Light Commercial Vehicle - LCV

General Motors and Navistar International announced their partnership to build medium-duty trucks back in October of 2015, but since then, nothing has surfaced regarding the Class 4 and 5 commercial trucks – that is, until now. Spy shots have surfaced of a camouflaged test mule apparently prepped for stability testing. The rig has a beefy roll bar mounted to its flatbed and its front bumper is prepped for outriggers.

The images come via our friends at TFL Truck. The prototype truck clearly has elements of both GM and Navistar International. The hood and front grille are familiar International designs, while the headlights are clearly lifted from the 2015-2015 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 WT. The truck’s cab is also pure GM, likely shared with the Silverado 2500/3500 HD. The trailer tow mirrors, door handles, roof marker lights, and the cab’s overall shape are dead giveaways. Sadly, both automakers have remained quiet about the trucks, though TFL Truck cites reports suggesting the 4500/5500 trucks will debut in March of 2018 and go on-sale shortly thereafter as 2019 models. It’s unclear whether the trucks will have GM nameplate or Navistar International branding – or both. GM’s Chevy and GMC divisions could very easily revive the Kodiak and TopKick names, as both have illustrious histories spanning from 1980 to 2009. International might use the truck to expand its lineup below the DuraStar, currently its smallest medium-duty truck.

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The MB100 is an old Mercedes van sold in Asia, South America, Africa and Australia. The van has a long history behind, but despite being pretty popular on the emergent markets it went out of production in 2004.

The vehicle was built in Korea and shared the same design and technologies with the SsangYong Istana. Unfortunately the only Mercedes part found at the van was the badge, so don’t expect to the same level of reliability and refinement that is usually found at any Mercedes vehicle.

The van was a pretty rugged workhorse built with practicality in mind and was available in both commercial and passenger versions.

Power options included two engines namely a 2.3 liter diesel and a 2.2 liter petrol.

The SsangYong Musso is a double cab pickup based on the Musso SUV. The vehicle was commercialized between 2002 and 2005, and features Mercedes engines and transmissions. The Musso Pickup offered a good compromise between luxury, strength and refinement, but it never received the deserved attention.

Thanks to the use of Mercedes parts, the truck was pretty reliable delivering strong on road performances and being able to deal great with heavy loads too.

The SsangYong Musso Pickup was offered with either 4x2 or 4x4 drive modes and was able to tow a maximum weight of 3500 kg, while payload is rated at 854 kg.

According to some rumors, Jeep is planning its big re-entrance in the pickups segment, with the new model being based on the Gladiator Concept revealed in 2005.

The Gladiator Concept was based on the Wrangler model and was fitted with an innovative mid-gate which helped the driver transport longer weights. The mid-gate concept is not new and it’s borrowed from the Chevrolet Avalanche pickup.

The latest pickup developed by the company (the Comanche) was sold until 1992 and despite the fact that it was a fairly good product it never managed to attract a large number of buyers.

The newest ute was launched by Holden in 2007 as a replacement for the old Commodore based VE model.

The new generation continues to keep the standards high and is considered by many the best ute ever built by the company. Continuing to be based on the high class Commodore passenger car, the new VU is more like a sedan with a tray at the back than a classical utility pickup.

The cabin offers s superior level of comfort while the road manners are also part of the first class.

The base model is named Omega and under its bonnet you’ll find a 3.6-litre V6 which can be mated on both manual and automatic transmissions.

The old Colorado was a pretty competitive vehicle, offering a good balance between comfort and utility. The new generation moves this heritage even further and is a completely new vehicle designed from the ground up to respect the contemporary requirements of pickup trucks.

The 2012 Holden Colorado shares the same platform and technology with the Isuzu D-Max, but it’s equipped with its own GM engines.

Similarly with the old model, the new Holden Colorado is offered with regular, extended and crew cabs. The vehicle is offered with a choice of two engines which come with 2,5 and 2,8 liter displacements.

The Holden VU Ute was introduced as a replacement for the old Holden VS utility. The new VU was the first utility vehicle launched since the old VG model was released back in 1990. The new model was based on the VX Comodore sedan and shared the same front and interior design with its donor.

The vehicle had a sleek exterior design combined with a long load bed and a spacious cab.

The VU ute was available in three versions namely the Base, S and SS. The entry level and S models were equipped with a 3.8 liter V6, while the SS received a 5.7 liter V8 unit. The base model has a payload capacity of 780kg, while the S and SS versions have a payload capacity of 735kg.

The Juara was the first van produced by Proton and was introduce on the market in 2001. The vehicle was based on the Mitsubishi town box MPV and its name was derived from the Malay language and meant “chamption”.

The Proton Juara was powered by a 1094 cc engine which developed a maximum output of 71 PS. Its compact exterior dimensions helped it deal great with tight city roads, but also affected the interior space that was a bit cramped.

Unfortunately, since its launch, the Juara didn’t manage to catch the market’s interest, which led to its premature death in 2003.

Proton however, learned from the mistakes made with the Juara and after seven years has launched a new MPV, named the Exora which was a big improvement over its predecessor. Though, the Juara continues to remain an important milestone in Proton’s history, as it marked its first experience in the Van and MPV segment.

Proton is a Malaysian car manufacturer which sells its vehicles worldwide. The company designed both passenger and utility vehicles.

The Jumbuck was a compact pickup which had a pretty versatile character, aimed especially at small business owners or farmers.

The pickup’s suspension and body control was tweaked by Lotus Engineering. The Proton Jumbuck uses an innovative ’torquebox’ that connects the passenger car monocoque of the Proton Persona sedan to a ladder type rear chassis. This construction gives the Jumbuck a stronger frame which helps it deal with a maximum payload of 570 kg. The vehicle was offered only with front wheel drive configuration and had a starting price of $15.490.

The previous generation SsangYong pickup was launched in 2007 and was a surprisingly good product offering a high class interior comfort, capable engines and reasonable road manners. Price also worked in Actyon’s advantage, but the exterior design was anything but charming.

After five years, SsangYong decided to come up with a new generation which keeps all the good attributes of the previous model and also features a more attractive exterior design.

With a starting price of $26.990, the new Actyon Pick-up continues to be one of the most affordable double cab pickups from the market.

Under the hood, you’ll find an upgraded 2.0 liter turbo diesel engine which delivers a maximum output of 155 hp. The truck continues to be available with both 2WD and 4WD configurations.

The Dacia Logan Van completes the wide Logan lineup which consists of a MCV, a Sedan and even a Pick-up.

The Dacia Logan Van is a pretty practical compact van, designed especially for commercial applications. The vehicle is basically an MCV with the rear seats removed and the rear windows paneled off which give it a typical van look.

The van has a payload capacity of up to 800 kg and it’s offered with a choice of two diesels and one petrol unit.

With a starting price of only $8500 (exluding taxes), the Dacia Logan Van is one of the most affordable compact vans found on today’s market.

SsangYong find it hard to survive during these difficult economic conditions, but somehow it managed to remain in the competition and continues to sale its vehicles worldwide.

The manufacturer is especially known for its SUVs and pick-ups which come with an affordable price tag and are fitted with all modern common sense features.

The 2007 Actyon Sports pickup was sold until 2012 when it was replaced by the new generation. The old model was offered with both 2WD and 4WD configurations and was powered by either a petrol or a diesel engine. The vehicle features a ladder frame chassis and has a kerb weight of 1900 kg.

Great Wall is a less known Chinese automotive company, which recently has started to sell vehicles in Europe too. The Steed was the first Chinese vehicle launched on the UK market and it’s basically a four door double cab pick-up priced pretty competitively at $22.000.

Offered only in two wheel drive configuration, Great Wall Steed is equipped with a 2.0 liter engine which comes with a variable geometry turbocharger. The engine churns out 143 hp and it is married to a six speed manual gearbox.

The truck has a gross vehicle weight of 2,885kg with a maximum payload of 1,095kg. When properly equipped, the Great Wall Steed can tow up to 2,000kg.

Service intervals are set at 10,000 miles, and the vehicle is covered by a three-year/60,000 mile mechanical warranty.

After it was brought by Renault, Dacia’s destiny has finally started to have a bright future. The first model launched under Renault’s ownership was the Logan.

With a small price tag and cheap costs of ownership, Dacia’s new budget car is sold in good numbers on the emergent markets. After seeing how surprisingly successful was the Logan sedan, Renault decided to extended the range and also came with an MPV, a Van and even a Pick-up version of its model.

The Dacia Logan Pick-up was launched in 2008 and was basically a Logan sedan with the rear end chopped off. The Logan Pick-up has a maximum payload capacity of 800 kg and its engines lineup includes two diesels and one petrol unit.

The Jeep Comanche was based on the Cherokee model and was sold between 1985 and 1992. The pickup truck was legendary for its sharp off road skills and for its bullet proof reliability.

The Comanche was available with both two wheel drive and four wheel drive configurations and came with two bed lengths measuring six-feet and seven-feet. At its time, the Comanche was the cheapest Jeep in the company’s lineup.

The vehicle was launched with a choice of three engines including the AMC 150 2.5 L, 150 CID I4, General Motors’s LR2 2.8 L V6 and the Renault 2.1 L I4 turbo diesel.

The Subaru Baja was sold in only one generation being available between 2002 and 2006. The idea behind the Baja, was to develop a vehicle which came with an all wheel drive, four passenger carrying capability and an open bed at the back. Basically Subaru wanted to create a vehicle that combines the handling and comfort of a conventional passenger car with the practicality of a pickup truck, a concept that can be also found at many American small pickups.

The Subaru Baja had a unibody design and shared many common elements with the Legacy and Outback models.

The Subaru Baja was available only with a double cab configuration and was powered by a 2.4 liter flat-4 engine.

The Mark LT is Lincoln’s second attempt to design a luxurious pickup after failing with the Blackwood model that was sold for only one year. Lincoln’s first luxury pickup was highly criticized for its lack of practicality and the not-so-luxurious cabin. However the company didn’t give up and decided to try it’s luck once more with the Mark LT.

The new luxury pickup was launched in 2006 and features a smarter style mixed with a longer load bed and a modern looking cab. The vehicle is based on the four door version of the Ford F-150 pickup and it’s powered by Ford’s 5.8 liter Triton V8.

Any usual pickup buyer is interested about tow ratings, cargo capacity or price/value ratio. Though, there are some people who don’t give a damn about these figures and are ready to pay a huge amount of money for something that doesn’t offer four-wheel drive, comes with a half long bed, and drinks oil like the Drunken Master.

This is exactly the case for Lincoln’s Blackwood luxury pickup launched on the market in 2002.

The Lincoln Blackwood is based on the Navigator SUV and has a double cab configuration. Under the hood there was a strong 300 hp V8 unit and the starting price was set at not less than $52.000.

The Lincoln Blackwood was sold in a pretty limited edition with only 10.000 units being built and its direct competitor was the Cadillac Escalade EXT.

The first generation Escalade EXT was launched in 2002 and shared the same underpinnings with the Chevrolet Avalanche.

The second generation came in 2007 and continued to share many common elements with the Avalanche, both of them being built on the new GMT900 platform. To remain in front of the pack, the vehicle has also received a series of cosmetic and technological adjustments.

The second generation Cadillac Escalade EXT is fitted with a stronger V8 engine which develops 403 hp and an upgraded rear suspension. The base price for the EXT is $54.210.

The Cadillac Escalade EXT is based on the luxurious Escalade SUV introduced by GM in 1999. Similarly with the Ford Sport Trac and Chevrolet Avalanche, the Escalade EXT is a hybrid vehicle resulted from the combination of a SUV with a full sized pickup truck.

The truck shares many common elements with the Chevrolet Avalanche and has even the same innovative “Midgate” (separating the passenger area from the cargo bed) which made its sibling famous.

The vehicle is offered only with a double cab configuration and it’s fitted with a wide range of luxurious features that can’t be found at many pickup trucks from the market.

The Escalade EXT features a guzzling 345-horsepower V8 engine combined with a full-time all-wheel-drive system.

The Mitsubishi Mighty Max was sold in the United States between 1986 and 1996, being one of the first models brought from Japan.

The vehicle had a pretty strong build quality and was especially appreciated for its reliability and the simple mechanics.

The Mitsubishi Mighty Max was available with either two wheel drive or four wheel drive configuration and was fitted with a 2.4 liter 4 cylinder engine which develops a maximum output of 116 hp.
The truck was discontinued in 1996, when it was replaced by the new Mitsubishi Raider that was based on the Chevrolet Dakota.

The final generation of the legendary D Series was rebadged as the Dodge Ram when Lee lacooca took charge of the Chrysler Corporation.

The Dodge Ram D Series was sold until 1993 when it was replaced by a completely redesigned Ram which shortly after became one of the best sold pickups in US.

The D Series range included three models, namely the D-150, D-250 and D-350. The vehicles were available with both single and double cabs with either short or long beds. Power options included a wide range of engines with the base unit being a 3.9 liter, followed by 5.2 and 5.9 liter V8s.

The last pickup developed entirely by Isuzu was sold on the US market back in the 90s, as all the following models were basically rebadged GM versions. The 1995 Isuzu Pickup was one of the most basic pickups that could’ve been found at that time on the market. The vehicle had a spartan interior and a stiff ride but it managed to deal well with arduous working conditions.

The Isuzu Pickup was offered in two configurations. The two-wheel-drive version is powered by a 2.3-liter, 100-horsepower engine, while the four-wheel-drive model comes with a 2.6-liter, 120-horsepower unit. There is only a single cab configuration available, but there were two bed lengths to choose from.