Where have all the compact trucks gone?

[slowdime]

Compact trucks used to be pretty popular. With the ranger no longer being produced for the US market, no new examples are available on the market. The Tacoma seems to have grown larger with each redesign and the Colorado and canyon are a little large to be considered compact
It seems to me there would be a pretty sizeable market for a small truck about the size of the toyotas from the 80s with a turbo diesel. It doesn't need to be anything flashy, just a simple and well built durable machine that provides good fuel economy.

 

[yonyon]

How awesome would it be if they'd rename the current Tacoma to be the Chimichangama and come out with a new smaller Tacoma?

Also: Is it possible to write Chimichangama in kanji?

 

[Quattro Pete]

Yeah, VW could bring their Amarok here with a 2-liter TDI engine, alas, at the price they charge for it, I don't think there are going to be many takers.

 

[dishdude]

When you used to be able to pick up brand new 4cyl S-10 or Ranger with auto and A/C for $12k, they were great deals. I used to always see retired guys driving them as a DD, plus of course all the commercial and tradesman that could pick up a brand new truck for not a lot of money. Those days died with the S-10 and Ranger.

 

[John_K]

Don't get me started! Not everybody wants or can afford a big whompin' truck.

John

 

[KD0AXS]

What happened to compact trucks? When they bec ame the same price as a full size truck and got the same gas mileage as a full size truck, people quit buying them and just bought full size trucks instead.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: John_K
Not everybody wants or can afford a big whompin' truck.

What if a small truck cost about the same as a big one since the mfg cost is likely not that different? Will enough people still buy a small truck knowing that they could have gotten a bigger one for about the same money?

 

[Spazdog]

Regular Cab Colorado is only a few inches longer than an '80s Toyota Longbed pickup.

Given the success of the Ford Transit Connect, I'm surprised that GM hasn't started importing the Chevrolet Tornado to the States to sell as a delivery pickup.

Emissions shouldn't be a problem. It can use the same 1.8 that the Cruze LS has. Maybe it doesn't meet collision safety requirements for the US

 

[IntegraVT]

South of the Border, apparently.

 

[SwampSurvivor]

Regular cab trucks are going to disappear with more stringent EPA regs. The longer the better.

 

[01rangerxl]

The Colorado and Canyon to me feel about the size of a Ranger, or at least close enough. I own a Ranger and drive a 2012 Colorado 4-5 days a week. To me there isn't really a discernible size difference, BUT the Ranger is a Super Cab and sits a little higher up than the Colorado, so it may be the illusion of more space when my Ranger is really just longer/taller.

Size isn't my issue with the Colorado...but I prefer the way the last generation of S-10s were built and how they drove compared to the Colorado. The Colorado isn't a bad vehicle, it just has all the driving dynamics, character, and excitement of an LG washing machine...down to the series of aggressive dings and dongs when I hit the door lock button.

 

[daves87rs]

Because they could not sell them at a loss forever...


And many people bought them for one reason only: Cheap....

 

[Spazdog]

Originally Posted By: 01rangerxl


Size isn't my issue with the Colorado...but I prefer the way the last generation of S-10s were built and how they drove compared to the Colorado. The Colorado isn't a bad vehicle, it just has all the driving dynamics, character, and excitement of an LG washing machine...down to the series of aggressive dings and dongs when I hit the door lock button.

I always felt like GM had just rebuilt the old Isuzu pickup. The legroom is better in the Colorado than it was in the S10, but it was better in the Isuzu as well. When you close the door on a Colorado you get the same tinny clank that you got in the Isuzu instead of a thunk. Driving dynamics are like you said. The power of the 2.9 really doesn't feel much more powerful than the 4ZE1 2.6 in the Isuzu. It is considerably more powerful, just doesn't feel like it. It has 10 more ft-lbs of torque and 30+ more horsepower than the Ranger/B3000 Vulcan 3.0, but I like the Vulcan better. Maybe it's just the way it delivers its power.

 

[Bandito440]

I loved my 2008 Tacoma, although it was larger than the older Ranger for sure. A diesel Tacoma would fit nicely in my garage.

 

[FordTrucks71]

An all new Ford Ranger is on the way! Ive seen spy pics its very nice and very close to truck sold outside North America.

 

[expat]

I have a 85 Toyota PU and I often ask myself 'where have all the compact trucks gone.'

Now if my truck was fitted with a 1.6 liter TDI Diesel that had 236 ft lbs of torque at 1725 rpm and delivered close to 50 us miles per gallon average I'd be very, very happy.

Perhaps, one day North America will get such vehicles.

 

[Lyman]

My current Ranger is my DD. Second one I have owned. With the 4.0 it's no economy vehicle. 18-20 mpg can be achieved in a full sized truck. I like the Ranger platform though and prefer it for my needs. I wish they would sell a small diesel pickup here. Seems the government doesn't like something that makes sense.

 

[95busa]

I was fired up about that Indian job they were going to import....mahindra I believe. EPA mixed that one.

 

[whip]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
Regular cab trucks are going to disappear with more stringent EPA regs. The longer the better.

Regular cab trucks are going away because no one is buying them. If there was demand, they'd find a way to make it work. Same goes for compact trucks.

 

[eljefino]

Originally Posted By: Miller88
Regular cab trucks are going to disappear with more stringent EPA regs. The longer the better.


This is true.

Quote:

Starting in 2011 the CAFE standards are newly expressed as mathematical functions depending on vehicle "footprint", a measure of vehicle size determined by multiplying the vehicle’s wheelbase by its average track width. A complicated 2011 mathematical formula was replaced starting in 2012 with a simpler inverse-linear formula with cut-off values. [3] CAFE footprint requirements are set up such that a vehicle with a larger footprint has a lower fuel economy requirement than a vehicle with a smaller footprint. For example, the 2012 Honda Fit with a footprint of 40 sq ft (3.7 m2) must achieve fuel economy (as measured for CAFE) of 36 miles per US gallon (6.5 l/100 km), equivalent to a published fuel economy of 27 miles per US gallon (8.7 l/100 km), while a Ford F-150 with its footprint of 65–75 sq ft (6.0–7.0 m2) must achieve CAFE fuel economy of 22 miles per US gallon (11 l/100 km), i.e., 17 miles per US gallon (14 l/100 km) published.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_Average_Fuel_Economy

The old "SUV rule" brought us PT cruisers and HHRs and S10s that were tiny to subsidize others in the SUV subset. But that rule has changed.

Bummer about Mahindra: their diesel mini truck was actually EPA certified but the dealer network/ distribution fell apart.