[Nickshu]

Originally Posted by kaisen

The size of this segment has grown, and grown to the point where a crew cab 4x4 isn't all that far off what a half ton truck used to be. A Double Cab Tacoma is over 18.5 ft long, where a full-size is barely over 19.0 ft, and they are within 5 inches in width. So the more manageable size isn't really much of an attraction these days as they're simply not that much smaller.

Here's a length comparison I made today:

2015 Chevy Colorado Crew cab short box: 212 inches long / long box 224
2015 Chevy Silverado Crew cab short box: 230 inches long / long box 239

Doesn't seem like much of a difference.

Weight savings results in better fuel economy for compact pickups, but when the new aluminum 2015 F150 comes out (and the Silverado to follow in aluminum in 2017 or 18) this may be a major blow to the compact segment since the sizes have become so similar as what we define as "compact" keeps getting bigger while "standard" trucks are getting somewhat smaller...