keep in mind they did not exist in vacuum in 2012 either... Ranger just arrived and then also VW Amrok, as well as usual Nissan/Mitsu competition...
True, sorry I had reverted to the Tacoma again.
In terms of Africa and Asia, I feel like Hilux is dominant. In terms of Oceania, Europe, and Americas, they have to stay on top of things and not get complacent.
By 2012, the American midsize pickup segment left Toyota to dominate. Secondly, what the greater population forgets, is in 2004-2005, the new second generation Tacoma was virtually Lexus like in execution compared to it's less refined competition and had extremely versatile configurations all of a sudden. Endless configurations via street performance, offroad, sport, 4 different transmissions.
That 2005 Tacoma was developed to beat America and it did single handedly, becoming the best selling compact/midsize to date.
It made a lasting mark on the marketplace and buyers never forgot that. The current truck is an evolution of that, so it's not surprising how sales stayed on top. Even if deemed uncompetitive in some areas.
Will that hold true for the future? GM delivered two products not particularly executed well all around, even if eons better than their 2000s predecessors. In my opinion, I dislike the Colorado and Canyon.
Ford management made a cynical move, to reintroduce the nameplate via global T6 pickup stopgap to regain presence. Although a cynical move, it was made with the knowledge of the 2022 vehicle being a high stakes effort.
I welcome the Tacoma editions for 2021, but I am already seeing some non-LE guys being overly critical of the lack of changes. It's quite stupid though as I'm not sure what they expect at this point after a facelift.
As far as I am concerned, there are maybe minor changes also for 2022. Originally per an industry access document, Tacoma production was to end June 30, 2022. I'm not sure if that has changed to 00/2023.
Would it make sense to make some mini update changes for 2022 (like 2018 Tacoma), if that MY 2023 redesign holds true? Or is it now 2024 MY redesign as I suspect?
If this vehicle is not redesigned within 30 months, they will need to update it to stay competitive against what I see coming.
I'm just saying, if Toyota keeps a 2023 Tacoma virtually identical to MY 2020 in terms of equipment, be prepared to lose serious marketshare as a result.
They've done this with other models at times, which is allow product to easily become stale versus retaining a generation, plus keep it fresh with needed updates in between.
I say this because my partner is charge of some aspects of the new Bronco and Ranger. That division is really gunning for Toyota this time around and with no resources going towards cars, Toyota I hope is well aware of what needs to be done.