Toyota is planning to introduce an all-new, fully redesigned Toyota Tacoma in a move that will help the Japanese automaker maintain its position as the No. 1 seller of midsize trucks in America.
The new version of Toyota's best-selling pickup truck will make its debut at next year's North American International Auto Show in Detroit, where it will be introduced alongside two new Lexus vehicles, says Bob Carter, senior vice president of automotive operations for Toyota's American sales arm.
Details of what the new Tacoma will be like are scant, but it will certainly feature a more powerful engine, better transmission and improved designs for the exterior and the interior. Buyers who want to get a new midsize truck can wait for the new Tacoma when it becomes available in the United States in July next year.
"It's a market we've had almost to ourselves in the last couple of years," Bill Fay, Toyota division group vice president, said. "We've been there a long time and have been the dominant player. We have a very satisfied owner group."
Toyota owns a whopping share of the midsize truck market in the United States. In the first 11 months of 2014, the Japanese automaker sold a total of 140,747 Tacomas, says Automotive News. That accounts for around 66 percent of the entire market share. However, that doesn't mean to say that Toyota is not facing any competition in the midsize truck category.
While Ford and Fiat Chrysler have both abandoned their efforts at midsize trucks to focus on larger trucks, Nissan and General Motors are both forces to be reckoned with if Toyota wants to watch its back and keep its position. While Nissan only sold 68,263 of its Frontier trucks in 2014, or not even half of Toyota's sales, Toyota's figures were actually down by 4 percent from the same period last year, while Nissan's shot up by 19 percent.
More recently, General Motors, which could use some good news amidst all its safety and recall woes, had its Chevrolet Colorado named Truck of the Year by Motor Trend. The Colorado features a few things that Tacoma owners might want to take a look at, including better fuel economy, increased performance and a more comfortable interior cabin.
Still, Fay says the all-new Tacoma is the result of a proactive effort to introduce new technologies to customers.
"It's been in the product plan, so this is not a reaction to GM introducing its vehicle," he says. "We've pretty much had the segment to ourselves."
