Dear John: Small pickup trucks

Story by John LeBlanc They drink a lot of expensive fuel and they aren’t exactly easy to drive or manoeuvre, but it seems sales of full-sized pickup trucks just keep increasing in Canada. Not all truck buyers are looking for full-sized capabilities, however, and that’s the case with this month’s Dear John letter. Randy Campbell from St. Catharine’s, Ont., wrote to me that he’s looking for a replacement for his 2010 Dodge Dakota, a smaller version of the Ram full-sized truck. Unlike a lot of truck buyers, Randy uses his mini-pickup’s maximum capabilities. Twice a year, Randy tows a loaded, 5,000-pound trailer to and from Pennsylvania, south of the border. In addition to its lacklustre towing performance, he has not been happy with his Dakota’s overall load capacity. Randy wrote that his current Dodge becomes “inadequate” after adding loading a 600-lb payload in its rear bed. He also felt that once the payload weight was added, the Dakota’s brakes “become borderline.” From a powertrain standpoint, Randy recognized his needs require the extra oomph of a larger displacement six-cylinder engine instead of a four-cylinder. Within his $30,000 to $35,000 budget, Randy would also prefer an automatic instead of a manual transmission, and all-wheel-drive instead of rear-wheel-drive. He says he only drives about 15,000 kilometres annually. “I really don't travel enough or commute long distances,” Randy mentions, so competent hauling capabilities for his next small truck are more important than fuel economy. As for choices in the market, the small truck segment has become rather barren the past few years. All three American automakers — Ford, General Motors and  Chrysler — make a lot of profit on their wildly popular full-sized models, resulting in discounted pricing. The result has been buyers simply opting for full-sized trucks for the same price as smaller models. With the Dakota departing in 2011, and the Ford Ranger and Chevrolet Colorado/GMC Canyon twins cancelled last year, there are only three small truck candidates for Randy to pick from: the 2013 Honda Ridgeline, Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma. Essentially a pickup version of the first-generation Honda Pilot mid-sized crossover, the 2013 Ridgeline continues with few changes from the 2006 original. The Honda truck comes only as a five-passenger, four-door cab style, with a 3.5-litre V6 and five-speed automatic transmission with all-wheel-drive as standard kit. The base model Honda Pilot DX starts at $36,630 ( all prices include freight and pre-delivery inspection charge). Next up is the $28,913 2013 Nissan Frontier King Cab 4X4. While a four-door Crew Cab is available, carrying four onboard is not one of Randy’s priorities. A less powerful four-cylinder is available, but we’ll go with the optional 4.0L V6. My third candidate is the $29,965 2013 Toyota Tacoma 4X4 Access Cab V6. Like the Nissan, a four-banger and a four-door cab style are available, but I’m recommending the optional 4.0L V6 mated to a four-speed autobox with the two-door Access Cab to better suit Randy’s budget. Compared to the Nissan and Toyota, the unibody Honda offers the most refined and roomiest cabin, and a unique rear cargo bed that comes with a water-tight storage area. And because it's based on a unibody crossover, the Ridgeline’s driving characteristics are much more refined than the body-on-frame Tacoma and Frontier. But with the least amount of towing capacity (only 5,000 lbs, compared to the Nissan and Toyota’s 6,500-lb ratings), and a price that’s just over Randy’s budget, the Honda truck is the first to be dropped from our short list. As the Nissan and Toyota are truer rivals than the oddball Honda, the differences between the pair are smaller. Both have their merits. The only areas I see the Tacoma beating the Nissan is interior build quality and fuel economy. Rated at 14.8 L/100 km in the city and 10.5 on the highway, the Nissan truck sips more than either the Tacoma (12.9/9.6) or the Ridgeline (12.6/9.6), but on-paper, the Nissan is the better replacement for your Dakota, Randy. For less money than the Tacoma, the Frontier offers more power, more gears in its transmission, more overall payload capacity, and a more sophisticated braking system. For starters, the Frontier’s V6 (hooked up to a five-speed autobox, one more gear than the Tacoma) makes the most power here: a robust 261 horsepower and 281 pound-feet (compared to the Honda’s 250 hp and 247 lb-ft numbers and the Toyota’s 236 hp and 266 lb-ft). The powerful six allows the Nissan to not only match the Toyota’s towing limit, but also offer a higher overall vehicle payload weight (the amount of weight the truck can carry inside its cabin and its rear cargo bed) — 1,437 lbs, compared to the Tacoma’s 1,159-lb rating. As well, the Frontier comes with disc brakes front and rear, whereas the Toyota uses a front disc/rear drum setup. In the end, Randy, the 2013 Nissan Frontier is your best bet. If you’re in the market for a new car, and would like to be the subject of a Dear John consultation, please contact John LeBlanc at editors@straight-six.com

Comments