Diesel confirmed in new Chevy Colorado.

[handirifle]

I have an 06 (first generation) Tundra. The second gen TACOMAS are almost as big as my Tundra. Yes they have all grown much larger, and thus chasing the almighty god of EPA standards has become even more difficult.

Renze
Excellent post.

Milo
Wasn't dissing your idea of a unibody, just that to me a unibody and 1000lb payload don't mix. My 1/2 Tundra does a serious squat with 1000lbs in the bed, and it's NOT a unibody. It's NOT a super duty either but even with overload springs 1500lbs sets it on the bumpers. 1,000 lbs would be a tall order for a unibody.

 

[Renze]

Renze
Excellent post.

thanks

Wasn't dissing your idea of a unibody, just that to me a unibody and 1000lb payload don't mix. My 1/2 Tundra does a serious squat with 1000lbs in the bed, and it's NOT a unibody. It's NOT a super duty either but even with overload springs 1500lbs sets it on the bumpers. 1,000 lbs would be a tall order for a unibody.

A friend of mine from Finland had a Ford Sierra which has been converted by a local shop to a pickup. With a full barrel of oil (the big type, 208 liter) placed above the rear axle, you could feel the chassis buckle right behind the cab at every pothole... Though a lot of Swedish bodybuilders converted Volvo 740's to pickup, which seem to be allright. Off course back in the 80s a Ford unibody was not comparable to a Volvo unibody, only later designs like the Scorpio or Mondeo could hold a candle to a 70's Volvo unibody.

1000lbs can be handled in an estate (or wagon) but a unibody pickup misses the structure of roof and side windows that hold it together.

 

[Milo]

Milo
Wasn't dissing your idea of a unibody, just that to me a unibody and 1000lb payload don't mix. My 1/2 Tundra does a serious squat with 1000lbs in the bed, and it's NOT a unibody. It's NOT a super duty either but even with overload springs 1500lbs sets it on the bumpers. 1,000 lbs would be a tall order for a unibody.

I dunno, it may be a bit high but I still think 1,000# cargo capacity is doable in a unibody designed for that. Heck three fat people in the back of a Civic may weigh 800# , and unibody minivans are designed to carry 8 people!

I've been driving an 04 Tundra for 10 years now (V6, 5-speed). Payload on it is 1,565 including passengers so 1,000# in the bed would be what it is rated for.
I almost pulled the trigger on a 13 Frontier but am now thinking of waiting a year hopeful that there'll be a new Tacoma or Frontier. OTOH there's something to be said for reliability on vehicles toward the end of their model run....

 

[daugen]

after I started participating in this thread, I started looking around out on the roads for older Japanese pickups.
There weren't many, not up here in the Rust Belt. Maybe in California or Nevada? But the few I saw really were smaller.
Never a four door stretch anything, just a basic two door short/medium bed p/u. My BIL owned one for ages until it wouldn't pass inspection due to body rot, from within... What a neat truck that was, dark blue Toyota stripper, blue cloth bench seat, two wheel drive and a five speed manual. didn't handle particularly well, likely more due to cheap tires on it, but it was compact enough to seem fun to drive. The two wheel drive small p/u's back then sat pretty low to the ground too, more like Subaru wagons than trucks. The 4wd versions were plenty jacked up though.

Not all of us, including yours truly, can afford a Unimog. We all want to get the most and the best value for our price point.
I have a utility steel one ton capacity trailer so I don't care anymore about truck capacity, other than towing. But before that, I had a Nissan Frontier and boy what a nice truck that was Milo. Really fun to drive, but sucked gas like the big boys.
Nissan makes zillions of small diesels worldwide, why can't we get one in the Frontier? Boy would that be a nice option and I bet it wouldn't cost seven grand either. hey, it's standard in most other countries...it's our big three who want to overcharge us for the pleasure of owning a diesel.

 

[Scooby074]

Daugen, I agree.

There is definitely a group on here who wants a compact, no frills, diesel.

I have a 93 Tacoma. I love its compact size. Love the manual too. No frills cloth interior. It looks small beside a current Taco, and absolutely puny beside a Tundra. We all dont need or want massive rigs loaded to the nuts with (mostly) useless gadgets that drive up the price point.

Can you even get a diesel in a stripper 3/4 ton from the big 3? What about this new Colorado, can it be had with a manual, base interior with the diesel, or will the diesel only be on the top of the line with a bit premium on top, like Jeep is doing?

 

[3930dave]

Daugen, I agree.

There is definitely a group on here who wants a compact, no frills, diesel.

I have a 93 Tacoma. I love its compact size. Love the manual too. No frills cloth interior. It looks small beside a current Taco, and absolutely puny beside a Tundra. We all dont need or want massive rigs loaded to the nuts with (mostly) useless gadgets that drive up the price point.

Can you even get a diesel in a stripper 3/4 ton from the big 3? What about this new Colorado, can it be had with a manual, base interior with the diesel, or will the diesel only be on the top of the line with a bit premium on top, like Jeep is doing?

From what I've read, the new Colorado is slushbox only. Pretty much rules it out for me.

Rgds, D.

 

[Fordman1981]

Daugen, I agree. There is definitely a group on here who wants a compact, no frills, diesel. I have a 93 Tacoma. I love its compact size. Love the manual too. No frills cloth interior. It looks small beside a current Taco, and absolutely puny beside a Tundra. We all dont need or want massive rigs loaded to the nuts with (mostly) useless gadgets that drive up the price point. Can you even get a diesel in a stripper 3/4 ton from the big 3? What about this new Colorado, can it be had with a manual, base interior with the diesel, or will the diesel only be on the top of the line with a bit premium on top, like Jeep is doing?

To answer your question can you get a stripped down 3/4 from the big 3. Yes you can I have a 2012 st package 6.7 diesel 6 speed manual. On the base package you get cruise, power windows and locks. It is the nicest base truck I have ever had but you save a ton of money on the base price.

 

[buickanddeere]

Nissan and and Toyota does sell a bunch of turbo intercooled diesel 4xx4 vans and 4x4 pickups .in counties in particular where the engine has no EGR, no cat, no particulate filter and no urea injection. Earlier this year we overloaded such vehicles and climbed rough mountain roads with surprising speed in Haiti. We even passed a cop car with lights and siren that was pursuing another vehicle. Speed on the new highways along the coast was 70mph with more in reserve. Fine machines indeed.
I never did find out what a new TI diesel 4x4 cost cash in Portaprince. Pretty reasonable I would expect.
Also seen a lot of newish heavy trucks and equipment in Haiti that had been shipped from California. Cheaper to sell or donate than to make emissions legal.

 

[daugen]

one thing I've always wondered about was the focus on highway mpg on trucks. Yet many trucks in urban/suburban areas likely rarely get above fifty mph. A truck is certainly not an economical go to travel vehicle if capacity is not needed, and many families have an SUV, minivan or large sedan that will people haul much more effectively and comfortably. And since station wagons seem to be making a come back of sorts, need to include them too. The simple fact is that trucks not used to their capacity are probably the most fuel inefficient choice of them all.

Seems to me that they are measuring "vacation" mileage for many of us when our reality is more stop and go and under 50 around town.

Just wondering if the real life combined mpg for light trucks ought to be much more weighted to city mpg than what the advertising is touting.

 

[daugen]

Earlier this year we overloaded such vehicles and climbed rough mountain roads with surprising speed in Haiti. We even passed a cop car with lights and siren that was pursuing another vehicle.

Oh would I love to see a video of that. did you offer to throw a chain and pull him faster up the hill?