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Road Test: Comparison Test
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2001 Compact Crew Cab Comparison Test
Clash of the Non-Titans
By
John DiPietro
Date posted: 08-16-2001
In the words of U2's Bono (from the song "Desire"), "Pretty soon, everybody got
one." Although he wasn't referring to pickup trucks, he might as well have been.
Consider that currently the two top-selling vehicles are pickup trucks:
the full-size Ford F-Series followed by the Chevrolet Silverado/GMC Sierra twins.
That's right, people are buying more of these pickups than Honda Accords and Toyota
Camrys. And while some of those buyers use these beasts to tow trailers, haul
supplies, tend to the ranch or as chassis cabs for U-Haul trucks, others simply
use them as commuter vehicles, most of the time driving solo with an empty bed
while using fuel at a horrific rate.
A more reasonable pickup choice for the latter group might be a compact pickup,
something that's easier on gas and easier to park. Some truck enthusiasts might
gripe that there isn't enough room for people or cargo with a smaller truck. But
the newest wrinkle in the compact pickup truck segment could suit them just fine:
the crew cab. This body style features four full-size doors, so
those extended-cab models with the two smaller, rear-hinged doors don't count.
A crew cab has a longer passenger compartment, affording rear passengers a real
bench seat, not a couple of thinly padded jump seats. In order to keep overall
length reasonable for on- and off-road maneuverability, the bed length is usually
shorter than that model's standard or extended-cab version. To increase bed capacity,
some manufacturers offer a clever bed extender that gives nearly the same cargo
capacity (for large items) in the bed as a non-crew cab truck.
Geared toward folks who need the seating capacity of an SUV but prefer the open-bed
cargo flexibility of a pickup, compact crew cabs are rapidly gaining in popularity
in this truck-obsessed country. Naturally, a comparison test of these rigs was
inevitable, so we gathered up five four-wheel-drive versions of all the eligible
contestants. Present for this test were the Chevrolet S-10 LS crew cab, Dodge
Dakota SLT Plus Quad Cab, Ford Explorer Sport Trac, Nissan Frontier SC V6 crew
cab and the Toyota Tacoma Limited Double Cab.
The Toyota, Nissan and Chevy are all about the same size and basic shape. The
Dodge is a midsize pickup, a rarity and indeed the only one of its ilk, as pickups
are usually compact or large in size. The Explorer Sport Trac is basically an
Explorer with a pickup bed in place of the SUV's covered cargo area. We understand
that the latter two entries may be stretching the definition of compact
crew cab, but in the interest of including any vehicle one may consider
when shopping in this segment, we tossed them into the mix. Pricing of our test
vehicles ranged from $26,033 for the Chevrolet to $31,025 for the Dodge.
We subjected them to a through thrashing ... umm, we mean a comprehensive comparison
test. We took them into the boonies, actually using them as our mounts while participating
in a two-day off-road driving school. We also drove them in stop-and-go traffic,
on twisty two-lane roads and on the freeway. We even conducted acceleration and
braking tests with the beds both empty and loaded up with 800 pounds of sandbags.
Some of us are still using liberal applications of Ben-Gay to soothe our usually
inactive muscles. But enough of the preamble and on with the test!
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