Hyundai Latest Maker Hoping to Gain Truck Ground on Ford, GM

The top two selling vehicles in the U.S. each year — and every year for several decades — have been Ford and Chevrolet full-size pickups. Ram’s lineup was previously the third bestseller until recently. Ford and GM’s midsize and small pickups are also big sellers, and Ford’s truck business alone would be the fifth largest seller if it were its own company. 

Several automakers have been looking to get a piece of that lucrative pie, and recent media reports suggest Hyundai is hoping to gain some ground on the segment leaders with a new midsize pickup in the near future.

Hyundai is preparing to  end production of its Santa Cruz small pickup sometime in the next 12 months, according to Automotive News. The Santa Cruz rides on the Tucson crossover’s platform with a four-foot bed on the back. Aimed at young buyers in urban areas who occasionally needed a truck bed to run to home improvement stores or transport outdoor sports equipment, its features a unique design reminiscent of the car-like Chevrolet El Camino from the 1970s. 

It was introduced in 2021 alongside the Ford Maverick, which features a more conventional exterior design, and has been second to the Blue Oval’s offering from the start by a three-to-one ratio. Hyundai’s new plan, according to Automotive News, is the cut it, coming back with a midsize pickup in mid-2029.

Hyundai’s one of many that have taken a stab at expanding in the smaller end of the market. Stellantis’ Ram brand is reportedly developing a small pickup truck. The company already produces a small pickup for Mexico and South America, the Ram 700. The Dodge brand once offered a midsize pickup, the Dodge Dakota, that sold well for several years before the segment faded until GM revived it with the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon.

Last summer, Toyota confirmed it was readying its own small pickup truck, one official telling MotorTrend, “Decisions have been made. The question is when can we slot it in. It’s not a matter of ‘if’ at this point.” It’s expected sit below the midsize Tacoma, one of the industry’s stalwarts in the pickup segment.

Even burgeoning electric vehicle maker Slate went with a small truck design for its first-ever product, which isn’t in production yet.

[Images: Hyundai, Ford, Slate]

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