![]() 05/26/2020 at 08:55 • Filed to: None | ![]() | ![]() |
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Chasing after that Subaru Baja/Explorer Sport-Trac market, I see. So, here’s how this is going to play out. The journalists are going to be like, “OMG SO BEAUTIFUL. AT LAST THE PERFECT TRUCK IS HERE. ALL THE TRUCK MOST PEOPLE WILL NEED.” This will then be followed up a few years later when they cancel it due to a lack of sales with: “WHY IS NO ONE IS BUYING TEH SANTA CRUZ? THE SMALL TRUCK MARKET IS DEAD. WHY BUY A NEW F-150 WHEN YOU CAN GET A USED ‘HOLY GRAIL OF TRUCKS’ FOR $5,000.00"
Look, it’s an oddball CUV with a 3-foot bed, attached to a brand with horrible depreciation. Even though on paper it’s going to be in class by itself for a while, it will be still be crossshopped against Tacoma, Ranger, Colorado, Gladiator, F-150, Silverado, RAM, Frontier etc... Why because if it’s going to be called a Truck, it’ll be compared to every other Truck, because that’s what Truck buyers do, they look for the biggest truck that they can afford.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:02 |
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Can it tow a race car on an aluminum trailer? Cuz I'd totally get a used one cheap for that haha
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:09 |
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Having a tiny vestigial bed seems an improvement over trucks with a full bed that are just used as a family sedan. Though I don’t know if Hyundai will be a touch enough brand for those buyers.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:09 |
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Depends on how heavy your racecar is.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:11 |
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Well, according to the last time I mentioned the same thoughts that no one wanted a truck that small anymore, I got told that fleet sales *alone* would carry the vehicle for decades to come. So there you go - I look forward to seeing 100k of those things with little NAPA hats on them soon.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:11 |
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Unless this offers the rear seat room of a full size (which it won’t), then it won’t have a shot.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:13 |
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Its a calculated risk. The hard stuff is already done, engineering for the interior, drivetrain, crash, etc. If you sell 30k a year like the Ridgeline, you’re close to getting your money back for the truck specific work. Sell 200k+, now you're printing money.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:16 |
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Nah, most fleet trucks are single cabs with 6-8 foot be ds. If any fleet needs something small with rear doors, then they’ll buy the infinitel y more practical small vans.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:16 |
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If you’re just planning to stick kids back there who cares? Plenty of people buy cars with poor rear leg room. Sure you wouldn’t want to haul around a work crew back there , but it’s not like that’s the only niche to compete in.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:18 |
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Couldn’t agree more with this take. It’s going to be a train-wreck.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:22 |
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That’s not at all how the US truck market works. If you don’t have kids but want to live the truck life you buy the extended cabs in the largest base size truck you can get. If you have or plan to have (1-2) kids then you buy the crew cab/mega cab in once again, the most truck you can get for the money .
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:23 |
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I had a Sort Trac and it was awesome. I only need a bed for smaller jobs, getting some mulch, going to the dump, carting around a mountain bike. Going to the d ump alone would be worth it to have a 3' or 4' bed.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:23 |
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But if you only sell 22k the first year and only a few thousand each year after, it’s not going to continue.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:27 |
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The truck market is so huge that even if you can grab a small slice with a niche offering, that could well be profitable for them.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:30 |
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“They look for the biggest truck they can afford”, which brings up the question of how Hyundai price this thing. Many people like crossovers and many people like pickups. If this thing is priced such that it u nder cuts the Rangers and Colorados it might have a shot..
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:31 |
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But that niche is decreasing in size that they’ll be lucky to break even on this
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:31 |
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But then you can’t park it anywhere and your fuel costs would be awful
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:36 |
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I had a similar opinion on small CUVs with Miata levels of trunk space. I was dead wrong because I wasn’t the target market.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:37 |
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Hard to claim it’s decreasing when no one is really in it. Honda is selling a bit over 30,000 Ridgelines a year in the US , which while pathetic compared to the F-150 is not awful in general.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:38 |
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Considering the price of a new Tuscan starts at $23,550 and a double cab Taco starts at $26,880, this thing doesn’t have a shot in hell.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:40 |
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Every parking lot around here can easily fit a full size truck and people really don’t give a fuck about fuel costs with their tucks.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:46 |
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I figure total trailer weight will be about 5k
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:48 |
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Maybe it's the pictures, but it doesn't seem all that small to me, maybe Ranger-sized? Definately seems more like a midsize truck than a true compact, in which case we can continue to confirm that the latter market is indeed dead.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:50 |
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Nope, but its worth a shot (apparently) for that sweet, sweet truck truck money.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:50 |
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A 3 foot bed is just sad. The Baja was half the size this thing appears to be and had a 3.5 foot bed and came with the gate needed to be able to use it with the tailgate down which got you another 1.5 foot or so. It was also quirky unlike anything Hyundai has made.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:50 |
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![]() 05/26/2020 at 09:50 |
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i fucking hate having a 5'5" bed.. these fullsize crew cab light dutys with short beds are such a gimmick
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:01 |
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30,000 a year is pathetic when you look at the direct competitors of the Ridgeline most of which are past due for replacements. Plus with COVID-19, the market is fucked.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:03 |
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That might be pushing it.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:03 |
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This might be a 3.5 footer, hard to tell.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:04 |
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They killed the true compact truck market years ago.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:06 |
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Not everyone wants a Toyota Tacoma. I, for one, wouldn't buy one. I also wouldn't buy a Colorado or a full size truck, they are all too big for my needs. However something like a Ridgeline or perhaps this thing might suit my needs. Car 90% of the time and able to haul a little bit of stuff the other 10%. Even if I didn't see the pint in it, I could certainly appreciate that they are trying something different. Maybe it will work.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:07 |
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But are you willing to buy one new?
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:16 |
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I wouldn't be willing to buy any car new, so your point is a good one.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:18 |
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I can’t say it’ll be any sort of success, but I honestly don’t see folks cross-shopping against actual trucks. If your argument there held true, Honda wouldn’t sell a single Ridgeline and *checks notes* they sold between 30-35k each of the last three years. What will remain to be seen is if this can expand that market (not likely) or dig into Honda’s sales.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:24 |
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Still, the Subaru Baja is the superior trucklet.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:27 |
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And the Ridgeline’ s mid-sized competitors (Tacoma, Ranger, Colorado, and Frontier) sold between 72K-250K each of the last three years.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:35 |
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No no no I want to PULL it
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:39 |
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See, there’s your problem you’re supposed to BOP IT or TWIST IT a few times before
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:42 |
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You can’t get a small single cab truck any more. Besides maybe the Frontier
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:43 |
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PASS IT!
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:44 |
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I’m kind of the buyer for this. It’s actually what I want. Unfortunately for Hyundai I’m not in the right income tax bracket
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:54 |
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I agree with you completely, except I think most journalists will be mostly writing articles with punny titles like “santa cruz or santa snuze?” or something like that and mostly talk about how weird it is Hyundai made it, how normal it drives (duh). I think the stories are all going to be pretty much “its a tucson truck that drives like a tucson and isn’t a very good truck, did you want that?”
![]() 05/26/2020 at 10:56 |
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Which I think goes away this year.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:04 |
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Realistically I think you should compare the the base of the Santa Fe @ $26,275. I hope they based most of the interior dimensions off the Santa Fe anyway. If you compare them by the numbers the Hyundai truck should be the clear winner on any interior accommodation. Besides fleet how many consumers would even consider the base SR Tacoma?
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:08 |
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Based on some pixel peepin’ , if those wheels are 18 inchers, then the bed is 4 foot’ish. figure 55" inches wide and 50 inches long. Makes sense if they are saying it will be about a foot shorter than the ridgie which has a bed length of 63 inches.
Of the things that makes the ridgeline’s bed work is its MASSIVE width, being only an inch narrower than an F150 and over 4 inches wider than a Tacoma. This? It will be shorter and narrower.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:09 |
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As someone who has a first gen Ridgeline I appreciate another company lobbing something my way. Right now to get greater than Ridgeline interior room you have to step up to a full size. To me that means you gain a whole ton of room and capability, but your overall size increases drastically and fuel economy nose dives also the price skyrockets.
I would consider this new solely because Hyundai/Kia infotainment and technology for the price are much better than Honda. I will have to wait and see if I’m willing to give up the likely better engine, chassis and AWD for tech
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:12 |
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This is based on the Tuscan, not the Santa Fe
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:13 |
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This is smaller than the Ridgeline
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:21 |
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As someone who can’t fit a standard truck on my teeny Vancouver driveway, I am all for this thing. Seriously, look at my tiny short bed 2wd single cab ram on there.... yikes.
Even the Sportwagen is push ing it most days
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:22 |
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I’ve read on multiple outlets that they think this would be Santa Fe based or closer to Santa Fe interior wise. Only a few are mentioning it could be closer to Tucson.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:35 |
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Amusingly, just a couple of days ago I was legitimately thinking to myself that a new Baja or Sport Trac would be exactly what I’d like to replace the WRX . I wouldn’t buy the Hyundai because of the FWD biased drivetrain but I’d be down for revivals of the other 2. I know very well I’m in a very small minority there though.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 11:36 |
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Ridgeline (and Passport) sales are kinda gravy for Honda. They’re not clean-sheet designs but rather variations of the Pilot that they sell a ton of.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:00 |
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The camo is deceptive, it’s somewhere between 3-4
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:02 |
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Had jeep offered the Gladiator in a 2-door I would have been strongly inclined to get one and keep the 1er
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:05 |
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Just a note, we can blame the rest of the World for that, since all our mid-sized truck offerings are originally based on international platforms sold Worldwide first.
The only exception is the Tacoma, which is homegrown, though it’s international cousin the Hilux went mid-size first.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:18 |
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Yeah , I’ve never priced out tacos. It seems like the only new ones I’ve ever seen were listed for north of 40k.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:28 |
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Whats funny is that the Hilux is still substantially smaller than the tacoma.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:31 |
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Not by much, I’ve seen them side by side. Don’t confuse some publications that measure width including the mirrors and some don’t, making it seem like the one is substantially wider than the other. The overall dimensions are close and both are still mid-sized.
Also extra cabs, vs crew cabs and bed sizes need to be compared accordingly. Either way, the Hilux has been mid-sized for longer than the Tacoma.
Hilux officially became mid-size on 2004, the Tacoma in 2008. Either way, the loss of compact trucks wasn’t our fault for once!
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:34 |
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Well, the longest H ilux is 209 inches which is 3 inches shorter than the shortest Tacoma.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:44 |
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Oh man, if they’d actually build this I’d be right there with you. As it is I’m considering a Tacoma or Wrangler unlimited. I’m also curious about the upcoming Broncos, Grand Cherokee, WRX/STI, Frontier and whatever Dodge ends up calling their midsizer.
Annoyingly, t he most appealing option to me right now is a 230i xdrive . It’s also the least practical idea and would mostly make my 128i redundant, apart from autocross duties. If I could have it with a stick I’d already have bought one, despite the downsides.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:46 |
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Are these similar configurations?
But assuming the configurations are similar, then 3" isn’t really a big deal. Extra length from bumper fascias can more than make up for that. In person, you would be hard pressed to see 3" difference in a 17 ft long truck.
But that’s a side point to my actual point, in that the Hilux was mid-sized before the Tacoma, by 4 years to match international truck tastes.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 12:53 |
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The longest hilux (only length as far as I can tell) is 209 inches, where the tacoma has short bed extra cab configurations all the way to long bed 4 door at 221 inches. 12 inches is noticeable . The track width on the hilux is also 3 inches smaller than the smallest track width tacoma. It is a smaller truck.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 13:01 |
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Well
these type of vehicles seem to be moderately popular in Korea (4 of us crammed into a budget Ssangyong taxi model
with our luggage at one point
) and they’re sold
in Australia so probably had most
of the engineering design done already.
They’re building them in Alabama I presume in the same assembly plant that makes the SUV version.
While it’s a stretch to expect them to
sell
well
it was
probably
quite an
attractive price
to add another vehicle and enter the lucrative pickup segment. I expect to see lots of Subaru-like
“active lifestyle” branding applied.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 13:11 |
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12" of course, but that’s a long bed 4-door. You compared a short bed vs long bed, yea you are going to notice them for any truck including the same model, like a short bed vs long bed Tacoma.
The Tacoma offers a rarely seen long-bed for the crew cab, not fair to compare that to a Hilux crew cab with a standard shorter bed.
Comparing similar configurations, the most common being crew cab short bed, they are almost the same size.
You said the Hilux was substantially smaller than the Tacoma, which is clearly not the case. Based on the same body configurations, they are very close to the same size.
As I said, the Hilux is mid-sized, and it did it before the Tacoma by 4 years.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 13:12 |
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They’re gonna be fighting the Ridgeline for their 9% of the market share. I’m sure it’ll be a great vehicle that meets the needs of 80% of truck buyers. And will be ignored by all.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 14:51 |
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I mean, it may be too niche to survi ve, but please, let’s at least appreciate that they’re trying to add some variety to the market, and not another CUV sized somewhere between larger-than-a-compact-but-smaller-than-a-midsize.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 14:53 |
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Yeah I think they are finally retiring that 13 year old chassis. But I don’t really see why? My uncle is a jack of all trades handy man but mostly does painting. He’s had 3 frontiers and loves them. All reg cab, manual, 2wd, the first two Retired with 200,000 miles.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 14:58 |
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As someone from Hawaii these small trucks are pretty useful there, put a rack on it, can tow a small boat.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 14:59 |
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I mean they are retiring that cab style. The D40 platform is going to underpin the “New” frontier next year.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 15:01 |
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Hyundai has very good AWD systems these days. True, they aren’t symmetrical or RWD biased (except in Genesis) but they're above average. Like better than VW, Honda, and the American CUVs. Toyota's new system seems to be very good, but previous gen Toyota AWD was definitely inferior. Try a current gen AWD Hyundai product on a low-traction surface (or hard charging on a good traction surface) and you may be very surprised.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 15:09 |
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My sister has a current Tucson and it’s nice that it doesn’t wait for slip to send some power to the rear wheels but it still feels predominantly FWD to me, so it’s not what I’m looking for.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 15:13 |
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The Hawaiian car market isn’t going to save anything
![]() 05/26/2020 at 15:15 |
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No it won’t, I like the Honda truck, I don’t need any more than that to put kayaks on or go to the hardware store.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 15:16 |
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In which something used is better.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 16:28 |
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Wouldn’t really matter much, when it’s likely closest competition, the Honda Ridgeline, has a 5.3 foot bed (6.9 with the tailgate down).
![]() 05/26/2020 at 17:05 |
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I don’t know man, I still s ee these a lot here in Ohio and the beds are almost always full . I think there’s a decent market for it, especially if it’s just a modified Santa Fe to keep costs down . We’ll have to see how similar this is to the Ford Maverick compact truck when it debuts too.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 17:33 |
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Why won’t any OEM build something like this S-10 again? It seems a 1/4 ton is what a lot of folks really need.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 18:05 |
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BuT tHeY dOn’T mAkE sMaLl TrUcKs AnYmOrE1!1!1!
![]() 05/26/2020 at 18:22 |
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Haha, only in America. This size is popular outside the states, where people recognise that there’s really no need for an F-150 or bigger
![]() 05/26/2020 at 19:26 |
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Ahh, THIS is what my brother saw then. Would make sense that it was being tested against a Honda Ridgeline. Makes me wonder then. If they saw a Hyundai then what was the v8 sounding two door coupe being tested against an Audi s5. That was only minutes apart from this Hyundai.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 19:31 |
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This is built for America in America
![]() 05/26/2020 at 20:45 |
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that chassis came out in 2004 .
![]() 05/26/2020 at 20:50 |
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why build that when you can sell them a 40k+ truck on 84month payments.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 20:56 |
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That’s wild.
![]() 05/26/2020 at 20:57 |
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Cynical, but probably the truth.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 00:07 |
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I was unable to dig up that info, thought it might be worldwide since it’s based on the Santa Fe and everyone is getting on the pickup bandwagon lately (VW, Merc).
In that case I don’t know why they bother. Nobody buying one of those to open themselves up to endless ridicule
![]() 05/27/2020 at 00:57 |
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Agreed. Trucks with three or four foot beds are pretty useless. What does anybody actually put in there. Maybe like five bags of much from the Home Depot? I’m hanging on to my 15 year old Toyota Tacoma for now. With a driver and no passengers , there is room for about 1200 pounds of payload in the bed. I can easily haul my 42 inch lawn tractor with considerable weight margin. And yes, I actually do haul my lawn tractor - it isn’t just a theoretical metric. The down side is the Tacoma only ekes about about 20 MPG even with 2.7L engine.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 07:09 |
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If you want to sell trucks in America, you have to build them here, otherwise it’s the chicken tax.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 07:11 |
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The self fulfilling prophecy
![]() 05/27/2020 at 07:59 |
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If it has more rear seat room than a Taco it has a shot.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 08:59 |
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And if your feet aren’t held up so high.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 09:52 |
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I want brown manual crank windows!!!
![]() 05/27/2020 at 09:53 |
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There’s little need for an F150 in America, either. That many people do not have boats, trailers, do constant home improvement or are contractors.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 10:39 |
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*its
“It’s” = it is
“ Its” indicates ownership
![]() 05/27/2020 at 11:56 |
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Derp, wrote this on the shitt er, it s be n fixed
![]() 05/27/2020 at 13:04 |
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By that logic subaru wouldn’t sell any crosstreks as they would just buy a used outback.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 13:10 |
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The major issue is how to cut development/tooling costs. ford can justify making the ranger as its a global platform and in the USA will share the chassis with the bronco. The ridgeline is a modified pilot.
Safety and lack of features would probably kill it if they tried to sell it for 18k.
![]() 05/27/2020 at 14:46 |
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Pedant, user of Oxford commas...
![]() 05/27/2020 at 15:04 |
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What’s the over/under on this vs a Ridgeline sales wise?
![]() 05/27/2020 at 15:10 |
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Less than the ridgeline by several thousand