The Truck Wars are Back
After watching the pickup truck segment for the last six months, it's no wonder the rest of the automotive media is beginning to understand what's happening here: Truck Wars are back.
If there was one theme to come out of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, it was that everyone understands that the truck segment has a lot to be excited about. Even the casual observer could see there were many more pickup trucks on the show floor than in years past, and each of the big manufacturers were talking about the entire segment making a strong comeback in the next six, 12 and 18 months. In fact, some have predicted that when the final 2012 sales numbers for pickup trucks are in, the segment will have grown more than 50 percent when compared to 2009 numbers.
Bloomberg News also notes that several of the big prognosticators see the rise in new home starts and the housing market in general as good lead indicators that the truck segment is likely to outperform the car segment in the coming sales year. Of course, that's good news for Ram truck, GM and Ford, which own more than 90 percent of the U.S. truck market. And let's not forget, for example, for a company like Ford, it's been reported that 90 percent of its global profits are made from its personal-use and commercial truck sales.
Due to a number of economic and circumstancial issues, the spotlight on pickups has been dim at best for the last several years. However, if the floor of the 2013 Detroit auto show is any indication — as well as all the attention aimed at the Ram 1500, new Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra, and the huge showing the Ford Atlas concept received — things are about to get a lot more exciting for anyone who loves pickups.
For crying out loud, even the guys at Autoweek magazine are trying to figure out what it is about pickup trucks that the rest of us inherently understand — they're practical and fun. Check out this dirty little video they just posted, as they try to learn how to slide around in the mud.

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