Engineering and Technology
It wasn't long ago that pickups were the manual typewriters of automotive science: sturdy but low-tech beasts with big, cast-iron boat anchors for engines, heavy axles, numb steering and brakes, and a paucity of creature comforts. While today's pickup trucks are some of the most robust, longest-running vehicles on the planet, manufacturers have lured personal-use truck buyers out of their cars by offering more carlike refinement.
One of the most critical elements is brakes. In the past, because trucks were designed to stop safely when carrying a full load, unloaded or lightly loaded rigs were prone to premature rear-wheel lockup under high-g braking. Electronic brake proportioning helped solve that quandary, letting the front brakes do much of the work when the truck was running empty but directing higher brake pressure to the rears as the payload increased. This year, electronic brake proportioning is standard on all the trucks in our evaluation. Today, most trucks use large-diameter discs at all four corners for long-lasting fade resistance. Among our 2004 Truck of the Year contestants, all but the Tundra and Canyon/Colorado come standard with four-wheel anti-lock disc brakes.
Another technology seeing wider use in trucks is dynamic stability control. Optionally available on the Toyota Tundra and Nissan Titan, stability control can cut engine power or apply individual brakes should the truck begin to under- or oversteer in a turn, helping to prevent a spin or skid. Electronic throttle control, now employed by the Ford F-150, Nissan Titan, Chevrolet Colorado, GMC Canyon, and more, helps integrate stability control and makes traction-control management a much easier task.
"As with passenger cars, structure is the key to truck ride quality and handling precision."