mentally place where our cars would be later on.

We talked about potential difficulties, the best line to take, how to be safe, and how to compromise in the most ideal way. Also, perhaps most important, we were taught how to back up safely in order to try an obstacle again. A fun thing you learn is how to decipher between a harmless bang (skidplate) and a bad bang (not a skidplate) coming from under your car as you roll over big rocks and logs.

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On the second day, we took everything we learned and turned up the “spiciness”—Langseth’s word for how much more challenging these new trails were. Langseth and the rest of the Honda employees present were up front, saying the second-day trails would push the Passport TrailSports to the very extremes of their abilities. They were right.

The day two trails were well beyond what most Passport owners would elect to tackle, but the SUVs persisted nonetheless. By the end, we were all extremely impressed by what these stock, unibody rigs were capable of.

But beyond the hands-on experience, I appreciated having experienced teachers on hand to train me, a relatively novice off-roader. We were encouraged to ask questions, test our knowledge, and even fail if it meant learning a lesson. All the Honda staff members maintained a calm and cheerful demeanor that helped build confidence and comradery among our group. This, apparently, is the way it is for anyone who takes the class, not just outside journalists.

The only real difference is the vehicles used. Honda wanted us to experience the might of its Passport TrailSports, so that’s what it provided.

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“[But] typically for our people, we use current mass production Hondas in the basic class,” Langseth said. “Some will be stock, and some will be modified.” Modifications include different tires or maybe extra ground clearance and protection, so students can have a different perspective.

“We also do throw in a competitor so they can see the difference,” Langseth continued. “A lot of times, depending on who’s taking the class, we may pick a competitor specifically with the intention of showing them something they need to be aware of. We look at anyone in the market who makes an off-road vehicle, [not] just direct competitors at our price point. We’ll evaluate them, understand what we can learn from them, how we compare to them competitively, and how we make ourselves better to meet the needs of the customer in the best way possible.”

A common mistake in new students? Trust, according to Langseth. Specifically, not enough of it.

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“The mistake I see is people not trust[ing] themselves or others [enough] to do the things that need to happen,” he said. “When a spotter is directing someone through a very challenging terrain, it’s really difficult for people to trust that other person when the vehicle feels really wonky. That’s a good part of why we try to teach comradery and togetherness in the classes because when a group works together in a professional manner, you have to have 100 percent trust in each other and yourself.”

Is the School Open to the Public?

After two days, it was easy to see why the new Passport TrailSport impressed the rest of the MotorTrend staff as much as it did when we subjected it to our independent testing.

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<em>A recovery tool demonstration.</em>

As part of the school, plenty of Honda staffers were on hand to make sure none of us messed up too catastrophically. And Honda encouraging us to challenge its vehicles (not ours) removed the fear of costly repair bills from our mindset, which is a privilege afforded to few. But no one got seriously stuck. Mostly, the school demonstrated a product that was almost certainly made by people who have actually studied off-roading. And Honda is just getting started.

As for the school itself? It did its job. I went home with some great tips and more confidence and knowledge when it comes to off-roading than ever.

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Despite seeming like he’s gotten the course down to a science, Langseth is always looking for places to improve.

“We’re looking to make even more changes [to the class] moving forward by providing more education,” he said. “We want to see [students] more technically prepared when they come to the advanced classes.” Sometimes, because of work obligations, it’s hard for employees to take time off and go on trips to get a ton of firsthand experience. “We're looking at reevaluating the course and providing exercise modules that go between basic and advanced so they can spool up on their knowledge before they come to advanced. Again, [it’s] just providing them more opportunities to learn and grow.”

In fact, the school is so good, Honda could probably sell it. Ford includes time at its Bronco Off-Roadeo locations with the purchase of a Bronco or Bronco Sport. Why not for TrailSports? And maybe if not for customers, certainly with dealership partners, the people in charge of selling TrailSports? On this front, Langseth was mum. “Not yet,” was all he said. But that’s not a no.