Why Hyundai Won’t Build a Full-Size Pickup

Long rumored to launch a pickup truck in the U.S. market, Hyundai has stoked the flames with the reveal of the new Santa Cruz concept at the Detroit Auto Show.

A true compact pickup truck, it’s in no way a competitor to top sellers like the F-150 or even the new Chevy Colorado and it isn’t supposed to be.

'We are not exploring conventional pickups,” said Hyundai Motor America VP of product planning Mike O’Brien. 'Our competitors have been making full size pickup trucks, some of them for over 100 years, and they certainly know their customers and they make great products. It’s not reasonable for us to think we can walk into that market and have the same level of competitiveness.'

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