Is Hyundai Ready To Take On The Pickup Truck Market?

Hyundai has been making a name for itself, building high-quality vehicles at very competitive prices. Hyundai has also been entering new market segments, strengthening its midsize lineup and launching new technologies, including hybrid systems and perhaps soon a hydrogen-powered model.

Vans

But one area in which Hyundai remains curiously absent is in the lucrative truck market, dominated by Ford F-Series, Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra and Dodge Ram 1500. In recent years, the Toyota Tundra and Nissan Titan have found followers, generating profit. these two Japanese automakers as well.

Hyundai has experience in building trucks, selling its Hyundai trunk in Korea and other markets. The Hyundai Porter is a commercial truck, therefore if Hyundai is going to build and sell a passenger van, it will have to start from scratch. Or, as rumors have circulated in the past, connect with Chrysler to build your own model.

Chrysler connection

But Hyundai does not seem interested in using Dodge, even thinking that Chrysler’s plan to supply the Ram 1500 platform to Nissan was exhausted when Chrysler went bankrupt in 2009 and emerged weeks later under the control of Fiat sPa. Hyundai probably doesn’t want to be dependent on a platform. supplier whose very existence remains uncertain.

So which direction could Hyundai take to enter the truck fray? Would a compact truck turn out to be the preferred path, or should Hyundai take the Detroit 3 and Japanese 2 to build a large truck?

One way Hyundai could “go big” is to take the existing Hyundai Porter and reconfigure it for truck work. Hyundai already has the platform; stretching the wheels and improving the suspension system is one approach. Taking the 4.6-liter TAU V-8 engine found in the Hyundai Genesis and Equus could provide the necessary powertrain; Hyundai already has the transmissions available.

Probable scenario

However, the cheapest approach for Hyundai may not be the best. Hyundai would face the best of the Detroit 3 who have shown that they are still the best compared to the Japanese 2.

The compact truck market remains competitive and ready to take on, as Toyota Tacoma and Nissan Frontier are top sellers in the segment. Ford and GM don’t offer much of a challenge and the Mahindra trucks are, well, overdue.

That leaves Hyundai and its Korean cousin, Kia, revisiting the truck market. As recently as 2008, the two brands had planned to build a large truck, but abandoned it when gas prices topped $ 4 a gallon. Now, with gas prices at three dollars a gallon, the time has come to buy a new compact truck from scratch.

But will Hyundai bite or miss an important opportunity to participate?