By now, we can firmly say that compact trucks are back in America. The Ford Maverick continues to be an absolutely segment-breaking vehicle, while the Hyundai Santa Cruz is still out here posting respectable numbers for something more lifestyle-oriented. However, it won’t be a two-horse race forever because Motor Trend reports that a small unibody pickup truck from Toyota is on its way, and it seems like it may be worth the wait.
With the Maverick’s popularity, Toyota has watched the segment grow—and it’s a segment it doesn’t compete in but would like to. Cooper Ericksen, Toyota Motor North America’s head of planning and strategy, told MotorTrend the automaker is building the truck. “Decisions have been made,” he said. “The question is when we can slot it in. It’s not a matter of ‘if’ at this point.”
Reading between the lines here, Toyota seeing the instant success of the Ford Maverick in 2021 and not deciding that “when” is “ASAP” has to be one of the bigger bag fumbles in recent history, but Toyota has the goods to do it properly. Not only does the company have a cult-like truck fanbase and the TNGA platforms, it also has several excellent hybrid powertrains that can do stuff Ford’s can and stuff the Maverick can’t.
The 2.5-liter naturally aspirated four-cylinder hybrid powertrain in the RAV4 would be a perfect match against the Maverick’s hybrid system, but Toyota also offers the Direct4 hybrid powertrain, a 2.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine with a conventional automatic transmission and electrification, good for a combined 340 horsepower. Oh, and then there’s the plug-in hybrid powertrain offered in the RAV4, which adds a bigger battery pack and grid charging equipment to the 2.5-liter naturally aspirated hybrid setup to produce 320 combined horsepower and run around town on electric power alone.
Alright, so Toyota doesn’t offer a mechanical all-wheel-drive system in any transverse hybrid application, but will most consumers care? The through-the-road all-wheel-drive system of a small electric motor on the rear axle will be enough for many, especially considering compact trucks are primarily used as everyday cars or light-duty service trucks.
What’s more, Toyota has made unibody truck concepts before. There was the A-BAT concept of 2007, a hybrid unibody truck that would’ve been massively ahead-of-the-curve. However, that doesn’t mean Toyota hasn’t been working on a similar project recently. In 2023, the marque showed off something called the EPU concept, and while it was purportedly electric, I wouldn’t be surprised if a future compact truck from Toyota looks something like it in some way.
After all, if the EPU was just a show car, why would it have real mirrors, or amber reflectors in the headlights, or bumper shut lines, or a full interior with production-looking seats? Sure, a production-spec small truck probably won’t be all-electric, but the EPU looks like more than just a rough first draft. Either way, Motor Trend predicts that Toyota’s small truck is on its way for 2027 for a starting price around $30,000 and hybridization. That’s about the time Ford expects to have its $30,000 electric pickup truck ready, but given how not everyone is ready to go battery electric, Toyota’s hybrid should have plenty of sales potential.
Top graphic image: Toyota
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Makes sense. Need something to get people in the door and, “on the treadmill.”
What will do that? Something they can make payments on that they’re happy with.
The idea of this pickup is a good one, but I’m so tired of projected selling prices. Nobody can truly believe they can bring this to market for $30,000. It’s so insulting.
Keep ‘em coming.
Make it look like an 80s pickup and it will sell like crazy.
Also throw Subaru a version for a new BRAT
The ideal is Marty McFly’s truck with a hybrid 4×4 drivetrain
Or a Baja
So, that will be about 6 years after the Maverick. A model takes about 5 years to get to market, there was COVID when the Maverick debuted, so they might have wanted to see how real world successful it would be, and nobody else seems to be jumping into this obvious space. Minus not recognizing the space in the first place, I’d say Toyota is pretty on the ball here. For AWD, many people buying it in these classes only think they need it (as evidenced by the success of BS part-time reactive systems and Toyota’s own hybrid AWD setup or even people with FWD CUVs that they think are AWD), so the motor on the rear axle should be fine, plus they might be able to bump up its power a little and allow it to do more work than with their cars if they feel it’s necessary.
Hyundai Santa cruz should be cheaper.
Well, as someone who owned 2 Toyota compact pick-ups and is in the market for a small weekend electric/hybrid truck this gives me some hope. I just don’t want a 4-door! Give me a standard cab with a decent size bed. Toyota only sold about a zillion of those in years past. I can’t say I’m holding out much hope for either Slate or Telo to come through for me. Maybe when I retire in a few years I can buy an old Toyota or Ranger and do an electric conversion – how hard could that be?
You’ll get 4 doors and a 3.5ft bed and like it.
RAV4 with a parcel shelf.
I’m quite the opposite. I’m building a custom mid 80s Datsun 720 quad cab since we never got those here in the states. But since I don’t want to shorten the bed, wheel base is going from 111 inch to 130 inch, and the total length is getting pretty big. Narrow but still long. Gonna be awesome
Like a Dachshund.
I think even nissan will not pair the king cab and long box. Heck a f150 regular cab log box is about the smallest thing going in 2 door with real box length.
I’m shocked that:
1). Ford was the only manufacturer to notice that there were no affordable, reasonably sized trucks on the market
And
2). 4 years later no one else has one yet
I mean I get it to an extent. Corporate greed/line go up/we need to force everyone to drive $70,000 behemoths because we make the best margins on them and motherfuck our customers, stupid dumb idiots/etc.
But shit. You can make money on lower margin/higher volume products. I don’t necessarily even think all of the Maverick’s success is due to it being a truck necessarily…it’s just a useful, efficient vehicle you can drive off a lot for less than $30,000.
People want and need those!
The Hyundai Santa cruz just does not count. too car like and too expensive?
Too expensive, too weird, and most of all….no hybrid option
2). 4 years later no one else has one yet
I know its not exactly the same price point, but the Santa Cruz is technically a pickup truck in that size
Geezus.
I hope Slate announces a small hatchback next. Then we can get automakers announcing their responses and maybe a few will actually make it to reality.
Slate is DOA.
I don’t need them to make it, just announce it and show a prototype.
The straw man
I love Slate, but Ford and Toyota have been working on these for at least a couple years now. I don’t think it has anything to do with the current Slate hype.
As far as I’m concerned, these are a direct result of the Slate announcement.
If we can get them to announce a 5 door hatchback or mid sized wagon, we’re good.
Slate announced in April, both Toyta and Ford have releases targeted for 2027. It take more than 2 years to bring a new vehicle to market. They’ve been working on this for at least a couple years now.
Maverick could hit tariff issues? Who knows? Toyota would be smart, given the current climate, to build this in the States.
Will the hood be 9 ft in the air and the grill the size of a billboard to cosplay in the rugged macho lifestyle?
Only in the US market.
American ‘alfas’ are fragile.
Alfas are fragile the world over. Italian cars don’t have a reputation for being reliable.
Ambassador Andrei Lysenko: There is another matter… one I’m reluctant to…
Dr. Jeffrey Pelt: Please.
Ambassador Andrei Lysenko: One of our submarines, an Alfa, was last reported in the area of the Grand Banks. We have not heard from her for some time.
Dr. Jeffrey Pelt: Andrei, you’ve lost another submarine?
The spelling was intentional for that very reason.
2 years like EV solar trikes or flying cars?
I hope it’s as good or better than the Maverick. The Maverick is incredibly compelling in most ways, minus the reliability and iffy build quality (I own one); it does truck things well enough. If they can market it more like a truck and less like a lifestyle vehicle (cough cough Santa Cruz), they will sell many. I hope they make one with some light offroad chops (slight lift, lockable diff) as something like that would be perfect for my use case.
I love the Maverick in almost every way but the tiny back seats make it a non-starter for us. If you have kids in car seats it’s a no-go, and unfortunately so is the Bronco Sport, which I also like. Hell most “mid sized” trucks can’t even fit car seats or adults in their back seats.
The packaging is just laughably bad because everyone is obsessed with making sure the trucks like MUSCULAR AND INTIMIDATING or whatever. Suffice to say…if Toyota gives it a real back seat it’ll be a runaway success, because I know I’m not the only person that would consider using the right small truck as an enthusiast dad car if it existed.
Interesting you say that. The Maverick works (just) for our case and 1 backwards carseat. The Maverick also has 2″ more rear seat legroom than a Ranger and 4″ more than the Tacoma.
I see “Two Years Away” in the headline and automatically assume it flies too….
I see “two years away” and assume that here in third world Yee Haw land we’ll all be mandated by the state to finance $70,000 body on frame behemoths by then….
Toyota absolutely dropped the ball with this one.
It’ll most likely be the rebirth of the Stout. Hopefully Toyota doesn’t make it too ugly like they did with the new Tundra, Tacoma, and 4Runner.
In all fairness, the stout from the early 70’s was pretty ugly compared to the Datsun, Ford, and Chevy offerings at the time.
https://static.carfromjapan.com/car_25675094-36c7-4831-b3c5-b35b018ed01f_640_0