There seems to be a large segment of truck buyers that would prefer a much smaller truck considering the new ones are so big they're all but worthless. Ever try to get something outa the bed of a new one? Ford quit the Ranger and decided not to bring the global Ranger to town claiming it would be priced the same as the F150. So GM is bringing the Colorado and the GMC Canyon to market to compete with the Taco and Frontier. GM apparently has been listening and touring the websites as they are putting a 6 speed manual in the Canyon per GM President. With the 305HP V6, they are estimating 28 mpgs with this package. With the smaller package this should be quite the screamer unless GM does like Ford did with the Sport Trac 4.6 and limit the throttle via computer mapping. So do you like the package? How about the mid size versus being a small truck like the old Ranger. Would you be a player for a mid sized truck even at the same price as the F150?

 

If the price was the same as a F-150, I would not consider it. But I might if there were a 4 cyl option that would get good fuel economy.

 

Nope, Ford torpedoed this ship below the waterline with the new F-150. The new 3.5L and 2.7EB should get equal mileage with the lighter body and will offer a more capable truck for the same money. The small truck market is pretty small since most buyers shop based on value and a bigger, more capable truck with equal mileage for the same price is clearly a better value for most buyers. There's a reason Ford dropped the F-100 proposal from a few years ago and put the kibosh to the global Ranger in the US. Volkswagen makes a solid small truck and they refuse to bring it here for the exact same reason. Government Motors is gambling with someone else’s money, of course they can take risks.

 

Owned small pickups in the past including a 4.0 Ranger, and the size suits my needs just fine. If Ford could make a small truck for 10%-20% lower price and with 10%-20% better mpg than an F150, I'd be very interested. But if the price and mpg are the same as an F150, I'd go with the bigger truck.

It would be nice to have a small truck choice from Ford, but if they can't make it cheaper and more fuel efficient, they will just be siphoning off sales from the F150. Losing 70,000 sales of the F150 to gain 75,000 sales of a small PU is probably a net loss for Ford.

So, what's the expected price on the 305 hp, 28 mpg six speed manual GMC Canyon?

 

The front half looks an awful lot like the Ridgeline!

 

I think Ford lately has made some marketing blunders. Killing the Ranger was one. No redesign in over a decade but they still couldnt be found in dealers show rooms they were selling as fast as they came in at the end. The Crown Vic was another one. Your not selling enough but you at least control the fleet market and again no refresh in over a decade. They could have held the police and taxi market and picked up sales to the public if they just freashened it up and gave it the new 5.0 and eco boost 6. Looks like there doing the same deal with the econoline. Then some of the cars they have came out with lately just arent doing it for me. The fleet replacement for the police and taxi market leaves one yearning for the Vic..

 

I've had a few small trucks, I'll never go back to one. As for getting things out of the bed I look at it differently, putting stuff into the bed. My truck is mostly for work and the 6.5 ft bed on my scab bugs me, but I like the cab room.

 

And that is the very problem with the small truck market. The cost to build one is almost the exact same as making a big truck, possibly higher. The fixed engineering, testing and certification costs are all the same. The small truck doesn't have anything close to it in the marketplace to offset the development costs. The difference in materials used is the only savings and it really isn't more than a few hundred bucks tops. At the end of the day a little truck will cost the same as a big one. Other than being easier to park the little truck has very little to bring to the table.

 

The continued success of the Taco in this country proves that there is a huge market for a mid sized pickup! Ford dropped the ball not offering the Ranger in this country! They are too wrapped up in their F-150 & have in my opinion have become arrogant in their thinking that everybody wants or needs a full size truck! I know many people who prefer a smaller truck for many reasons! If I did not pull a trailer a small truck would suit my needs however I like to have more truck than trailer when towing. Hats off to GM for offering what looks like a great looking truck in this segment & for bringing a diesel power plant to boot! Fords loss!

 

If it comes in a stick I'll go check it out. Ford's biggest blunder in my rare opinion is droppin' the clutch for a girly slushbox.

Adrianspeeder

 

Bingo. Well said Wookie. I will say, some people pay big money for those Tacomas. They hit $35-40k+ no problem in the loaded double cabs. What I chalk that up to is being a poor consumer. How someone could swallow that much coin on such a small truck is beyond me. It's like buying a thing of meat. Nearly the same price, but the 4lb is a better deal than the 3 lb per ounce. Also, with the mpg pathetic in those smaller trucks, the benefits of a more powerful and larger full-size increase. While I would love to see an updated diesel ranger here, from a financial point of view as Wookie stated, it's like shooting yourself in the foot.

 

My ex-coworker and friend who bought my 2000 F150 from me in 2005 replaced it last year. He wanted a shorter truck, one that was short enough to fit in his garage. Every vehicle he has owned has been a Ford or Lincoln and he put close to 200k on all of them. No Ranger. He liked the Taco and test drove the Taco, Nissan, and a leftover Colorado. And then he test drove a Honda Ridgeline. The Ridgeline had so much more room inside, that made the decision for him. He is now a new Ridgeline owner.

 

Did he trade his nuts in as a down payment?

 

A Ridgeline is an excellent car with an open trunk. Suits the needs of over half the truck owners out there.

 

He's a big Honda fan from other vehicles he has had, motorcycles mostly. He bought a used 1978 Honda CB750 with 20k miles on it for $400 and put another 100k miles on it. I told him I didn't really think of a Ridgeline as a truck think it was more like an SUV with a bed where the third seat would be. The magazine writers went nuts over the Ridgeline when I came out. It's supposed to have a really rigid frame. He probably misses my old truck a little I suspect.
He's also a wild man on his 500cc dirt bike and his turbocharged personal watercraft. He just doesn't take his wild riding to the highway after having almost killed himself many times on a sport bike. He won't allow himself to own a street motorcycle any more.