Americans Want More Trucks

Americans Want More Trucks

Projected vehicle sales for 2016 see light trucks outselling cars by 25%. Those automakers who make trucks are discovering that the more different versions of trucks a company produces, the more buyers are attracted to the brand. It is a result of low gas prices, strong product and a good economy, those magic three ingredients are resulting in more light trucks being sold in the us and that means big profits for automakers. Pickups are expected to be up 6.5% over the next year. Americans are not only using a pickup truck as work vehicles, they are doubling as family vehicles as well and that is stimulating automakers to design more family friendly interiors with wi-fi, power outlets and bigger second row legroom for growing kids.

Chevy has just launched a Black Series. It has special black bumpers, special wheels and a spray-in bed liner. The truck is made to work in the day and still be appropriate for a night on the town. Nissan, who started off as a fire engine building company, have hit the truck market hard with a new Titan. A nominee for North American Truck of the Year. It’s powerful and capable but the inside is more luxury car than truck. Ram pulled out all the stops with two new trucks recently. The Rebel has straight-from-the-factory customized features including a roomy cabin and athletic looks. Ram also announced a new Power Wagon. This is a monster, with winches in the front and in the back, and just to show it off the company drove it down a set of stairs at the Chicago Auto Show so the onlookers would see how capable it is.

For city dwellers, a new stream of smaller trucks have been arriving. Honda have announced a new Ridgeline, that is the first truck with a bed-mounted speaker. Honda showed it off with singing sheep in the Super Bowl. Toyota announced its small truck, the Tacoma, is getting a racing package. The Tacoma TRD is for the weekend warrior in all of us and even has a GoPro mount so you can film all your adventures. There are still new trucks to come. Hyundai have been experimenting with a truck concept called the Santa Cruz, and rumors have been coming out of Detroit that Ford are considering bringing back the successful Ranger. Trucks have always been a favorite of Americans – the Ford F150 is still the #1 selling vehicle in the U.S., followed by the Chevy Silverado and the Ram 1500.