2001 Compact Pickup Trucks

Chevrolet adds a four-door crew-cab model to its compact pickup lineup to counter four-door versions of the Nissan Frontier and Dodge Dakota. The similar GMC Sonoma also gets the crew-cab body style.

Dodge made major changes to the outside of the Dakota last year, introducing a four-door Quad Cab body style. The big changes this year are on the inside, where a redesigned dashboard and other components give the interior a new look. When the Dakota Quad Cab arrived in January 2000, the Nissan Frontier was the only other compact pickup to offer crew-cab styling with four conventional, front-hinged doors. Since then, the Chevrolet S-10, GMC Sonoma and Toyota Tacoma added that feature.

New sheet metal in front of the windshield gives the Ranger compact pickup a fresh face for 2001 — similar to the Explorer Sport's appearance. A sporty two-wheel-drive Edge model adds a bulging hood, a monochromatic exterior and 16-inch tires to impart the aggressive look of a four-wheel-drive model while keeping the cost down.

GMC fires another salvo in the pickup truck door wars with a crew-cab version of its compact Sonoma. Chevrolet also offers a crew-cab version of the similar S-10 pickup.

Two new engines are available in the B-Series line — a clone of Ford's compact Ranger pickup. A new two-wheel-drive Dual Sport model that imparts the look of a four-wheel-drive truck also is available this year.

Two new engines are available in the B-Series line — a clone of Ford's compact Ranger pickup. A new two-wheel-drive Dual Sport model that imparts the look of a four-wheel-drive truck also is available this year.

Two new engines are available in the B-Series line — a clone of Ford's compact Ranger pickup. A new two-wheel-drive Dual Sport model that imparts the look of a four-wheel-drive truck also is available this year.

A bold exterior restyling and more power are the big changes this year for the Frontier, Nissan's compact pickup.

Toyota introduces its first pickup with four conventional doors for 2001, the Tacoma Double Cab. The Tacoma is Toyota's compact pickup, and it previously came only in regular-cab and extended-cab (called Xtracab) models with two front doors.