Toyota Tacoma Named Four Wheeler Magazine's 'Pickup Truck of the Year' - - Again
10 December 1997
Toyota Tacoma Named Four Wheeler Magazine's 'Pickup Truck of the Year' - - AgainTORRANCE, Calif., Dec. 10 -- The 1998 Toyota Tacoma 4WD V6, with its all-new Toyota Racing Development (TRD) Off-Road Package, was named Four Wheeler Magazine's "Pickup Truck of the Year" in the publication's January, 1998 issue. The announcement marks the third time in the awards ten year history that a Toyota compact pickup truck has taken top honors. "The Tacoma TRD has performance features that no other truck offers," said John Stewart, editor of Four Wheeler. "It's suspension and locking rear differential package produced on and off-road performance that was head and shoulders above the other trucks tested." The Tacoma was compared directly to other all-new or substantially revised four-wheel-drive pickups. Tacoma competitors for "Pickup Truck of the Year" included the Ford Ranger and Mazda B3000. The magazine noted that Tacoma's 3.4-liter, 190-horsepower V6 engine and excellent axle gear made it substantially faster than its competitors in both loaded and unloaded track testing. In fact, Tacoma swept its rivals in every performance-related category of the competition. This is the tenth year Four Wheeler has chosen a "Pickup Truck of the Year." The test format includes five performance categories and nine empirical tests. Subjective performance judging includes mechanical operation, on-road ride and handling, off-highway performance, interior design and function and exterior styling. Empirical tests included fuel economy, interior noise, braking distance from 55 mph, ground clearance, payload, acceleration and Ramp Travel (the magazine's measure of suspension flexibility.) Pickup trucks and sport-utility vehicles continue to gain in popularity among U.S. consumers. The top two best-selling vehicles in the U.S. are pickup trucks, and four of the top ten are truck- or sport utility-type vehicles. Since pickup trucks have become more user friendly, many consumers have taken advantage of their versatility as a vehicle for personal use in addition to their utility attributes. "Pickup Truck of the Year" is the only test program focusing on evaluation of pickups from both a utility and personal-use point of view. To be eligible for the once-a-year program, a four-wheel drive pickup must be new or significantly revised for the model year. The vehicle must also be available for domestic sale in quantities over 2,000 units. Four Wheeler Magazine is the industry's oldest consumer magazine catering to the four-wheel drive truck enthusiast. PAST PICKUP TRUCK OF THE YEAR WINNERS: 1989 -- TOYOTA SR5 COMPACT TRUCK 1990 -- Mitsubishi Mighty Max 1991 -- GMC K2500 HD 1992 -- Dodge Dakota Club Cab 1993 -- Ford Ranger Supercab 1994 -- Chevrolet ZR2 1995 -- Ford F-250 PowerStroke 1996 -- TOYOTA TACOMA SR5 V6 XTRACAB 1997 -- Dodge Dakota 1998 -- TOYOTA TACOMA TRD 4WD V6 SOURCE Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.