Summary

• Pickup trucks offer greater capabilities than cars and SUVs, making them ideal vehicles for a wide range of tasks and adventures.
• Trucks have powerful engines and long-lasting durability, making them suitable not just for heavy-duty work, but off-road excursions.
• Modern Pickup trucks also come equipped with advanced safety features and some models are also designed specifically to offer a comfortable and luxurious driving experience.

Most vehicles have limited capabilities in terms of cargo, payload, power, and versatility. Although pickup trucks aren’t unlimited in what they can do, these big brutes offer much greater capabilities than cars and SUVs. Trucks are made to get a lot of stuff done. With the addition of crew cab body styles, pickup trucks became more than work vehicles for farms and construction sites.

The early days of trucks had them relegated to worksites, but today’s trucks offer much more than brute force work, which was the traditional use of pickup trucks. Some pickup trucks are now made to be more luxurious than the traditional work-type vehicles. In addition to high-class qualities, trucks come in several sizes, including compact, midsize, full-size, and heavy-duty models.

Trucks are made to do just about everything today. Some pickup trucks are great for off-road adventures with incredible 4WD packages that can take on some of the most hardcore trails. Whether you’re taking your family on vacation or ready to pull a heavy work trailer to the job site to get some serious work done, a pickup truck is the vehicle you want to drive.

Related: 10 Cheap Luxury Trucks That Punch Above Their Weight

Pickup Trucks Are Large And Powerful

The sheer size and strength of pickup trucks are the greatest advantages of these vehicles. Most trucks weigh up to 7,000 pounds or more, compared to much lighter sedans that typically don’t reach over 3,300 pounds. The size and build of trucks make them more capable and less likely to face serious damage in roadside accidents. Most pickup trucks offer impressive towing power, with heavy-duty trucks reaching more than 35,000 pounds of towing power.

Trucks With The Highest Towing Capacity

Pickup Trucks Have Long Lasting Engines

Most sedans and SUVs can drive to last up to 200,000 miles, with some lasting a little longer. Pickup trucks are known to achieve much greater mileage figures. These big work vehicles have massive, strong, and powerful engines offering impressive work figures. The engines aren’t the only part of trucks built to last. Most trucks have larger wheels, axles, shocks, and frames than SUVs and cars. Automakers understand truck owners will likely use these vehicles for heavy-duty jobs, including construction, farming, forestry, and ranching.

Today’s trucks utilize several types of engines. Truck engines have evolved to include turbocharging, hybrid electric motors, and diesel power. Heavy-duty diesel trucks are the most powerful, with engines from Cummins, Duramax, and Power Stroke, while small, hybrid engines offer compact truck owners better efficiency and enough power for occasional truck stuff.

Related: 10 Used Pickup Trucks That Will Run Forever

Trucks Have Caught Up To Offer Excellent Safety

Trucks have always been safer to drive than SUVs and cars based on size and build, but modern pickups have many of the same advanced safety features as other vehicles. These Advanced Driver-Assist Systems (ADAS) are made to protect all passengers in a crash, but most have evolved to avoid collisions altogether.

ADAS In Pickup Trucks Often Include

• Forward collision avoidance
• Lane-departure warning
• Lane-keeping assist
• Automatic emergency braking
• Blind-spot monitoring
• Rearview camera
• Parking sensors
• Adaptive cruise control
• LED headlights

Some pickup trucks come equipped with blind-spot monitoring extending to the trailer’s length while towing a heavy load. This useful intervention feature ensures drivers are warned of another vehicle in the adjacent lane when the turn signal is activated.

Ford and GM have developed hands-free driving systems in their trucks, allowing truck owners to drive across highways. Ford calls this feature Blue Cruise, and GM calls its system Super Cruise. These two hands-free systems use several ADAS features to keep the truck safely in the lane.

Related: 20 Most Reliable Pickup Trucks

Most Pickup Trucks Can Handle Any Kind Of Terrain

Can sedans travel on off-road trails? Most cars can’t travel far off of paved roads, but most pickup trucks are ideal for tackling various off-road challenges. The most off-road-ready trucks come with specialized items for trail riding.

Traditionally, pickup trucks come equipped with either 2WD or 4WD layouts, with the 4WD models made for off-road adventures. With the introduction of unibody trucks, some models now offer AWD systems instead of 4WD packages. These AWD systems still allow these trucks to tackle some moderately rugged or rough terrain.

Off-Road Truck Features

• Specialized shocks
• Independently lockable front and rear differentials
• Skid plates
• Tow hooks
• Off-road suspension package
• Rock rails
• Beefier tires

Some trucks, such as the Ford F-150 Raptor, are made for fast-paced desert driving and have the right equipment for this type of driving. Other pickup trucks offer impressive low-end torque to wade through mud, drive over rocks, or handle a sandy beach. Most off-road trucks also include lift kits to stand taller off the ground than their traditional counterparts. Off-road enthusiasts typically talk about their pickup trucks in terms of ground clearance and off-road angles more so than towing and payload figures.

Related: Every New Mid-Size Pickup Truck For 2023

Higher Ground Clearance Than Most SUVs

Although truck-based SUVs can enjoy the same benefits as body-on-frame pickup trucks, more trucks are lifted high and ready to cover tougher terrain and wilderness obstacles than unibody SUVs. These unibody SUVs are built on car platforms, which provides smooth driving manners on the road, but that doesn’t typically translate to better off-road credentials. When you want to drive a vehicle that stands tall and proud off the ground, a pickup truck is what you’ll want to enjoy.

Trucks With Highest Ground Clearance

Some Truck Names Come With Several Off-Road Trims

Higher ground clearance is added to most pickup trucks to increase off-road angles and make trucks more capable on the trails. Some trucks are put to work on farms and ranches, and as rescue vehicles, which makes this added ground clearance important to the job at hand.

Some truck lineups have several off-road trims offering higher ground clearance than other models. The Ford F-150 comes to mind, with the Raptor, Tremor, and FX4 adding different levels of off-road capabilities. These trucks are made to tackle the toughest terrain and can be useful when floodwaters rise, roads become obstructed, or tough obstacles are in the path.

Related: 10 Pickup Trucks That Should Not Be Taken Off-Road

Spacious High-Tech Cabins With The Versatility Of A Bed

Gone are the days when pickups were just work vehicles. Today pickups pack well-appointed cabins with the latest gizmos and tech. Higher trims of certain models even come with leather, and wood, a punching high-end audio system for your tunes, the kind of features you generally find in some top-tier luxury SUVs.

But one of the greatest benefits of pickup trucks is the open bed in the rear. Unlike cars and SUVs, without a roof, which means unlimited height options for toting large and tall furniture and appliances. When you think about buying a truck, the first things that might come to mind are the items you can carry and haul in the bed.

Common Items That Only Trucks Can Carry

• Refrigerators
• Large trees
• Sculptures
• Tall Furniture
• Odd-shaped items

The Compact Truck World Is Changing The Automotive Landscape

Compact trucks are making a comeback. The Ford Maverick hit the market in 2022 and quickly became a popular choice for consumers looking for a small, capable vehicle. Some shoppers who might have bought a sedan or SUV chose the Maverick for its small size combined with useful pickup truck capabilities. While not quite as popular as the Maverick but just as useful, the new Hyundai Santa Cruz is another compact truck that’s reviving this small truck class.

Many automakers are turning away from sedans in favor of small SUVs and, more recently, compact trucks. Other automakers are working on new compact trucks to compete with the Maverick and Santa Cruz. These small trucks are excellent for delivery services and owners who only need occasional truck capabilities.