Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Pickups are more popular than ever, but something's wrong. What happened to our small, affordable trucks, and whose fault is it anyway?
Today our roads are full of massive full-size pickups that barely fit in a parking space anymore, and still get bigger every year. “Midsize” pickups are now as big as full-size trucks were 20 years ago. Meanwhile, truly small pickups have all but disappeared, even though they’re still popular in the rest of the world. Why?
The typical narrative blames American buyers. We keep buying these huge trucks, so automakers keep cranking up the size and making more of them because that’s what sells here. There is *some* truth there.
But it’s not even close to the full story, and the fact that last year 155,000 people bought a Ford Maverick—the only real compact pickup left—proves it. People would show up if car companies made useful, practical, and inexpensive small trucks again. But they just… don’t anymore. Even companies like Chevy and Ram build compact trucks for other markets and refuse to sell them here.
In reality, the reason small trucks died out in America comes down to one thing: regulations. Specifically, the federal government’s CAFE fuel economy standard, which was updated in 2010 in a way that began pushing automakers to build bigger and bigger pickups by making it financially unworkable to build small ones anymore. Pretty much the opposite of what it was supposed to do. Shocker.
But CAFE was basically abolished last year, so does that mean the path is clear to a mini truck revival? Not quite—but there are some companies preparing to give it a shot again by the end of the decade. Fingers crossed.
Produced by → instagram.com/joeyrassool
Hosted by → instagram.com/kylecheromcha
Previous episode → youtube.com/watch?v=26-4oARwfF4
The Drive is the chronicle of car culture. We write stories you actually want to read. → thedrive.com
FOLLOW US!
Instagram → instagram.com/thedrive
Facebook → facebook.com/thedrive
TikTok → tiktok.com/@thedrive_official
WORK WITH US → youtube@thedrive.com
0:00 Don't blame the buyer
1:35 Dodging the chicken tax
2:50 Golden age of small trucks
5:38 Regulations take their toll
10:23 Can small trucks come back?
Pickups are more popular than ever, but something's wrong. What happened to our small, affordable trucks, and whose fault is it anyway?
Today our roads are full of massive full-size pickups that barely fit in a parking space anymore, and still get bigger every year. “Midsize” pickups are now as big as full-size trucks were 20 years ago. Meanwhile, truly small pickups have all but disappeared, even though they’re still popular in the rest of the world. Why?
The typical narrative blames American buyers. We keep buying these huge trucks, so automakers keep cranking up the size and making more of them because that’s what sells here. There is *some* truth there.
But it’s not even close to the full story, and the fact that last year 155,000 people bought a Ford Maverick—the only real compact pickup left—proves it. People would show up if car companies made useful, practical, and inexpensive small trucks again. But they just… don’t anymore. Even companies like Chevy and Ram build compact trucks for other markets and refuse to sell them here.
In reality, the reason small trucks died out in America comes down to one thing: regulations. Specifically, the federal government’s CAFE fuel economy standard, which was updated in 2010 in a way that began pushing automakers to build bigger and bigger pickups by making it financially unworkable to build small ones anymore. Pretty much the opposite of what it was supposed to do. Shocker.
But CAFE was basically abolished last year, so does that mean the path is clear to a mini truck revival? Not quite—but there are some companies preparing to give it a shot again by the end of the decade. Fingers crossed.
Produced by → instagram.com/joeyrassool
Hosted by → instagram.com/kylecheromcha
Previous episode → youtube.com/watch?v=26-4oARwfF4
The Drive is the chronicle of car culture. We write stories you actually want to read. → thedrive.com
FOLLOW US!
Instagram → instagram.com/thedrive
Facebook → facebook.com/thedrive
TikTok → tiktok.com/@thedrive_official
WORK WITH US → youtube@thedrive.com
0:00 Don't blame the buyer
1:35 Dodging the chicken tax
2:50 Golden age of small trucks
5:38 Regulations take their toll
10:23 Can small trucks come back?
