Full Size Trucks Remain America's Top Sellers

America’s thirst for the full size truck is a distinctly American affair. While the F-Series is the top selling vehicle year in and year out, the quarter million GMC Sierras sold combined with the half a million Chevy Silverados stablemates sold annually total roughly the same number of trucks (a bit more even). Rounding out third place is the luxurious Ram Pickup from Stellantis (formerly known as Fiat Chrysler). No other full size trucks even come close to toppling the sales figures of this trio; the Toyota Tundra sold only 94,000 units in 2022, and the Nissan Titan is now entering its final year of production in Mississippi due to slow sales.

American full size trucks can pack a lot of wallop and a lot of luxury, but they aren’t all King Ranch trim duallies. Here’s what American automakers have on offer this year.

Ford F-Series

The Ford-F-Series encompasses a lot of different bodystyles and trims, so buckle up for this fast paced primer. The cheapest, bare-bones F-150 XL starts at $33,835 for the 2023 model year. That’s a short bed, short cab truck in 4x2 configuration which is almost arguably not “full size.” An 8 inch touchscreen is standard, however, as is a rear view camera with hitch assist. The standard motor is a 3.3L V6 with a none-too-shabby 290 horsepower and 265 lb ft of torque. The XL can also be had in long bed, extra cab (rear jump seat), and actual four door. The number of combinations is a bit mind-bending, but expect to pay north of $40,000 for a truck with four seats and a longer bed, and north of $45,000 for a four door truck.

The number of trims beyond the base XL are many; XLT starting at $41,940 msrp, Lariat $57,480 msrp, King Ranch $63,225 msrp, Platinum $64,915, and Limited $83,010 (this not counting the $76,775 Raptor performance truck nor its big brother Raptor R). XLT adds aluminum wheels (vs. steel), chrome bumper trim, fog lamps, LED head and taillamps, rain sensing wipers, and a handful of safety and infotainment options; the XLT makes standard many things which are options on the XL. All F-150s can be ordered with four wheel drive (costing about four grand), and there are a whopping six engines to choose from, including the aforementioned 3.3L V6, as well as a 2.7L turbo V6 with 325 hp and 400 lb-ft of torque, a 3.5L V6 with 375 hp and 470 torque, a 3.5L high output V6 with 450 hp and 510 torque, a turbodiesel V6 with 250 hp/440 torque, and lastly, a 5.0 liter V8 for the traditionalist, with 395hp and 400 lb ft of torque. The 3.5L V6 is best for towing, which is rated up to 13,200 pounds, and can haul 3,230 pounds in the bed. All F-Series come with a 10 speed automatic transmission; days of rowing your own truck are far in the past.

The F-Series Super Duty starts at $43,970 msrp for F-250 XL, $45,015 for F-350 XL, $58,455 For F-450 XL dually quad cab, and so on until the range hits $97,270 for the F-350 Limited quad cab and $103,040 for the F-450 Limited. In-between XL’s and Platinums are some of Ford’s most popular trims, such as the Lariat with its dual zone electric climate control, 12 inch screen, push button start, assisted braking and lane-keeping system, dome light, grab handles, tilt and telescoping wheel, heated and ventilated front seats, and a host of other creature comforts. Sirius XM and Ford’s Sync 4 are also standard, as well as the icing on the Lariat cake, leather trimmed seating surfaces.

Chevrolet Silverado

While no longer hailed as Like A Rock, the Heartbeat of America carries on the Chevy full size truck tradition. The “Silverado” nameplate only came into official existence in the very late 90’s, but today’s Silverado bears a striking resemblance to the “Chevy Trucks” and “C/K 1500’s” that came before it. As with the Ford F-series, there is a dizzying number of potential configurations, so here’s the rundown. The bare bones Silverado WT (work truck) starts at $36,800 with 12 standard tie downs, push button start with remote entry, and a short bed / short cab. Double cab starts at $42k and Crew Cab $44.5k. Similar to the F-150 XL and the Ram Tradesman, the Silverado WT will help you get the job done.

The popular Silverado Custom starts at $43,600 and includes a TurboMax 310 horsepower / 430 lb-ft of torque engine, 10-way power driver seat, and covered armrest storage, along with 20-inch aluminum wheels. Custom Trail Boss with Z71 Off-Road package is $51,800 including black 18 inch wheels and a raised hood with black insert. The less racy LT starts at $48,000 with a 13.4 inch color touch screen display and 12.3 inch driver information center. Luxury LTZ trim starts at $57,200 with leather seats and 8 cameras to see up to 14 views, and the top tier luxury High Country starts at $62,700 with premium leather and custom perforation and stitching as well as open-pore wood trim. The ZR2 with off road shocks, e-lockers, aluminum skid plates, and mud tires starts at $69,900 msrp. Heavy Duty Silverados start at $43,400, and if you pony up for the right options, can pull a whopping 36,000 pound trailer or carry 7,000-plus pounds in its bed.

Four engine choices are a bit simpler to comprehend than Ford’s six, with the standard high-output four cylinder 2.7L TurboMax serving up a beyond-respectable 300+ horses and over 400 lb-ft of torque — huge numbers for any base engine, let alone one with four cylinders. Other engine choices include a 5.3L V8 with 355 hp and 383 lb-ft of torque, and a 6.2L V8 with 420 hp and 460 lb-ft of torque which is related to GM’s venerable LS motors from Corvettes. There is also a 3.0L Duramax Turbo Diesel inline 6 engine with 305 horsepower and 495 lb-ft of torque. Heavy duty Silverados are available with a 6.6L turbodiesel V8 that has 470 hp and a gut wrenching 975 lb-ft of torque, or a 6.6L V8 gas engine with 401 hp and 464 lb-ft of torque.

GMC Sierra

While it is a Silverado underneath, there are a host of reasons to call out the Sierra separately from its Silverado brother. It arguably kicked off the luxury truck trend with the Denali trim, which persists to this day with its trademark in-your-face chrome grille. The Sierra also has different exterior styling than the Silverado, which may be preferable depending on ones subjective judgment. Options and trims differ slightly than the Silverado, including the AT4X off-road as well as the Denali Ultimate, which stickers at $84,990 msrp; it still has a hard time measuring up to the fully-optioned Ram Limiteds in terms of opulence, though. Entry-level Silverado models start at just over $37k msrp and the next level up SLE starts at $50,300 msrp, making the Sierra quite a bit costlier than Silverado Custom or Silverado LT.

Ram

Ever since the second generation Ram debuted in 1994 and was subsequently popularized by the movie Twister, the truck has more or less kept a similar shape, a distinctly Ram-like design through its fifth and current generation. If you want to save a bit of money, Stellantis (formerly-known-as-Chrysler) will still sell you a brand-spanking-new fourth generation Ram, currently being called Ram Classic, starting at $30,695 msrp. Ram Classis is also being offered right now with 4.9% APR for 72 months. The more stylish Warlock trim starts at $41,985 msrp with the Pentastar V6 engine, or upgrade to a 5.7L V8 Hemi for $2,495 more.

The fifth generation Ram starts at $37,905 for the not-bargain-basement looking 1500 Tradesman 4x2 model, which includes four real doors and the 305 hp Pentastar V6, bumping up to $41,755 msrp for 4x4. Indeed, there is no Ram regular cab model, so you will always get a back seat. If you aren’t painting houses, the Ram 1500 Big Horn starts at $43,320 msrp in 4x2 guise, and is one of the more popular Rams on the road today. Offered in eight exterior colors, the optional 5.7L V8 Hemi runs $2,995, and 4x4 steps up starting prices to $47,170. Big Horn offers an LED trailer hitch light, leather wrapped steering wheel, chrome grille and bumpers, navigation screen, 18 inch aluminum wheels, and a host of interior options. Stepping up to Laramie adds heated and ventilated leather 10-way power seats and dual zone automatic climate control, and a 9 speaker Alpine premium audio system.

Luxury Ram trims include the Limited and Limited Longhorn, which are basically Rolls Royce pickup trucks, with interiors dripping in real wood, leather, and metal trim; a 2500 Limited Crew Cab 4x4 8-foot long bed starts at $87,765 msrp. A 19-speaker Harmon Kardon premium audio system is sure to be heard from the next city, and there is an available four corner active air level suspension, available 22 inch wheels, heads up display, and a 12 inch digital cluster. Other trims available in between include the sport-trim Rebel, the two-tone Power Wagon, and the Raptor R fighter, the 702 hp Ram 1500 TRX.

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