Ford will build a longer bed version only if this is a sales hit and they think they can sell a bunch of them. If you look at the mid-size truck market the vast majority of sales are the short box version. When I bought my LWB Canyon the dealer had to scour the state to find a long box with the options I wanted. They had two dozen short box versions in stock though. Just look around in your travels and see how many trucks, of any size, are actually the long box versions. My local Ford dealer rarely has more than 3 or 4 regular cab trucks in stock out of 400, or so. The market prefers short box, four door trucks and has for quite awhile.
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
Ford will build a longer bed version only if this is a sales hit and they think they can sell a bunch of them. If you look at the mid-size truck market the vast majority of sales are the short box version. When I bought my LWB Canyon the dealer had to scour the state to find a long box with the options I wanted. They had two dozen short box versions in stock though. Just look around in your travels and see how many trucks, of any size, are actually the long box versions. My local Ford dealer rarely has more than 3 or 4 regular cab trucks in stock out of 400, or so. The market prefers short box, four door trucks and has for quite awhile.
good point. even the f150 seems to be 80+% supercab short bed these days.
I really like it. I doubt I would ever buy one but it would do all I need a truck to do. Something like this might one day replace my Element.
What I really want is a hybrid SWB Transit Connect with a set of rear seats that fold like a Honda Element and a 4k towing capacity. But you know I am probably an group of one potential buyer.
An ST/RS version would actually be cool. I doubt I'd ever buy one but it certainly would be fun to bomb around in one. That lowered render looks snazzy and it definitely has an s10 vibe to it.
Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
Ford will build a longer bed version only if this is a sales hit and they think they can sell a bunch of them. If you look at the mid-size truck market the vast majority of sales are the short box version. When I bought my LWB Canyon the dealer had to scour the state to find a long box with the options I wanted. They had two dozen short box versions in stock though. Just look around in your travels and see how many trucks, of any size, are actually the long box versions. My local Ford dealer rarely has more than 3 or 4 regular cab trucks in stock out of 400, or so. The market prefers short box, four door trucks and has for quite awhile.
good point. even the f150 seems to be 80+% supercab short bed these days.
Makes me wonder if these people really need a truck at all, or would a minivan do just as well.
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
Minivans aren't cool and macho!
iansane said:
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
Minivans aren't cool and macho!
But they can haul a bunch of dogs or people or car parts, and they get much better gas mileage. They are cheaper.
Cheap, warranty, good mileage, can haul my kids, mountain bike, gas cans, tires, and tow a Lotus in an open trailer... Interested.
Granted, a used Ridgeline is probably more reliable, but I'm happy to see more small truck options. Up in here, 20k gets you a pre-rusty 8+ year old truck.
Is it for everyone... Nope. Could a minivan or bigger/more expensive/older truck do some things better, yup.
Edit: car market is absurd, but just checked CarMax to make sure I'm not say off base and the low $20k truck options suck. Even as a barely truck, this may work well for a lot of people.
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
Yes ! Or more likely an SUV but trucks are "In" right now. I bought mine for a variety of reasons, but I've had second thoughts about an SUV being a better choice. In two years I've hauled one engine ,one lumber order, and two or three loads of bags of mulch. An SUV with the same towing capacity would have met 99% of my needs and be a more convenient vehicle for traveling in. An SUV with IRS would ride better, too.
I wonder how much I could get for the truck in the current market.......
Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) said:
Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
Ford will build a longer bed version only if this is a sales hit and they think they can sell a bunch of them. If you look at the mid-size truck market the vast majority of sales are the short box version. When I bought my LWB Canyon the dealer had to scour the state to find a long box with the options I wanted. They had two dozen short box versions in stock though. Just look around in your travels and see how many trucks, of any size, are actually the long box versions. My local Ford dealer rarely has more than 3 or 4 regular cab trucks in stock out of 400, or so. The market prefers short box, four door trucks and has for quite awhile.
good point. even the f150 seems to be 80+% supercab short bed these days.
Makes me wonder if these people really need a truck at all, or would a minivan do just as well.
For a large number of truck buyers, they're just buying a macho minivan. Do trucks truck better when they're 8 feet tall? Are they truckier when the load height is higher? Or is it just a bunch of bros running around in Super Doodie trucks because self-awareness would have them in a Ridgeline, a Ranger, or a daggum Odyssey? I lean towards the latter and this, obviously, is not aimed at people hauling horse trailers, landscaping trailers/crews, and otherwise doing more than dancing between the rain puddles and blasting their LEDs into my eyeballs.
As for the truck in question, the front looks like an odd mishmash of a Jeep Liberty, some generic Ford, and a Dodge with the silver cross bar on the grill. I applaud Ford for making a small truck-like thing but I hate that this is what it looks like. Then again, My folks have my old '95 Dakota so if I ever need a small truck I'll go get that back and fix it up before buying a C-ute-V. A CuteV.
Looks like Hyundai needs to up their corporate espionage game as the numbers for their Santa Cruz are short of the Maverick in nearly every case.
Continuous variables...towing capacity and torque for base and higher drive trains being the only meaningful exception.
Attribute variables...AWD available with the base engine.
I think the Santa Cruz looks better but it gets waaay worse millage than the hybrid Maverick (23 mpg - ouch) and the box is about six inches shorter at its base.
Also, Hyundai will have trouble hitting Ford's price point without cannibalizing sales on their other vehicles.
I'm not rooting for either company to win but unless esthetics are a super high priority to people, I think Ford is headed for a KO victory.
Here's an autoblog article comparing the two.
Thoughts?
Error404 said:
Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) said:
Robbie (Forum Supporter) said:
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
Ford will build a longer bed version only if this is a sales hit and they think they can sell a bunch of them. If you look at the mid-size truck market the vast majority of sales are the short box version. When I bought my LWB Canyon the dealer had to scour the state to find a long box with the options I wanted. They had two dozen short box versions in stock though. Just look around in your travels and see how many trucks, of any size, are actually the long box versions. My local Ford dealer rarely has more than 3 or 4 regular cab trucks in stock out of 400, or so. The market prefers short box, four door trucks and has for quite awhile.
good point. even the f150 seems to be 80+% supercab short bed these days.
Makes me wonder if these people really need a truck at all, or would a minivan do just as well.
For a large number of truck buyers, they're just buying a macho minivan. Do trucks truck better when they're 8 feet tall? Are they truckier when the load height is higher? Or is it just a bunch of bros running around in Super Doodie trucks because self-awareness would have them in a Ridgeline, a Ranger, or a daggum Odyssey? I lean towards the latter and this, obviously, is not aimed at people hauling horse trailers, landscaping trailers/crews, and otherwise doing more than dancing between the rain puddles and blasting their LEDs into my eyeballs.
I would think most of those guys would be better off investing in a cheap beater car and putting the rest of that $70,000 on stocks and real estate. But then again how many of those people are actually putting cash into those Sooper Doodie Trucks? ARggghh. Do people actually borrow money to buy those things?
BlueInGreen - Jon said:
It’s a ute!
Has anyone complained yet that it doesn’t come with a manual? I want a Maverick RS!
Seriously though, this is what I wanted the current Ranger to be, and would be near the top of my shopping list if we needed a new dad-mobile.
Oh yeah, good point. Now I'm furious at Ford for not offering a stick in a new car I wouldn't have bought anyway.
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
When I was truck shopping , the Ford saleman and I were walking down the lot to find a particular F150 I had seen on line. As we passed a row of 12 Raptors I made a comment about how many of those they had. He said the 12 would be gone in about two weeks, and then he added "to people who can't really afford them." When I questioned him ,he said that he would show people a truck like I was looking at and then the customer would ask how much more per month a Raptor would be as they passed the row of them. Salesman admitted he didn't have to try very hard at all, the customers would talk themselves into it. He also said that 80-90% of the dealerships "sales" were actually leases and these folks would take a Raptor on extended lease plans or 84 month loans. Credit is too cheap to resist for some people.
If having a truck is really about being macho they you should absolutely shift for yourself. A manual is required. How macho is a truck with an automatic transmission and a tiny bed anyway? You might as well paint it pink and put a big red bow on top. 
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
When I was truck shopping , the Ford saleman and I were walking down the lot to find a particular F150 I had seen on line. As we passed a row of 12 Raptors I made a comment about how many of those they had. He said the 12 would be gone in about two weeks, and then he added "to people who can't really afford them." When I questioned him ,he said that he would show people a truck like I was looking at and then the customer would ask how much more per month a Raptor would be as they passed the row of them. Salesman admitted he didn't have to try very hard at all, the customers would talk themselves into it. He also said that 80-90% of the dealerships "sales" were actually leases and these folks would take a Raptor on extended lease plans or 84 month loans. Credit is too cheap to resist for some people.
Can I get a Raptor with a long bed?
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
LOL....No!! Give it up.
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
He also said that 80-90% of the dealerships "sales" were actually leases and these folks would take a Raptor on extended lease plans or 84 month loans. Credit is too cheap to resist for some people.
So you lease a vehicle that's designed to be flogged offroad? Boy that's counter-intuitive unless A - you're also making payments on a damage rider, or B - you're a poseur and it'll never see the dirt, or C - you live in la-la land and just deal with things like a massive penalty upon lease return when it happens.
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
If you really want a small truck and a 6 foot box, with a manual transmission , go buy a 2006 Scion xB, manual and build a light trailer from the 6' box of a 1972 Datsun 620. Seats four comfortably, gets 30 MPG and has no bro-truck stigma at all.
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
LOL....No!! Give it up.
If you want a longbed get a Square! Seems like they're all that's out there even though the market wants short box.
Oooo lots of judgey grumpy haters who know better than people who buy what they want.
Though, no one needs a v8 miata, or 500hp wagon, or 11 $2000 E36 M3 boxes in their yard, or a 350hp hot hatch when a regular focus exist, or a v12 jaguar at 79 years old, or a late 70s big block luxobarge. AMG and M-cars? Wow what kind of machoman complex is this!?
I shall bow to yall superior automotive financial intellect and decision making!
DeadSkunk (Warren) said:
In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :
If you really want a small truck and a 6 foot box, with a manual transmission , go buy a 2006 Scion xB, manual and build a light trailer from the 6' box of a 1972 Datsun 620. Seats four comfortably, gets 30 MPG and has no bro-truck stigma at all.
Hello, my name is Kreb and it would appear that I'm addicted to this stupid thread. That said, if Smythe would do their pickup conversion routine on a Legacy/outback wagon, you'd be able to extract a quite usable bed. In conjunction with the XT drivetrain you'd have a great light sport truck.
Also, I found the picture.
