I think he was talking about 1/2 tons. 3/4 and 1 ton I think is a different story. At least around here they are usually owned by farmers, construction companies, lawn and landscape, etc...

 

Yes I was.

For me and a lot of 1/2 ton buyers; a pick-up is just a good, enjoyable, every-day driver and grocery getter...I have one for a number of reasons but it has very little to do with hauling/towing or any true "need" for a pick-up. When it comes to traveling in comfort, I'd take my Titan any day over my 350Z (the 350 sold last Tuesday for those keeping score).

I started buying pick-ups rather than cars when all but a few cars became extreemly uninteristing to me...any time I couldn't afford to have two vehicles, my "one" vehicle was always a pick-up because they were at least more interesting to drive than 90% of the cars on the market.

I don't think I was alone in that - GM, Ford and Dodge responded to the trend I was part of with interiors and options that at one time you wouldn't have seen on a Cadillac...the market for pick-ups for business/construction/etc was still there but as I siad before, the real growth in the market came from people like me who bought pick-up because they liked them; not because they had to have one.

 

Yeah. It is real interesting when you try to take a real turn at more than 3 mph in a truck. That is why people like to drive them. It is exciting

 

Actually there is a class for 2WD trucks in Solo2 - it's quite intereting to watch someone who knows how to drive thrash around an autocross course in a 1/2 ton.

 

And about the same for Dodge as well. Last I heard, GM was running well under 50%, but that's probably limited by: 1) the supply of the 'max (as someone else noted); 2) the lingering reputation of the 6.5L; and 3) the definitely-not-crappy 6.0L. GM has also been pushing its gas offerings to commercial customers.

Anyways, not sure what this has to do with the topic at hand - Toyota is (was) rumored to be bringing in a monster oilburner from its Hino division, and Nissan was supposed lining up International as a source. Both seemed to realize that a diesel was essential in this market.

I think the real reason is the downturn in the housing market - there is a strong statistical relationship between truck sales and home sales, and now would not be a wise time to blow a billion bucks or so on developing something new for a market that is soon to be oversupplied.

 

Being a truck guy myself, spending my childhood in the hills of Kentucky, trucks and SUV's out sold cars 2 to 1. And I can tell you from experience with horseshoe curves, they can take a curve, if maintained.

Chevy tends to make their trucks corner better at the expense of a large turning radius, where Ford's turn around on a dime, but a high speed curve might be dangerous, or used to be...it's in how they change camber while the wheel turns through its arc, the wheel positive cambers.

The ride of today's truck are extremely well compared to the, say, '80's. Being RWD and heavier, with larger diameter, tall profile tires, makes the suprisingly smooth on the street. And if you load them down a little, they ride even better..
I just rode up to the store in my in-laws Honda and noticed how much rougher the ride was compared to my Park Ave...I can see how people would buy a truck for comfort.