The American Pickup Truck’s Not-So-American Origins

There’s no denying that the pickup truck is as American as blue jeans and apple pie. But did you know that this heavy-duty vehicle originated in Germany? The very first German-made motor trucks hit the streets of London in 1897 with great fanfare, fifty years before the Ford Motor Company took the U.S. market by storm with its best-selling F-Series models. These early trucks ushered a new age of passenger transportation and changed the course of automotive history forever.

In this article, we’ll discuss the lesser-known origins of the American pickup truck, how it went from commercial vehicle to household staple, and what we can expect in the future.

When Was the First Truck Made?

Early Years of the Pickup (1896 – 1900)

Many credit Henry Ford as the inventor of the modern pickup truck. His 1925 Ford Model T Runabout proved quite popular among farmers who attached modified trolleys or cargo boxes at the back of their trucks in order to transport produce and other goods. Ford saw this as an opportunity to introduce optional bandwagons or coaches for their Model Ts, which made it easier to haul things; hence the term “pick up.”

However, the history of pickup trucks began much earlier in 1896, with two German inventors, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz. It was Gottlieb Daimler who made the first motor truck in 1896 as a new form of motorized transportation. It was advertised as a horseless wagon with a payload capacity of 3,300 pounds, which made a lot of people skeptical. Vehicle No. 24, as it was called, had a rear-mounted four-horsepower Phoenix engine and a belt drive with two forward speeds and one reverse. Meanwhile, Benz modeled his “motorized goods vehicle” from the Phaeton passenger car. Benz’s first lightweight truck had a payload capacity of 1,300 pounds, which would put it under the van category by today’s standards.

The two German inventors never met each other, but they pursued the same engineering concepts and even shared the stage several times. In the 1899 Paris World Exposition, Daimler showcased a heavy-duty truck with a front-mounted engine and a payload capacity of 10,000. Three years before, Benz sold one of his delivery vehicles at the same venue. Despite their decades-long history as business competitors, Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) and Benz & Co. Rheinische Gasmotorenfabrik later merged to create Daimler-Benz AG, better known today as Mercedes-Benz.

The Big Three, Postwar Years, and the Automobile Boom (1920 to 1955)

The 1920s was an exciting decade for the automobile industry. Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler dominated the western market as the “Big Three” in the early half of the decade. Factories like Reo, Auto Wagon, and Autocar began producing their own line of vehicles in response to the growing demand for motorized transportation in America. Affordable pickup trucks like the Ford Model T made it possible for thousands of Americans to work on farms and travel across the vast United States.

In 1918, Chevrolet introduced its own truck lineup, which resembled older cars with a rear body frame that was cut away. Customers had to install their own bed if they wanted to use the vehicle like a truck. Later in the decade, Chrysler Corporation bought the Fargo Motor Car Company and reintroduced their truck as part of its product line. After acquiring the Dodge Brothers Company for $170M, Chrysler rebadged their Fargo trucks as Dodge trucks and sold them through Chrysler-Plymouth dealers.

The automobiles of the 1930s sat lower to the ground than previous generations. Customers could no longer convert their cars into trucks by sawing off the back portion of the vehicle and adding a bed. As a result, pickup trucks were manufactured as standalone vehicles. Many independent automakers went out of business in this decade due to the economic impact of the Great Depression. However, this didn’t stop Japan from producing its own line of pickup trucks. In 1935, Toyota unveiled the G1. Its water-cooled, inline, six-cylinder OHV engine was based on the design of the 1933 Chevrolet engine, and its chassis was Ford-like.

All civilian vehicle production was shut down during World War II in order to aid the allied war effort. Manufacturing plants became assembly lines for tanks, jeeps, and trucks. The $10 billion budget from the national government allowed automakers to upscale their operations and build new factories such as Ford’s Willow Run and Chrysler’s Detroit Arsenal Tank Plant, where thousands of workers were hired. Ford’s lightweight trucks were converted into all-wheel drives and delivered to the U.S. and Belgian armies. The United States Army Ordnance Corps also developed a full line of tactical trucks capable of operating off-road in all weather conditions, such as the high-utility Dodge WC Series and the heavy-duty GMC CCKW.

After World War II, the American auto industry resumed the production of civilian vehicles to meet customer demands. This employed millions of workers and helped the economy recover from the war. It was during this period that the Big Three launched their most iconic truck lines. Dodge had the B-Series. Chevrolet had the Model ER. And Ford debuted the F-Series, which would become the best-selling pickup truck for 50 years.

Modern (1960 to Present)

The decades following the first automobile boom brought the American pickup truck into the mainstream. The 1960s produced some of the best pickup truck designs of all time, from the boxy Chevrolet C10 to the giant Ford F-100. Datsun and Toyota also introduced compact pickup trucks to the North American market during this decade, which changed pickup culture forever.
Several improvements were made to pickup truck transmissions that allowed them to travel long distances and carry heavy loads. Automakers began to offer automatic and four-speed manual transmissions to replace the three-speed manual column shifter that was standard in all pickup trucks.

Dodge launched a series of lifestyle pickup trucks in the 1970s to cater to a new generation of American families who required more versatility from their vehicles. These lifestyle pickup trucks were quite popular among Americans who traveled cross-country with their campers and trailers. In the same decade, GMC unveiled its first crew cab, which provided even greater utility, performance, and comfort. However, when the seventh generation Ford F-150 entered the scene, it became the best-selling pickup truck in America. By 1982, the Ford F-150 had become America’s best-selling vehicle.

Once a humble workhorse, the pickup truck has evolved to become America’s best utility vehicle. The COVID-19 pandemic didn’t reduce the sales of light and heavy-duty trucks in America. In fact, 11 million light trucks and 409,500 heavy-duty trucks were sold just last year. With such high sales figures, there’s no doubt that we’ll be seeing the American pickup truck in the future.

Bonus: Electric Pickup Trucks (2021)

Electric vehicles have been available for more than a decade. They were initially marketed as an environmentally friendly mode of personal transportation. The popularity of Tesla’s Model S led the way for other automakers to produce their own electric cars and trucks. Out of all the electric pickup trucks slated for release this late 2021, we’re most excited for the Tesla Cybertruck. Just look at it! From its near-impenetrable exoskeleton body to its sports-car-level acceleration, everything about this vehicle appeals to the performance-oriented truck driver. The Cybertruck will be available in three variants: Single Motor Rear-Wheel Drive, Dual Motor All-Wheel Drive, and Tri-Motor All-Wheel Drive.