Times, and powertrains, are changing – Karl Smith investigates how the pickup truck is finding itself in the middle of an ever-expanding universe of products
The pick-up is the inheritor of the cowboy myth in America – the cowboy and his faithful horse. Now it’s the tradesman or the farmer and his (or her) faithful pick-up. The image and the mythic quality of both still have a strong hold on the American car buying imagination. But times, and powertrains, are changing, and the pickup truck is finding itself in the middle of an ever-expanding universe of products as it enters the third decade of this century.
Truck design has traditionally been a rather conservative endeavour, a three-box design (engine, cab and bed) with minimal surfacing and a strong utilitarian shape. The real design opportunity was at the front face, where a bold grille, headlamp and brand logo composition (hopefully) created a memorable image and down-the-road graphic. With the advent of electric powertrains, new design opportunities are emerging as trucks get a re-think at the most fundamental levels of engineering and design.
Access to motor show and concours coverage, trend and technology reports, design reviews of new and classic concept and production cars, exclusive interviews, regional reports, who’s where, design essays, career resources, design competitions, regular newsletter updates PLUS comprehensive degree show reports from the world’s leading design schools, the CDN archive of sketches, images and articles spanning 20 years of coverage.
An online subscription also gains you access to exclusive designer interviews from our annual Car Design Review yearbook, and access to exclusive interior design reviews from Interior Motives magazine. You can also receive Interior Motives in print through our online + print subscription, or buy individual copies of Interior Motives and Car Design Review.
Fees start from £55/€60/$70. Packages available for students, individuals, schools and corporates.
Gain full access to cardesignnews.com subscribe today
ALREADY SUBSCRIBED - Individual, Studio, Student or School
You now need to register your details and sign-in for full access to cardesignnews.com
As the all-electric Renault 5 E-Tech breaks cover at the 2024 Geneva Show today, we can share details from our private visit to Renault’s Technocentre design studio in early February, with head of design Gilles Vidal in charge of the show-and-tell
Car Design News looks at some of the design stories that may have gone under the radar over the last week, including news from BYD, Karma, Kia, Lancia, Nissan, Peugeot and more
EV carmaker Xpeng is getting into the flying car game with its new brand Xpeng AeroHT, revealing not one but two different vehicles slated for production
