Aussie tradies shun US-style pick up trucks while boat owners flock to them as debate rages

They’re the most controversial vehicles on the road today – but there’s a surprising reason why so many Aussies are such big fans.

Australia’s passion for utes has existed for decades – but now, there’s a new kid on the block, and it’s causing one of the biggest motoring debates in the country.

In recent years, sales of American-style “pick-up trucks” have been booming Down Under, with figures proving the US vehicles – like the RAM 1500 and Chevrolet’s Silverado – are exploding in popularity.

In 2021, General Motors Specialty Vehicles (GMSV) reported 2118 Chevrolet Silverado sales, and late last year, the 5000th locally-remanufactured vehicle came off the assembly line in Victoria.

And RAM Trucks revealed in October 2022 that 604 units had been sold in September – up 45 per cent on 2021 year to date, with a total of 17,115 RAMs sold to Australian customers since production began.

This surge in demand has seen other car giants sit up and take notice, with one of America’s best-selling vehicles – the Ford F-150 pick-up – on its way to Australian shores this year, followed by the expected arrival of the Toyota Tundra in late 2023 or early 2024.

These types of vehicles often cost six figures, and according to the latest data from the March quarter, sales of utes with a price tag of more than $100,000 have jumped by a staggering 67 per cent, indicating the trend shows no sign of slowing. .

The vehicles are exploding in popularity. Picture: Reddit

But while there's clear evidence Aussies are embracing the trucks like never before, they’ve also sparked fierce backlash, with other road users slamming their bulk, their environmental impact and the amount of space they take up in car parks.

In fact, they’re so hated they’ve been given a range of insulting nicknames, such as “emotional support vehicles” and “yank tanks”, with furious Aussies regularly snapping photos of obnoxiously-parked trucks and sharing them on social media, as reported by news.com.au recently.

However, while it is widely assumed that tradies are driving the sales boom, it turns out that might not actually be the case, with an entirely different demographic embracing the trucks for a surprising reason.

While many tradespeople have claimed they’re far from fans of the vehicles, boat, caravan and horse owners are apparently flocking to them as a result of their towing capacity.

“I’ll be honest, 99 per cent of tradies I work with f***ing hate these things. It’s usually some 60-year-old grey nomad that thinks his 900kg Jayco popup needs a vehicle that barely fits in an Australian lane to pull it,” a Reddit user wrote in response to a recent thread complaining about the trucks, with countless others arguing they were “not a tradie vehicle”.

Sales of utes with a price tag of more than $100,000 have jumped by a staggering 67 per cent.

Meanwhile, social media users who own the trucks purely for towing reasons have been quick to defend them on social media.

“Best ute I’ve ever towed with,” one Facebook user posted, with another adding: “Oh sure. because ONLY ‘tradies’ need carrying or TOWING capacity. Get real. Given Australias very restrictive rules on towing (compared to overseas) ask ANYONE who tows a horse float or decent sized caravan what sort of vehicle they need …”

“Rather be a bogan in my comfy Chev while towing our van than in the old manual Rodeo we had,” another wrote, with another adding they “wouldn’t look at anything else to tow our van and boat. Does it easier than any other vehicle I’ve owned and does it legally and still more economical than any of the smaller utes on the market”.

Alex Jeffs, automotive expert at comparison site Finder, recently told news.com.au that there were several reason for the popularity of these vehicles, including their towing capacity for recreational purposes.

“Covid for instance saw the rise of the staycation. With more people buying caravans, many of these large trucks have much larger towing capacities than your standard ute,” he said.

“The popular RAM 1500 can tow 4.5 tonnes compared to the Toyota HiLux, which is one of Australia’s favourites and good for 3.5 tonnes.”