Cars with beds making a Comeback?

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rule18

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I see what you did there :) Love it! The Maverick does look the most interesting of them all though.
It kinda does. I had to stop and go back three times to make sure that I heard her correctly "there's a 12 volt outlet for whatever you want to plug in". Great, except that it's a 120vac/400w outlet.
 
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Jessica Smith

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It kinda does. I had to stop and go back three times to make sure that I heard her correctly "there's a 12 volt outlet for whatever you want to plug in". Great, except that it's a 120vac/400w outlet.
LOL, I didn't catch that!

They actually do have two 12-volt prewired power sources in the bed as well for adding your own lighting or whatever too, so she probably got confused reading the spec sheet.

Its accessible under two tiny little covers right at the end where the tailgate is, which is clever so people aren't tapping into the brake lights, and it has its own fuse that way.
 

rule18

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LOL, I didn't catch that!

They actually do have two 12-volt prewired power sources in the bed as well for adding your own lighting or whatever too, so she probably got confused reading the spec sheet.

Its accessible under two tiny little covers right at the end where the tailgate is, which is clever so people aren't tapping into the brake lights, and it has its own fuse that way.
Yep, pretty slick. Actually, it looked like a video production mistake. At the moment the voice-over said 12v outlet, the video is showing the 120v outlet.
 
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Jessica Smith

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So Santa Cruz production has started, and first one rolled off the line. Pretty interesting video showing the vehicle body go from a big roll of steel sheet that they have in-house since Hyundai is big into steelworks to finished production vehicle:
Or if you prefer youtube:

Base model in black:
Large-46402-HyundaiMotorManufacturingAlabamacelebratesthestartofproductionforthehighlyanticipa...jpg
 
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Jessica Smith

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If anyone was remotely interested in an update, they now finally have the press embargo lifted and have a review out of the El Santa Cruzo:

They called it the "Grandma Adventure Vehicle"! Even though its just 280hp, power to weight ratio is similar to a hemi Ram, and seems to hustle pretty decently.
 
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scrounge

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The Santa Cruz and Maverick might be a response to the Jeep Gladiator, which sold 40K units for the 2019 model year and 77K for 2020. The Gladiator looks like a truck, and further, like a truck Willys could have built in the 1940's, so it may have some retro appeal. The Santa Cruz seems twee; the Maverick looks more practical, plus Ford's hybrid system is among the better ones, so my guess is that it will be the better seller of the two. However, it probably won't take sales from the Gladiator, which seems to attract buyers in a higher income bracket. It may take them from the Ranger or the Colorado.

Not mentioned earlier was Ford's Explorer Sport Trac, made from 2001 to 2005 and 2007 to 2010. It was promoted as a mid-sized crew cab, but it was essentially an Explorer with a short bed. It was a poor seller during its last 4 years, which is commonly attributed to competition from the Chevy Avalanche and the Honda Ridgeline. But the Explorer sold poorly after it was redesigned for the 2006 model year, dropping below 6 figures for the 2008 through 2010 model years after selling more than 300,000 units annually for all but 4 years before 2006, so the design itself may be to blame.

Some pick-ups during the '60's were based on vans, notably the Dodge A100, the Chevy Greenbrier, and the VW microbus.

I've seen custom pick-ups made from passenger cars. One was a 1974 Cadillac in Michigan. Another was a 1958 Edsel at a swap meet in Belton, Texas (several were apparently converted from station wagons, and called “Edchero”). And a 1967 Charger at a Charger show in Boerne, Texas.

I prefer "Sport Light Utility Truck".

Shame on you. And thank you.
 

Mike Flea

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The Santa Cruz and Maverick might be a response to the Jeep Gladiator, which sold 40K units for the 2019 model year and 77K for 2020. The Gladiator looks like a truck, and further, like a truck Willys could have built in the 1940's, so it may have some retro appeal. The Santa Cruz seems twee; the Maverick looks more practical, plus Ford's hybrid system is among the better ones, so my guess is that it will be the better seller of the two. However, it probably won't take sales from the Gladiator, which seems to attract buyers in a higher income bracket. It may take them from the Ranger or the Colorado.

Not mentioned earlier was Ford's Explorer Sport Trac, made from 2001 to 2005 and 2007 to 2010. It was promoted as a mid-sized crew cab, but it was essentially an Explorer with a short bed. It was a poor seller during its last 4 years, which is commonly attributed to competition from the Chevy Avalanche and the Honda Ridgeline. But the Explorer sold poorly after it was redesigned for the 2006 model year, dropping below 6 figures for the 2008 through 2010 model years after selling more than 300,000 units annually for all but 4 years before 2006, so the design itself may be to blame.

Some pick-ups during the '60's were based on vans, notably the Dodge A100, the Chevy Greenbrier, and the VW microbus.

I've seen custom pick-ups made from passenger cars. One was a 1974 Cadillac in Michigan. Another was a 1958 Edsel at a swap meet in Belton, Texas (several were apparently converted from station wagons, and called “Edchero”). And a 1967 Charger at a Charger show in Boerne, Texas.



Shame on you. And thank you.
Don't forget the Ford Econoline P/UP'66 Ford Econoline.png
 

scrounge

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I didn't, but given my coverage of the Maverick, Sport Trac and Edchero, I thought Ford's representation in my post was more than sufficient.

However, for the sake of this thread, we should probably mention every vehicle we know of within the niche. So yes, in addition to the Falcon Ranchero, Ford offered an Econoline pick-up during the first half of the 1960's. I don't think any of the Big 3's van-based pick-ups were big sellers; they all seemed to be in response to the VW microbus pick-up, sales of which, while never large, were drastically reduced after the chicken tax was implemented.
 

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Actually, the Ford, and the Dodge A-100's were forward heavy because of the engine being in front. The Chevy Corvair pickup was rear engine. I did stand mine up, vertically, then it fell on its side. Didn't break any glass, the railroad tie bumper and tire on the front protected the bodywork, but the I-beam front axle bent like a horseshoe. I walked away from the accident.
 
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Jessica Smith

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Got fuel economy numbers now, so was comparing them to my 2009 Ram:

Maverick 2.5 Hybrid FWD: 40 city / 33 highway / 37 combined (87 octane recommended)
Maverick 2.0T AWD: 22city / 29 highway / 25 combined (91 octane recommended)
Santa Cruz 2.5 AWD: 21 city / 27 highway / 23 combined (87 octane recommended)
Santa Cruz 2.5 FWD: 21 city / 26 highway/ 23 combined (87 octane recommended)
Santa Cruz 2.5T AWD: 19 city / 27 highway / 22 combined (87 octane recommended)
Ram 1500 5.7 RWD: 14 city / 20 highway / 16 combined (89 octane recommended)

So I just crunched some numbers, in case anyone is considering one of these for their kid or something.

Based on 15K miles per year with national average fuel prices of $3.18 for regular, $3.54 for mid, and $3.81 for premium fuel using combined fuel economy figures:

Maverick 2.5 Hybrid (87) = $1,288 / year or $12.8K over 10 years
Santa Cruz 2.5 (87) = $2,073 / year or $20.7K over 10 years
Maverick 2.0T (*91) = $2,286 / year or $22.9K over 10 years
Santa Cruz 2.5T (87) = $2,169 / year or $21.7K over 10 years
Ram 1500 5.7 RWD (89) = $3,320 / year or $33.2K over 10 years

*Note that Ford indicates that while the 2.0T Ecoboost is designed for 91+ octane for optimum performance, it can operate on 87 octane so for long trips of relaxed highway cruising you could certainly put in regular or midgrade without issue.
 

scrounge

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According to your earlier link, base price for the XL version (bottom of the line, when that used to be a more upscale designation) is just under $20K, while the XLT starts at $22,280, and the Lariat above $25K. Prices appear to be for the 2.5 hybrid, which, to me, seems the better buy than the smaller EcoBoost, which gets worse mileage, and needs higher octane. Such a truck probably won't be used to carry heavy loads, and might make for a good commuter.
 
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Jessica Smith

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According to your earlier link, base price for the XL version (bottom of the line, when that used to be a more upscale designation) is just under $20K, while the XLT starts at $22,280, and the Lariat above $25K. Prices appear to be for the 2.5 hybrid, which, to me, seems the better buy than the smaller EcoBoost, which gets worse mileage, and needs higher octane. Such a truck probably won't be used to carry heavy loads, and might make for a good commuter.
Yeah, they got rid of their little economy cars like the Ford Focus, so the Maverick can take their place in pickup format and the Ecoboost one is still pretty frugal at 29mpg highway for AWD and 30mpg in FWD, and w/ the tow package can do 4K lbs which is enough for towing motorcycles or jet skis or whatever. The Santa Cruz 5K lb towing capacity should be enough for some with smaller fishing boats and campers, here's a demo:
 
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Jessica Smith

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BTW, an other little car-based pickup updated for 2022 but not yet available for North America is the Ram 1000, aka Fiat Toro. Could either import it by not classifying it as a truck (Santa Cruz is classified by the EPA as a SUV), or by making it in their Toluca, Mexico plant to boost Ram fleet fuel economy.

Comes with either Stellantis new 180hp 1.3T they put in the Jeep Renegade or a 170hp/260ftlbs turbo-diesel (that's what I'd take, supposedly 45mpg highway).
2022-Fiat-Toro-Ultra-TurboDiesel-AT9-4x4.-FIAT-Brazil-12-scaled.jpeg
2022-Fiat-Toro-Ultra-TurboDiesel-AT9-4x4.-FIAT-Brazil-8-scaled.jpeg
2022-Fiat-Toro-Ultra-TurboDiesel-AT9-4x4.-FIAT-Brazil-7-scaled.jpeg
2022-Fiat-Toro-Ranch-TurboDiesel-AT9-4x4.-FIAT-Brazil-9-scaled.jpeg
2022-Fiat-Toro-Ranch-TurboDiesel-AT9-4x4.-FIAT-Brazil-10-scaled.jpeg
 

scrounge

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Yeah, they got rid of their little economy cars like the Ford Focus, so the Maverick can take their place in pickup format

Good point, I'd not considered that. First-time new car buyers on a budget would do well to consider the Maverick.

But current Focus owners with the PowerShift automatic transmission might want nothing to do with any other Ford product:

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a27438193/ford-powershift-transmission-problems/

I doubt that the Maverick will have such problems, as it's based on the Escape, which is one of their more reliable vehicles. I recently read that Ford has more than 100,000 advance orders for the Maverick, so it seems to have justified its existence.

This thread made me notice what else similar is out there. I see Gladiators wherever I go. The Avalanche was a popular and versatile truck, and I also see plenty of them (a neighbor owns one in excellent condition). Even the Explorer Sport Trac is still being used around here, and I often see their beds occupied, if not full. I only occasionally see a Ridgeline, and never see anything in its bed.
 

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I dunno - seems those things don't do anything well. Trying to be everything to everyone ends up being nothing to no one. It's why the Chevy El Camino was the only one for a while and was discontinued. Honda Ridgeline was also a fad that hipsters drove until they realized they had an expensive, nonfunctional ride that cost too much, just to project some kind of utilitarian image.

It's a free choice, but too expensive to screw up due to some image-mania. Buy what you want - not what someone else compliments you in.
I enjoyed my el Camino the last 2 years of my navy tour and then through college. Great vehicle.
 
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huntergreen

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BTW, an other little car-based pickup updated for 2022 but not yet available for North America is the Ram 1000, aka Fiat Toro. Could either import it by not classifying it as a truck (Santa Cruz is classified by the EPA as a SUV), or by making it in their Toluca, Mexico plant to boost Ram fleet fuel economy.

Comes with either Stellantis new 180hp 1.3T they put in the Jeep Renegade or a 170hp/260ftlbs turbo-diesel (that's what I'd take, supposedly 45mpg highway).
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BTW, an other little car-based pickup updated for 2022 but not yet available for North America is the Ram 1000, aka Fiat Toro. Could either import it by not classifying it as a truck (Santa Cruz is classified by the EPA as a SUV), or by making it in their Toluca, Mexico plant to boost Ram fleet fuel economy.

Comes with either Stellantis new 180hp 1.3T they put in the Jeep Renegade or a 170hp/260ftlbs turbo-diesel (that's what I'd take, supposedly 45mpg highway).
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I can see this being pretty popular in the college crowds.
 

carl0

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The interior of Fiat Toro looks very nice especially the seats.
 
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Jessica Smith

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First major review of the Ford Maverick released today from TheStraightPipes:
Methinks Yuri likes it:
Screenshot 2021-10-01 080026.jpg
 
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