QOTD: Which Entrant Is Losing at the Game of Trucks?
You hear it time and time again on the internet. “There are no bad cars today.” It’s proclaimed by those who lived through the Malaise Era and have personally experienced the build quality and reliability of an new Renault Le Car or Chevy Monza. And while things are most definitely better than they were, nothing’s perfect. Bring out your critical fingertips.
Today we’re going to talk about trucks, and the one which sticks out in your mind as a bit lesser than its competitors; the company which builds it could be doing a better job, you feel. Perhaps it’s down on quality, or lacking in technology, or its manufacturer hasn’t updated it as much as it should. How dare they do any of these things, here in the non-malaise year of 2019! Below is a list of the trucks available to North America this year, because you all shouldn’t go Googling around unsupervised.
Chevrolet Colorado
Now, this list shows bias of the alphabetical persuasion, so watch out. Apparently the pictured Hummer H3T is no longer available. In the interest of keeping the list concise, heavy-duty variants are not broken out separately. It’s a short list which makes up a substantial part of the profits for some of these manufacturers (or virtually all of them, in the case of RAM). Truck sales matter! But we’re looking for a loser today in this, the Game of Trucks.
Which one is least deserving of the consumer’s precious dollars when pitched against its competitors?
[Image: General Motors]
Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Writing things for TTAC since late 2016 from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio. You can find me on Twitter @CoreyLewis86, and I also contribute at Forbes Wheels.
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"Today we’re going to talk about trucks" For a second I thought I was in a Chevy commercial.
No real criticism of any of the trucks. True the Frontier is outdated but it is a proven truck at a very competitive price--for many it is all they need. Frontier still manages to hold on to number 3 in midsize sales. Titan is far from having stellar sales but it is a good truck. Not that crazy about the new styled Silverado but it will still sell. Most truck owners are fiercely loyal to their own individual brands but most of today's trucks are good.
Don't get the appeal of the Ridgeline, last gen was "... WTH is it supposed to be?!" And the current is an Odyssey with a bed Nissan, they need to update the Frontier, give us the ones they got in other countries (seen a newer one in Aruba back in '17)
Titan would be my first choice, but honestly I think the Tundra is probably the worst new truck out there. At least Titan has seen some changes from the first gen trucks, Tundra is largely unchanged since it was introduced. Considering how much Ford, GM and FCA throw at their trucks in only a few years time, Toyota is way behind the curve. I understand the Tacoma's appeal, I don't get why you'd buy a Tundra. I say this as a Toyota owner. Not a fan of the second gen Ridgelines looks, but Honda must have sold enough to justify its existence. Honda is probably the most conservative company on taking chances, I think that speaks volumes about the Ridgeline. Yes, it's an Odyssey with a bed. That's all most of us need. A van that's occasionally a truck (that you can hose out). The wife likes her minivans, she won't entertain a Ridgeline though. And yes, I know you can put dirty and bulky stuff in a minivan, but cleaning it out is a pain.