Honda has long sold the Passport as the sensible adventurer, an SUV that looks the part at a trailhead but rarely strays past the car park. The 2027 Passport Trailsport is a serious attempt to change that, with ground clearance growing 1.38 inches to well over what traditional body-on-frame rivals offer. Roughly 70 percent of the major suspension hardware is new, and approach, departure and breakover angles are all improved in the process. Now, Honda is putting the new Passport to the test by entering it in the 2026 Rebelle Rally, the longest off-road rally in the US.HondaThe Rebelle Rally Rewards Brains Over PerformanceThe premise is simple: 1,500 miles of cross-country rallying over eight days, with zero GPS or phones, relying only on maps and a compass to navigate. Teams must make their way across three states, starting from the Las Vegas Motor Speedway to the Imperial Sand Dunes in California just on driving precision and roadbooks.Competitors are roughly split into two categories: the 4×4 Class, which sees vehicles like the Jeep Gladiator, Ford Ranger Raptor and Ineos Grenadier, which made up last year's podium, and the X-Cross Class, meant for vehicles with AWD. Honda's new Passport entry will run unmodified in the X-Cross bone stock class, driven by two Ohio-based engineers and Rebelle rookies, Abby Connolly and Amy Hein. For Honda, it could be either cheap or brutal validation for the more serious Passport Trailsport. Whatever breaks, or doesn't, becomes data for the next Passport.HondaIt Isn't Honda's First RodeoThis year's edition will make it the eighth time Honda is entering the women-only Rebelle Rally. Last year's X-Cross class was won by a 2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid Touring, a car with similarly civilized roots. A 2026 Honda Passport finished sixth, while a Honda Ridgeline finished seventh and last. The takeaway, without taking anything away from the winners, is that careful navigation and mechanical sympathy can beat out raw performance and what looks tough in brochures.HondaIf the lifted Passport can better its performance this year, all the changes would have proved their worth. If not, at least the engineers will know exactly where to look.