The comeback of the new El Camino was never closer. Now when the compact truck class is born again, there will be room for novelties. Or comebacks in this case. The El Camino perfectly fits into this story. It was a car-based small pickup built for 3 decades. The last one came out from the production lanes in 1987. Well, it returned once in the meantime, but as a star of the Breaking Bad movie.
Ford made a breakthrough with the Maverick truck, although many experts suspected in its success. Now other truckmakers are preparing their compact pickups. We don’t have too many details about GM plans. For example, prototypes of the Ram 1200 were caught on the streets and Toyota obtained rights to use the Stout nameplate. The new El Camino could be its rivals. Another old name we see recently in rumors is GMC Syclone. Well, General Motors have quite a few old vehicles that could be back. But returns seem more popular in the truck industry than any other.
New El Camino Specs
If the new El Camino is going to be a compact truck, there are a few options available for the upcoming vehicle. Chevy needs to match outputs of the main rival. In its base form, Ford Maverick produces 190 hp with a hybrid engine. Chevrolet won’t offer such a configuration. Instead, we might see a turbocharged unit. For example, a 1.2 or a 1.3 units. Power outputs are not the main goal, but the fuel economy. Also, those trucks are not designed to tow a lot.
A 1.2-liter turbo 3-pot plant can produce 137 hp and 162 lb-ft. A 1.3-liter mill is slightly more powerful with 155 ponies. Still, both those outputs are underachieving. Equinox is using a 1.5-liter 4-cylinder engine. With turbochargers, it might get 200+ hp. Naturally aspirated, it produces 175 hp for the crossover.
Electric Truck
From this point of a view, not even the electric truck is possible, but even more likely than the classic motor with internal combustion. Again, we must take competition in the equation. No other company is building electric compact truck. So, the new El Camino can be a pioneer in this class. It opens more room for speculations about range and towing capacity. As an urban delivery vehicle, you won’t need more than 200 miles in a single charge. But, the bigger battery, the less frequently you’ll visit recharge stations.
Other Comebacks
Actually, even Ford used old nameplate, but we can’t speak of Maverick as a comeback. It was a car from 1970s. Now it is a truck. If the rumors come true, another return is possible with the Dodge Dakota, although the company could name it Ram 1200. General Motors has another ace upon the sleeve – the GMC Syclone.
Not only that the “comeback” is trending in the compact truck class, but also in other segments of automotive industry. The most recent return was Hummer, and before that, we saw Jeep Wagoneer SUV, Ford Bronco, Toyota Supra…
New El Camino Release Date
The new El Camino has the best shot as a compact truck. If this is true, the carmaker will have to speed up the development and leave no extra time to rivals to take over the market. The premiere of the new pickup is expected in 2024 and we hope it will be El Camino.