The small truck market looks to be heating up…
The Nissan Titan has always enjoyed a very distant last-place slot in the full-size truck market here. Tired of not even being able to rival the Toyota Tundra, Nissan reportedly is just going to call it quits on the Titan and instead jump into the once-again growing small pickup truck market.
Check out the Jeep 6X6 driven by an NBA star here.
As pointed out by Automotive News, Nissan has already teased what a compact truck from the brand might entail. The Surfs-Out concept was revealed in November 2021 as a radical, all-electric pickup with radical lines and more expansive glass panels than the Tesla Model Y.
With only the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz in the small truck segment, it’s been speculated a number of automakers are looking to jump into the market. If they copy the formula set out by Ford and Hyundai, these would be unibody “trucks” more akin to crossovers with an open cargo area in the rear. In turn, their utility would be severely impacted, but it’s not like anyone buys trucks to tow or haul much of anything so it’ll probably be fine.
What’s more, it seems the rumors about Ram brining the Dakota nameplate back in a small pickup truck might be legitimate. Spotting of a heavily camouflaged pickup being tested by Stellantis have popped up in various parts of the internet, but you can’t really tell much about it. Some claim Ram will use the Dakota name for a midsize truck to take on the Toyota Tacoma and Ford Ranger. Others are saying both a midsize and compact Ram are coming to market.
Much like when fuel prices surged and then the economy tanked over a decade ago, it looks like automakers are looking to offer smaller, more budget-friendly vehicles once again. And this time around pickup trucks are a focus. Some people really miss their compact trucks from back in the day, however these new models seem to be quite different in several ways.
For now this all seems to be rumors and conjectures, but if you really want a toy pickup truck, you might soon have several options to consider.
Source: Automotive News
Images via Nissan
