How To Find Your Perfect Pickup Truck: A Comprehensive Guide

The truck market has gotten quite crowded in recent years with all types of trucks to choose between. Narrowing one down can be a difficult prospect. 

Are you trying to decide between the 2024 Nissan Frontier vs Titan or the Ford F-150 vs the Ranger? The choice may be harder than it looks.

Let’s take a look.

Something For Everyone

Trucks are no longer just work vehicles with only a few trims and the basic choice between big and small. These days, trucks come in all sizes from the compact Hyundai Santa Cruz to the large HD trucks from the Big Three automakers. A wide variety of powertrains are available, including diesel, regular gas, hybrid, and electric. If you want to tow and haul, you’ll likely be looking at full-size trucks or HD trucks depending on what you need. If you’re looking for off-road capability, you’ll likely be looking at trucks like the Nissan Frontier, Jeep Gladiator, or Toyota Tacoma.

Types of Pickup Trucks

Before you start looking, it’s important to be honest about what you need in a truck. If you don’t need huge towing or hauling ability, then you might want to pass over the larger trucks for something more fuel-efficient and easier to maneuver. Most traditional body-on-frame pickups come in a variety of cab and bed sizes, while smaller unibody pickups like the Honda Ridgeline and Ford Maverick are more limited. Smaller trucks usually start for prices under $30,000. Medium-size trucks with 4WD are somewhere in the $40,000 range. Meanwhile, full-size and HD trucks can soar in price quickly to well past $50,000.

Work or Play or Both?

Compared to other vehicles, pickup trucks come in far more configurations and layouts. If you’re looking for a work truck, you might consider an extended cab or regular cab layout. If your truck is a daily driver and you need passenger space, then a crew cab is the way to go. Crew cabs have full-size doors in the rear that make it easier to get in and out. However, crew cab trucks typically have smaller bed sizes. If you plan to tow with your new truck, make sure you consider its towing capacity based on what you want to tow. This can make all the difference in narrowing something down.

Power and Efficiency

Small and midsize trucks might not have many engine choices, but full-size trucks typically have several engine choices. How do you choose between them? Again, it comes down to what you plan to do. For example, if you decide on a Ford F-150 and aren’t sure if you want the turbocharged V6 or one of the V8 choices, ask yourself what your needs are. If you want to tow, then you’re better off getting a V8. If your priorities are good acceleration and better fuel economy, then you should opt for the V6.

Off-Road or On-Road?

Most trucks come in either a RWD configuration or RWD with 4WD. If you plan to go off-road, you’ll obviously want a 4WD. However, there are a few things to consider. A 4WD truck model typically costs more than its 2WD counterpart. Most trucks have a range of towing capacities based on the powertrain and configuration. It’s almost always the case that a 2WD model represents the highest towing capacity on a particular truck.

Because of how versatile trucks are, it’s crucial to know how you plan to use your truck before you start looking.