America loves trucks, but a funny thing happened following the pandemic: midsize truck sales fell. There are many reasons why this happened, including some related to the pandemic, though the dominance of one truck still played a big part. That’s over. The midsize truck is clearly back.
The Morning Dump will not be swayed by one year of data, but the trendlines are clear. I view the pandemic as a blip and not a trend. Hyundai looks at it the same way and will be jumping out of the relatively calm pond of the compact pickup truck market into far more treacherous waters.
There’s now more than one year of data on European sales, and it’s become even clearer that Tesla is shrinking into almost a non-entity. Some of that is due to Chinese automakers, and there’s yet another one to compete with, and it has an incredible name.
What’s left? Oh, right, Škoda has been competing in motorsports for 125 years, and so they’re celebrating with a very special car.
Who Will Challenge King Tacoma?
Everyone knows the truck market is large in the United States, and full-size pickup trucks never seem to waver. Just last year, the market saw a 4.7% year-over-year sales increase in full-size and HD pickup trucks to 2.3 million units, according to TFL Trucks. An analysis by TFL Trucks also shows that, over the same period of time, the midsize truck market grew by 24.4.%.
What is going on here? Some of this, probably, is cost. Midsize trucks are generally cheaper trim-to-trim compared to full-size trucks. In a market where affordability is key, downsizing might make sense for some consumers (although loyalty data shows truck buyers aren’t moving much). Some of this is the chip shortage, which forced automakers to choose between vehicles, and higher-margin full-size trucks usually won that battle.
A lot of this is just timing. Toyota sales were down in 2024 as the automaker swapped from the previous generation truck to the new one. Still, sales were up across most vehicles, with the exception of the Frontier and the Canyon. How much of Jeep’s sales were dealers trying to move 4XE Gladitors before the expiration of the tax credit? That answer will come at the end of Q1 2026.
Just because the Tacoma seems invincible, it doesn’t mean other people aren’t trying to get involved. Ram is going to build a Tacoma fighter, as is Hyundai. The Korean automaker will drop the Santa Cruz compact truck and, in its place, probably use the Kia Tasman as a base for a body-on-frame truck.
There’s an interesting discussion that Automotive News had with former Nissan VP of Product Planning Larry Dominique about just how hard this is to do.
He had a front-row seat as the company spent hundreds of millions struggling to establish the American-made, full-size Titan pickup against the formidable Detroit 3. It ran for 20 years and two generations before Nissan pulled the plug.
“Conquesting is hard,” Dominique said.
If the timing holds, dealers would lack a pickup in their lineup for about two years. The return of Ram to the midsize segment in 2028 with a new generation of the Dakota could further complicate matters for Hyundai.
“General Motors said the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon would grow the segment. They barely did,” Dominique said. “If you bring in 50,000 or 75,000 [Hyundai pickups], are you just going to cannibalize your existing lineup?”
It’ll be fun to watch if Hyundai and Ram can build into this space without just pulling their own customers away from other vehicles. For Ram, this is an obvious risk, though less so for Hyundai.
European Car Sales Down, EVs Ok, Tesla Not Ok
You can thank EVs for keeping the European car market from falling hard this January, as numbers from the ACEA show new car registrations down 3.9% year-over-year, even as the BEV market increased by 19.3%
In January 2026, 154,230 new battery-electric cars were registered, capturing 19.3% of the EU market share. The four largest markets in the EU, which together account for 60% of battery-electric car registrations, delivered mixed results: France (+52.1%) and Germany (+23.8%) recorded strong growth, while Belgium (-11.5%) and the Netherlands (-35.4%) experienced declines.
Hybrids are still the dominant choice, though.
Chinese automakers are on the rise, seemingly gaining a ton where Tesla is falling. Looking at this year, Tesla sales fell to just 8,075 units, and that includes EU + EFTA +UK data. That’s down from 9,945 in 2025 and 18,161 registrations in 2024.
By comparison, SAIC Motor has grown from 16,807 sales in 2024 to 19,354 in January 2026. Even more impressively, BYD has grown from negligible sales in 2024 to 18,242 units in the first month of 2026.
There was always going to be some form of adjustment as Tesla faced more competition, but this fully shows that people don’t view Tesla the same way.
It’s The LEPAS L8
There’s a new luxury-ish brand from Chinese automaker Chery that’ll be selling cars in the UK. It’s called LEPAS, and the first vehicle is the L8 crossover.
What’s with the name?
LEPAS, which combines “Leopard”, “Leap” and “Passion”, has been created to resonate with those seeking authenticity, intelligent design, and a bold, elevated everyday experience. Beyond mobility, it also aims to connect with creative and culturally progressive communities who value craftsmanship, aesthetic integrity, and expressive identity.
Perfect.
Škoda Has Been Racing For 125 Years, So Check This One Out
I didn’t realize this, but Škoda started doing motorcycle races 125 years ago, which goes to show that as soon as someone has a vehicle that can be raced, they’ll race it.
To celebrate this, the Skoda Fabia RS Rally2 customer race car is getting a new look:
This package includes rear polycarbonate windows, crossmember covers for gravel and asphalt, an extra lights bag (if the extra lights are included in the purchase), six magnesium OZ rims in special colours, light engine wiring, an updated central panel, “125 Years” welcome display, and CV joint sleeves.
The anniversary pack is completed by decals in the “125 Years” design, a new Unique Dark Chrome logo on the bonnet, an interior plaque and a cloth car cover bearing the “125 Years Škoda Motorsport” logo. In addition, during the anniversary year each buyer of a new Škoda Fabia RS Rally2 will receive a selection of Škoda Motorsport merchandising items.
Someone please send me a Škoda rally jacket.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
If you are completely removed from the world, you may not have heard the song “Man I Need” from Olivia Deen. This would have been the #1 song on VH1 if it had come out 20 years ago.
The Big Question
What would be the funniest brand to come out with a midsize truck in 2028?
Top photo: Ford, GM, Hyundai, Nissan
As for funny Brand. ELIO.
Good news:
Bad news is that:
It’s definitely bad news to find out your full 8 foot wide bed is actually 2 feet wide.
Shrinkflation.
Tyope
I think it’d be pretty funny if Honda made a mid-sized truck lol, I mean could you imagine? Honda? The ones with the Civic and Accord, that’d be a hoot!
Like their biggest car is a CR-V, how could they possi….what’s that? A ‘Ridgeline’ you say? And it used to look cool like a mini Chevy Avalanche but now looks like a CR-V got rear-ended by an Isuzu Carry? Huh…weird.
“LEPAS, which combines “Leopard”, “Leap” and “Passion…” That is the silliest name since Tiguan (Tiger + Iguana)
IDK Stelantis is pretty silly.
Honestly I don’t think it’s hard for another automaker to beat the Tacoma.
Brand new, with stock wheels and tires, lightly loaded (2 people and gear for a crew cab), being driven gently, on a mild snowy off road course, the Automatic Differential Disconnect grenaded, turning a 4WD Truck into a Heavy and Expensive 2WD Truck.
Toyota’s official “fix” was to push a software update to limit power.
Toyota also makes it so you cannot get a manual transmission 2 door Tacoma, or a RWD manual transmission Tacoma.
Ram can be better than the Tacoma with the Dakota by using Jeep Transfer Cases and not artificially locking drivetrains behind certain body styles or transmission options.
Add a 10 year/100K Mile warranty to it and make it cost competitive and the Tacoma will be on shakey ground.
Also I don’t think Ram should be so quick to abandon the solid front axle of the Gladiator, while there is a IFS Dana 44 (thanks to Ford and the Bronco) I think offering an optional heavy duty front axle setup would be a massive advantage over every other midsized Truck except for the Gladiator.
The Ranger Raptor can be had for about what a Tacoma TRD O/R costs. ~55k.
With live valve shocks, more power, a proven engine, front and rear lockers, real skid plates, and on and on.
Yet people will still pay 70k+ for a TRD Pro or Trailhunter to never take it beyond a gravel road.
It is indeed hard for automakers to beat the Tacoma.
Funniest truck brand? Mercedes. No way are they jumping into that pool again.
What would be the funniest brand to come out with a midsize truck in 2028?
Ferrari, and it could be powered by Enzo rolling in his grave
That would actually be a selling point for me.
Before you can buy our Scuderia 100X Rossa Corsa FXX EditionTM you must own 2 FerrariTM trucks, a used 458TM, and at least one FerrariTM branded trailer.
Whew! Ok! For a moment I was afraid I’d have to buy the retro parachute pants.
Ferrari selling a truck for owners to tow their other Ferraris places would be completely on brand these days.
A midsize Piaggio Ape would be hilarious.
LEPAS didn’t have someone, anyone, on the marketing team tell them naming a form of transportation “Late” may not be a good idea?
Never drive one by the ocean. You might get a case of LEPASea.
Morgan. You get an all wooden bed stained to your liking. Completely rustproof, just don’t park it near termite mounds.
I, for one, can’t wait for the Maserati mid-sized truck. When it works, it won’t carry much of a load, but it will smoke the tires.
A Volvo mid-sizer wouldn’t be a bad option either.
I don’t care about more trucks, big or small.
Bring that Skoda over here. Please?
Sales swings that big are rarely driven by consumer demand – espically when it’s in an otherwise relatively stable market. Usually it’s a result of availability, which is driven by manufacturing capability and the ramp up or down of “old” inventory if an all-new vehicle is introduced and produced at the same plant because production would be lost during its changeover (and there’s usually a slower ramp up on line speed during the early production of an all-new). Another option might be that OEMs were intentionally limiting availability – a la the chip crisis – or perhaps because mid-sizers were drags on their corporate CO2 glidepath and needed to be reined in to meet their targets and/or maximize revenue from other lines (and let’s just say that the regulatory requirements are/were in flux during this time period)
I need someone to explain to me how these mid-size trucks keep getting bigger yet the back seat is almost unusable even in the crew cabs still. The beds aren’t getting longer either.
Funniest brand to bring out a truck that’s still around? Buick.
Because a truck with a usable backseat and usable bed is a full size.
To keep the term “midsize” meaning anything, it has to have a smaller cab than a full size or have a sub 4 foot bed.
I built a quad cab 80s Datsun cab. I used my ’06 Saab 92x to get a feel for approximate size of the passenger area I was shooting for. With the original King Cab bed, the wheel base on that truck is around 130 inches. So yeah, not exactly “compact” truck anymore. Just narrower than full size.
First rule of midsize truck size.
It must fit in the garage. Every other proportion is based off that.
Wild that my Maverick has more back-seat leg room than the heavy hitters in the mid-size space.
Maverick: 35.9
Colorado: 34.7
Tacoma: 33.7
Ranger: 34.6
Only the Ridgeline (36.7) and the Gladiator (38.3) have more room. Not a fan of either as the other trucks are better dailies than the Jeep and more offroad capable than the Honda.
In my Maverick, the rear facing car seat barely fits with my 5’3″ wife sitting up front. It’s a dang shame that the compact trucks are essentially non-starters for my family. I miss having a low range transfer case.
This is what ended my midsize shopping journey. My wife is 6′ and wears pants with a 35″ inseam, so her seat is allll the way back.
My daughter is growing, and on pace to be mom’s height. That ain’t gonna work in a mid size for long trips.
Why is this wild? It is absolutely typical when comparing any vehicle that is unibody vs. similarly-sized body-on-frame. Body-on-frame is great for ruggedness but hell on space efficiency. And then add in the space advantages of having a transverse, primarily front-wheel-drive powertrain vs. longitudinal RWD, and here you are.
What’s wild is that 1/2 trucks have acres of room in the back and midsizers don’t. Where’s the in-between?
It is disappointing for sure. I have a 2006 Colorado crew cab. It’s a tiny truck (207.1” long) with not a ton of leg room (34.8”) although I can fit a rear facing car seat behind me if I scoot up a bit. A new Tacoma is longer (213”) but has less rear legroom (33.7”). It’s also much bigger on all other dimensions. I just wish they would improve the packaging on those trucks because the backseat is basically unusable on most of them
I’m guessing the packaging space available for passengers and the bed is inversely proportional to the space used to make the grill and hood oversized and aggressive looking. The bigger the gaudy front end, the smaller the passenger compartment and bed.
I’ve wondered if they sacrifice back seat size to make them more gaudy and huge upfront or something.
Funniest brand to come out with a midsize pickup? Lamborghini. Next up would be Lexus, because a luxury Tacoma would be funny to me and also might be nice. I’d also love to see GM end up with three contenders: GMC/Chevy/Cadillac.
I rarely see anyone suggesting a return of the Escalade EXT….
I’ll officially suggest it.
What about a CT5-V Mirage?
As in the Mitsubishi subcompact but powered by an LT4?
If someone can make it work, more power to them.
The mid 70s Cadillac Version of the El Camino
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a19558404/oh-my-god-its-a-mirage-the-rare-70s-cadillac-pickup-thats-very-very-real/
It wouldn’t be for me as I need the back seat in mine but it might sell a couple hundred copies.
BRAT style jump seats? 😀
I’d love to see that return.
I unironically would like to see it come back.
The Lincoln Blackwood would also like to be part of this conversation.
Bring back the LM002!
Lamborghini has already done a midsize truck.
It even had 4 doors.
It was called the LM002.
Good point. Bring back the LM002, you cowards!
A lifted Urus with super wide fender flares and 13 inch wide tires? The Urus Gaddafi edition maybe
While I haven’t driven any other Lamborghinis, the LM002 is by far the biggest POS I’ve ever driven.
So with the popularity of mid-sized trucks, they will all get bigger in their next generation to the size of full sized trucks. The full size trucks will grow even bigger (like the IH XT) . The manufactures will then need to make new mid-sized trucks to replace the mid-sized trucks that got to big, (Fit below Civic like) all while we really could use actually small trucks.
You can in part blame CARB for that. Gotta push that footprint to minimize the fuel efficiency requirement. That’s part why the Tacoma, Colorado/Canyon, and Ranger all increased in wheelbase and/or track width with their recent generation updates.
CARB doesn’t have anything to do with it, are you thinking of CAFE?
Got my acronyms wrong; CAFE, yes.
I consider there to be 3 sizes of trucks. 9/10s, 10/10s, and 13/10s. Those are the options in the market.
I would laugh at a Mini Mid-sized truck.
The Porsche Ghost Pepper would be a hilarious entry into the midsize truck market. Base price of $50k but once you option it up with custom colors, graphics, and all the other trimmings it hits $150k.
Maybe a VW caddy like truck based on the Macan?
Toyota should bring the Hilux Champ to the US. Toyota wouldn’t cut into the sales for the Tacoma, they would eat the sales of F150 fleet trucks and kill the Kia/Hyundai truck before it can arrive.
You underestimate the extreme loyalty of F150 owners. It’s almost a religion to them.
Yeah, but the bottom line of companies would make up a lot of the difference. Half the cost for company trucks is hard to pass up.
True. But by that argument I would expect to see a lot more Mavericks in fleets that what is out now.
How much of Jeep’s sales were dealers trying to move 4XE Gladitors…
I don’t think there were any 4xe Gladiators or Gladitors for that matter
Nor a Kia Talisman (though that would be a cool name). More coffee, Matt!
^this^
Funniest brand to make a Midsize Pickup, Isuzu with a Diesel of course.
Kia, if you are listening, I speak on behalf of the entire US population, CHANGE THE STYLING BEFORE BRINGING IT HERE PLEASE
Groucho wants his eyebrows back!
The Funniest Brand to make a Midsize truck, you say?
ACME, a sub-brand of Warner Bros. A Stellantis spinoff of AMC (“The new Eagle pickup”) or a revival of Studebaker (it’s just a fun name to say) would be close seconds.
How about a midsize Lambo or Ferrari truck?
I read the headline and got excited. I then immediately got sad when you started talking about the Tacoma and remembering that modern midsize trucks are abominations that I have no interest in.
Same. They are full of computers and plastic and turbos, and if these writers keep calling them “tough” they should be laughed off.
A-greed. When the cab is most of the vehicle, it’s just an open-backed SUV.
It’s gotten to the point that I look at long beds like they are freaks when actually they are the true normal trucks.
Exactly. That’s what I wanted, and is why I’ve owned two Ridgelines.
An overweight sedan with the trunk lid left off.
Though, my actual measure for this would now be whether the bed clearly starts outside of the wheelbase like the Maverick. Why is there no two-door Maverick? Because, I’m convinced, the Ford C2 platform wouldn’t allow it; and if it did, the bed wouldn’t be any longer.
Porsche or Buick. A midsize truck from either one would be pure nonsense.