This Pickup Could Be the Future, and Should Be

End of the Line

If you live in Southeast Asia, you have multiple options for low-cost motor vehicles that are unavailable in North America. An example is the very utilitarian Toyota pickup, the IMV 0, which has a base price as low as as US$10,000. High style it isn’t, but as a utility vehicle, it combines a very practical form factor with economy and solid engineering.

A typical entry level half-ton pickup in the United States has a transaction price well into the $40,000 range, and Toyota’s own US product is frequently more expensive than that, much more expensive. Is there a market for very basic, rugged and inexpensive utility vehicles in America? With rising interest rates and inflation, the answer is” possibly", but to date, no manufacturer has tested the big American market with a low-priced vehicle.

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