The Pickup Truck - From Farm Wagon to Muscle Truck

The pickup truck is as American as apple pie, thecargo bed in the rear and an adjustable tailgate, and
Lone Ranger and Tonto. We associate these truckssold for $281.
with the Old West, American family values, andOver the years many variations on the pickup truck
southern states like Texas. Owners of pickup truckswere introduced including compact pickups which are
are usually proud of their vehicles and what theythe most widely used form of pickup trucks
stand for. It's the vehicle of a hard working American.worldwide. Made popular in America during the 1960s,
The pickup truck of today comes in all imaginablethe compact pickup was sold primarily by the
makes and models, shapes and sizes. It is found onJapanese manufacturers Nissan and Toyota. A
most any job site, in anyone's garage. The versatilitypopular, larger pickup truck, the full-size pickup is used
of the pickup truck comes first and foremost fromfor moving heavy loads or personal use. The
its simple utility. It is as fundamental an innovation toAmerican full-size pickup is typically sold for passenger
the automobile as the wheel.travel, and is built by Ford, GMC, Chrysler, Chevrolet,
And like the invention of the wheel, the pickup truckand more recently,Toyota.
comes from humble beginnings. Before the days ofIntroduced in 1987 with the Dodge Dakota, mid-size
Ford's Model T and internal combustion engines, thereto large pickups are very popular in the United States.
was real horse power. That is, carriages driven byThese trucks feature large cargo beds, but are not
teams of horses. Prior to the introduction ofas large as full-size pickups. The most powerful
horseless carriages, farmers and industrial workerspickups in the world, better known as muscle trucks,
relied on horse driven wagons to carry materialsare built for high performance and hauling capability.
around a worksite.Some manufacturers of these heavy duty trucks are
With the debut of the Model T in 1908 however,Dodge, Holden, Ford, and General Motors.
farmers quickly found ways to modify the vehicle,A sports utility truck, or SUT, gets its name for its
adding a makeshift cargo bed to the back. Motorizedsimilarity to other sports utility vehicles. Depending on
vehicles cut down significantly on transportation coststhe vehicle, it is built for light to heavy loads. If you're
for farmers and industrial workers. Finally, over ain the market for a used vehicle, why not consider
decade later, Ford introduced the first properthe many advantages of driving a truck. Whether
factory-made pickup truck, which was called the Fordyou live in the city or the country, a truck can be
Model T Runabout with Pickup Body. This vehicle wasstylish as well as a real work horse. Only you don't
a slight modification to the Model T and included ahave to feed it.