If your vehicle must perform multiple functions, such as hauling people, cargo, or towing, you may be considering SUVs and trucks. Although SUVs provide an edge in hauling people, trucks would seem to do better at carting cargo and towing. However, depending on the number of people, the size and shape of the cargo, and the weight of the tow load, there is an area of overlap where either an SUV or a truck makes perfect sense. In other words, unless your needs are extreme in one area or another, don’t dismiss trucks or SUVs out of hand. Odds are, either the right truck or the right SUV can fulfill your requirements.
Also, let’s consider whether a truck or an SUV is the better vehicle for transporting the family and camping. Within this scenario, we can cover a wide range of vehicle functions like passenger space, technology, towing, fuel economy, and other variables. We’ll drill down into trucks and SUVs to determine what each vehicle class brings to the table. The goal, of course, is to help resolve the dilemma of which vehicle works best for you. We provide the jump links below to help you skip ahead if needed.
Trucks and SUVs probably have much more in common than you realize; however, the differences increase or decrease based on the comparisons you make. Comparing the Ram 1500 truck with the GMC Yukon SUV or the Ford Maverick pickup with the Hyundai Santa Fe SUV will produce fewer differences than comparing the Ram 1500 with the Maverick or the Yukon with the Santa Fe. Wait. What?
That’s right. While our debate does concern size (full-size, midsize, or compact) and body type (truck or SUV), it’s more about a vehicle’s innate ability to fulfill your needs. All things being equal, a larger vehicle can carry more people and cargo than a smaller one. However, manufacturers produce both large trucks and SUVs, as well as smaller trucks and SUVs. There is more to a vehicle’s capabilities than its size or body type. Only after you determine precisely what you require of your truck or SUV can you zero in on size and body type. For this reason, we’ll stick to trucks and truck-based SUVs. Read on to find out why.
We need to veer into the weeds a bit here to discuss why some trucks and SUVs are more capable hauling, towing, and off-roading than others.
At the dawn of the automobile era, body-on-frame construction was the norm. That is, the car’s body and frame were two distinct components bolted or welded together. In fact, for the initial decades of car making, it was common for the body and frame of a car to come from two totally different builders. For instance, it wasn’t until the mid-1980s that “Body by Fisher” labels disappeared from General Motors products. By that time, Fisher was a subsidiary of GM, but it had not begun as such. The body-on-frame method used the same frame for a wide assortment of models. Because the body can be separated from the frame, crash repair costs are often lower, too. Despite these features, as technology progressed, a lighter and more cost-effective unibody alternative surfaced. Car manufacturers liked lighter and cheaper; consequently, body-on-frame architecture fell out of favor. Today, only a handful of trucks and SUVs remain body-on-frame.
Among the advantages of body-on-frame construction:
Nearly all vehicles today use unibody construction. With this method, the vehicle’s frame serves as the entire skeleton, to which body panels and other components are attached. Designing and building a unibody vehicle is somewhat more complex than one using body-on-frame technology. However, the lighter weight of a unibody vehicle improves fuel economy, enhances its crash-management properties, and lowers its center of gravity, thereby improving driving dynamics.
Among the advantages of unibody construction:
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So what makes an SUV an SUV, and what makes a crossover a crossover? Some carmakers have muddied the waters, identifying certain crossovers as SUVs, to make them seem more capable. We, the automotive press, have also participated in using SUV broadly to include crossovers. However, there is a defining distinction between SUVs and crossovers, which must be understood when deciding between a truck and an SUV. That distinction: Like trucks, many SUVs are products of body-on-frame construction. A crossover has unibody construction. For its first four generations, the Ford Explorer was a body-on-frame SUV. With its fifth generation, launched in 2011, it became a unibody crossover. For our purposes here, any reference to SUV means a vehicle with body-on-frame construction.
Every midsize and full-size pickup truck is a body-on-frame vehicle. However, manufacturers also make three smaller pickups (the Ford Maverick, Honda Ridgeline, and Hyundai Santa Cruz) with unibody construction.
For the most part, just about any technology, convenience, or luxury feature you can find in an SUV, you can find in a truck, and vice versa. We’ll stick our neck out and claim that, in general, SUVs are probably more family-friendly than even full-size pickup trucks. For example, many SUVs offer available rear-seat entertainment systems (unavailable for trucks), along with more cupholders and USB ports than the average pickup truck. Furthermore, you can also get some SUVs with three rows of seats, which isn’t an option in a truck. Otherwise, in terms of comfort, quiet, and popular features, there’s not a lot of notable difference within the passenger area between a truck and an SUV. Granted, truck buyers may need to dip into the options to add some advanced safety tech typically found on SUVs as standard; however, most safety features are available.
If you are caught up in the current overlanding craze, you may be on the hunt for the ultimate adventure vehicle. Well, you’re in luck because the trucks and SUVs we are featuring in this article are among the ultimate overlanding vehicles. Overlanding is a form of extreme, off-the-grid camping that incorporates off-roading elements. If you end up at a location with campsites, RV hookups, or latrines, you’re not overlanding. Trucks and body-on-frame SUVs are ideal overlanding trekkers capable of customizing with aftermarket tents and other add-ons to make just about any outdoor adventure possible. Their rugged construction, better-than-average ground clearance, and competent 4-wheel-drive systems can get you to those prized, less-visited areas.
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When comparing trucks and SUVs, both have their positive and negative aspects. So, for our truck-vs.-SUV family hauler/camping comparison, let’s consider the pros and cons of each. Any pricing we use is based on the latest manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP), including the mandatory factory-to-dealer delivery fee (destination charge).
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We try to avoid saying, “it’s science.” However, in the case of full-size trucks and SUVs, bigger and heavier always seem to come out ahead in a frontal crash. Structurally, mass wins out, at least for the driver. A smaller crossover or sedan is simply no match for a full-size SUV or truck in the most common fatal accident, a frontal collision. Applying that bit of physics to a comparison of full-size trucks to full-size SUVs in a crash, SUVs typically outperform trucks in protecting their occupants. Some of this is due to an SUV’s additional mass; however, more is likely related to the fact that SUVs often have more advanced safety features and cabin integrity than trucks. In light of this — and as a broad generalization — we’d give our nod to the SUV as the safer of the two.
However, the difference between modern full-size SUVs and pickups is not categorical. The IIHS finds both have improved compatibility with other vehicles. Driver-death-rate data varies by model and weight, and very heavy pickups can pose a higher risk to other drivers.
The “which is better” question is really a subjective one. A full-size truck will cost less to buy and fuel, it has more flexible cargo solutions, can tow more, and haul more. A full-size 3-row SUV can accommodate more people, better secure belongings, offer more child-seat positions, and better serve the requirements of today’s high-tech families.
In other words, it all boils down to your specific wants and needs.
Our proposition is that when considering a full-size SUV or a full-size truck, there exist many needs that they are both well-suited to fulfill. Sure, each has its strengths, but there is plenty of middle ground, too. It’s in that middle where the real decision between SUV and truck lies. There, the choice distills down to budget, accommodations, amenities, and image.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated since its initial publication.
