Sales numbers are in for July 2016 and the Toyota Tacoma is still (by far) the biggest seller in the midsize truck market, although same month year-over-year sales saw a slight decrease for the taco. In fact, it was the only midsize truck to see any sort of decrease in sales. Fear not Toyota loyalists, it is still leaps and bounds ahead of the competition in monthly and year-to-date sales.
The Nissan Frontier, which is ancient compared to the competition, continues to see impressive sales growth over last year. TFL recently had a chance to drive the new 2017 Armada and we asked Nissan about the Frontier’s numbers. It basically boils down to the Frontier being a tried and true workhorse and having a price advantage over the competition. Representatives from the company were tight lipped about the next gen Frontier, although we hope to see one within a couple years.
The truck that’s received the most criticism in the group due to its standard front wheel drive and unibody construction has now been on sale for its first full month (there was only one week of sales to report for June). Of course I am talking about the all-new Honda Ridgeline. While the GMC Canyon still outsells it, the Ridgeline certainly serves a purpose for those who want a vehicle that drives like a crossover but has a bed for hauling. It will be interesting to see how the Ridgeline’s numbers grow (or don’t grow) over the next year. Yes, the percentage growth columns for the Ridgeline are accurate since Honda was selling very few of the remaining previous generation Ridgeline models this time last year.
See below for the full chart of midsize truck sales from last month.
Midsize Trucks – July 2016 Sales Chart
| July 2016 # | July ’16 / ’15 % | YTD 2016 # | YTD ’16 / ’15 % | |
| Toyota Tacoma | 16,580 | -2.7% | 111,615 | 5.5% |
| Chevy Colorado | 9,195 | 27.5% | 60,422 | 23.9% |
| Nissan Frontier | 7,244 | 72.7% | 52,255 | 34.0% |
| GMC Canyon | 3,532 | 33.1% | 20,894 | 18.2% |
| Honda Ridgeline | 3,518 | New | 5,992 | New |
Toyota is working overtime to build more Tacoma pickup trucks, so that they can meet demand. Here is our recent visit to Toyota’s San Antonio, TX truck manufacturing facility.
