Information on Compact Pickups
A compact pickup, or pickup for short, is a type of pickup truck that is most
commonly used around the world. Compact pickups are actually smaller versions of the two-axle heavy
truck. This pickup has a frame
and conventional cab. The rear wheels have a leaf spring suspension and it uses
a small I4, I5, I6 or V6 engine. Compact pickups typically run on gasoline.
Japanese manufacturers introduced the compact pickup to the North American
market in the 1960s. Two
Japanese companies, Datsun and Toyota, dominated the market for compact pickups
in the United States
up until the end of the 1970s. Other Japanese vehicle manufacturers built
compact pickups for America's
"Big Three." Chevrolet had Isuzu build them the Luv compact pickup, Ford had
Mazda build them the
Courier compact pickup, and Dodge had Mitsubishi build them the Ram 50 compact
pickup. In the 1980s,
these Japanese manufacturers introduced their own compact pickups in North
America: Isuzu built P'up,
Mazda built the B-series of compact pickups and Mitsubishi built Mighty Max.
The Ford Ranger and Mazda B-Series are two compact pickups that sold well in the
United States in
2006. |
