Pickup Trucks are as American as Baseball and Apple Pie, but ever since the great recession Americans have found themselves downsizing while still needing the utility of the Pickup. Just as well, flagship pickup trucks from all manufacturers have gotten larger, more luxurious and more expensive taking them out of the reach of the "working man".

To solve this manufacturers have stepped up competition in the midsize pickup market. Midsize pickups tend to be toned down versions of the flagship model available at a more reasonable price. They often share a platform with a midsize or compact SUV to minimize cost.

General Motors: GM jumped into the midsize pickup market in 2004 when it replaced its even smaller Chevrolet S-10 with a larger vehicle, the Chevrolet Colorado and its GMC Twin the GMC Canyon. Ever since its introduction the "Coloryanon" has sold in very high numbers consistently showcasing that there is indeed heavy demand for a stable, reliable vehicle in this sector. GM sold this vehicle internationally using its alliance with Isuzu Trucks to sell to customers in Asia where it was branded as the Isuzu D-Max. The Chevrolet Colorado has been so successful it has been Motor Trend's Truck of the Year for both 2015 and 2016. Most of its success is attributed to its extremely fair price starting at only $20,000 for regular cab and gets as high as $24,000 for the extended cab. Far cheaper than its larger cousin the Chevrolet Silverado.

Toyota: Toyota has very little to prove with its Tacoma pickup truck as they have been known to run well over 20 years and as proven by the hosts of Top Gear its nearly impossible to kill one. The Tacoma has earned a strong reputation since its introduction in 1995 being widely known as a capable and reliable vehicle. Toyota Trucks are among the last of a dying breed refusing to bend to modern norms of CVT transmissions and Trucks based off of a Crossover SUV platform. Like its brother the Toyota 4Runner, Toyota has refused to compromise true off-road 4WD capability for fuel economy and customers like this. The new Tacoma is slightly larger than the previous model but it is still dwarfed by the Toyota Tundra. Toyota Tacoma sales skyrocketed in 2015 when the new model was revealed in Detroit. Internationally the vehicle is known as the Toyota Hilux. Despite the Toyota being a Japanese brand, Americans embrace Toyota as one of their own as the Tacoma is largely assembled in the U.S. with American Parts and Labor in San Antonio, Texas as well as a plant in Tijuana, Mexico. The Tacoma starts well equipped at $24,000 and can be upgraded to a luxury package at $26,000. Consistently selling nearly 200,000 trucks every year the Tacoma won Truck of the Year in 2004.

Chrysler: With the departure of the Dodge Dakota, Chrysler no longer produces a mid-sized pickup but has expressed interest in returning to the sector with a Jeep Wrangler based pickup truck. When Chrysler was purchased by the Italian Automotive giant, Fiat Group, a restructuring of the companies at Chrysler have been taking shape. Fiat wants Dodge to be the "Performance" Marque of the Chrysler group. Producing fast and exciting cars that urge you to red line (hence Dodge's new logo). Chrysler remains the "Luxury" Marque producing cars that make you think twice about spending too much on a comparable German sedan and Jeep is to be the "Utilitarian" marque producing trucks that are not afraid to get dirty off road. However the early attempts at this formula have proven to have roadblocks. Fiat attempted to eliminate the entire line of Dodge Ram pickup trucks because they are not in line with the direction of the "Dodge" line up. This was protested by all North American executives at Chrysler and Fiat was forced to admit it was in unfamiliar waters. Fiat compromised by removing Dodge Ram pickups from the Dodge lineup and created a new brand simply called "Ram". Ram pickups are the same trucks sold by Dodge but now have no Dodge branding on them. Because of the storied history of these trucks North American Chrysler executives have protested Fiat's attempts to stop their production as they would then fall behind both Ford and Chevrolet in the pickup truck market. Fiat has expressed interest in producing a line of pickup trucks under the Jeep brand to resolve this issue however it has been seen as a risky move as Dodge has intense fans of their pickup truck line who may not be receptive to a Jeep change over. The Jeep Gladiator is rumored to begin production in 2017 its price may be comparable to a standard Jeep Wrangler which starts at about $24,000.

Ford: Ford left the midsize pickup truck market in 2011 largely because most of the pickups it sells are of the bigger flagship model the famed F-150. However in recent years the F-150 has become even larger and more luxurious raising its starting price to nearly $30,000. Even though the F-150 is still one of the best pickup trucks ever produced it now means that people who were likely to buy a Ford pickup will look elsewhere because they are too expensive. Ford has also noticed high sales of the Toyota Tacoma and Chevrolet Colorado and have no vehicle to compete in this sector. To compensate, Ford recently announced it would be bringing the international Version of the Ford Ranger to the United States, sold mostly in South America, Australia and Southeast Asia to the United States after it was given a Ford Edge inspired exterior redesign. Ford has also seemed to realize that it no longer produces a truck aimed for primarily 4WD off-roading. Vehicles in the 4WD sector have also been selling very well such as the Jeep Wrangler which has nearly no competition because all manufacturers have turned their 4WD SUV's into crossover vehicles. The Ford Explorer is now a crossover meant for city driving. The Larger Expedition is too expensive to compete and its not intended to be a true off roader. Ford announced it would also be bringing back the loved Ford Bronco which will share a platform with the new Ranger. The new Bronco will be aimed at competing with the Jeep Wrangler for the 4WD SUV market.

Nissan: The only other Japanese manufacturer selling in this segment (The Honda Ridgeline did not make this list because it is far larger and more expensive) Nissan is at an unusual crossroads with the Frontier in the North American market. Nissan sells many different types of trucks which are not available in the US and Canada but are sold in Asia and the Middle East such as the Nissan Patrol and Nissan X-Trail. The international version of the Nissan Frontier, known as the Nissan Navara has already received an update and looks similar to the newer Nissan Pathfinder and Murano models however, Nissan is attempting to permanently cement its name in the American pickup truck battle for good. Recently Nissan entered into an alliance with Cummins, producer of extremely durable diesel engines which are also offered in Dodge Ram pickups. Nissan updated its flagship pickup truck model the Nissan Titan and it is currently offered with a Cummins Diesel. The Newer Nissan Titan is now on par with all of its competitors in the flagship pickup segment coming in slightly larger than the Toyota Tundra. However the Frontier has looked exactly the same since 2004 and fans of the truck are itching for an update. Nissan North American executives have already released a statement claiming the International version will not be coming to the US and Canada leaving many puzzled as to what the future of this truck will be.

Pickup Trucks can be as polarizing as politics or religion in America. Which is your favorite?