2012 Toyota Tacoma Priced at $16,875

The 2012 Toyota Tacoma will start at $16,875 when it goes on sale this month, according to the automaker. That’s a $510 increase for the base two-wheel-drive Tacoma compared with the 2011 model. Overall, depending on the trim, prices have increased by $10 to $645 compared with last year. Destination fees tack on another $810.

For the 2012 model year, the Tacoma gets a redesigned front end — the hood, grille, headlights and bumper designs are new. In the cabin, the Tacoma gets a new center stack, gauge cluster and steering wheel.

Double Cab and Access Cab body styles now get a standard six-speaker stereo with Bluetooth connectivity and a USB port. Top-of-the-line Double Cab V-6 trims get Toyota’s new Entune multimedia system. Other updates include a larger backup camera display, new temperature and compass gauges, HomeLink, rear console box on all Access Cabs, overhead storage and a water-protection package on the TRD Sport and Off Road trims, says PickupTrucks.com.

Continue reading below for more detailed price changes. 

First Look: 2012 Toyota Tacoma

When the 2012 Toyota Tacoma unofficially made its debut just a few weeks ago, showing its new face and front end on the internet, readers on our sister site PickupTrucks.com responded loudly to the new styling. We expect to hear more, now that we’ve seen more.

The redesigned hood, grille and bumpers give the new Tacoma a more stylized "swooping" face, says Mark Williams at PickupTrucks.com. And when combined with the new headlights and housings, it’s clear that Toyota engineers are looking for a new look. (In fact, it wouldn’t surprise us a bit if this 2012 Tacoma is the test bed for a more expressive Tundra design language.) Pricing has not been announced yet, but don’t expect much change. Look for more information, details and driving impressions as we get closer to the new Tacoma’s production date.

First Look: 2012 Toyota Tacoma (PickupTrucks.com)

PickupTrucks.com Heavy-Duty Shootout: Hurt Locker Edition

PickupTrucks.com has done heavy-duty Shootouts before, but with manufacturers increasing their vehicles’ capabilities all the time, there always seems to be a new top-of-class claim.

Editor Mike Levine and his staff put three trucks — the 2011 Ford F-350, 2012 GMC Sierra 3500HD and 2011.5 Ram 3500 — through a grueling 2,200-mile test measuring every conceivable metric buyers of these haulers would want.

These work trucks can haul 19,400 pounds according to their specs, so that’s how much PickupTrucks.com put on their beds across the American Southwest. Check out the full report to see which one came out on top. [Hint: If you read the last Heavy-Duty Shootout, it’s the same winner.]

PickupTrucks.com 2011 Heavy-Duty Hurt Locker

Medium- and Heavy-Duty Trucks To Get Fuel Economy Standards for First Time

The fuel ratings you see on most cars and pickup trucks on dealer lots are often taken for granted; medium- and heavy-duty trucks sold on the same lots don't have them. The fuel-economy numbers for those vehicles — used for everything from hauling boats to restoring power — will now be regulated by the federal government for the first time.

Today, President Barack Obama will announce the new regulations set to go into place in 2014. These new rules will cover three distinct sets of vehicles: combination tractors (semitrailers), heavy-duty pickup trucks and vans, and vocational vehicles (such as city buses and garbage trucks).

The White House said in a statement this morning that the new rules were in response to requests from business owners and other operators of these vehicles after they saw the results of recent updates to the corporate average fuel economy standard for light-duty cars and trucks.

Like those recently upgraded EPA standards, the administration developed these new rules with automakers, fleet owners and the state of California as well as the U.S. Department of Transportation and the EPA to avoid potential court challenges.

The new program will run from the 2014 through the 2018 model years and is projected to save 530 million barrels of oil and reduce greenhouse gas pollution by 270 million metric tons. It’s projected to save owners of those vehicles $50 billion over the life of the plan.

The plan promises a flexible structure to address the wide-variety of vehicles that fall under the program. We’ll have more details later this week. Check back here and on PickupTrucks.com.

2012 Honda Ridgeline Gets New Sport Package

The Honda Ridgeline receives welcome improvements for 2012, including a new Sport trim package.

The Ridgeline Sport, which looks reminiscent of the Ridgeline Sport project truck shown at SEMA in 2005, adds the following to the base Ridgeline RT's standard features: exclusive black 18-inch alloy wheels (+1 inch from RT steel wheels), exclusive black honeycomb grille, standard fog lights, black headlight and brake light housings, and black side mirrors and door handles.

Also look for a slight boost in EPA mileage ratings for the 2012 Ridgeline, said Chris Martin, Honda spokesman.

The 2012 Honda Ridgeline goes on sale in November.

Mike Levine, PickupTrucks.com

How New Engines and Transmissions Are Born

What goes into the makings of a modern-day powertrain, including the testing, know-how and man-hours? PickupTrucks.com saw for themselves at GM’s new Global Powertrain headquarters. The facility is the crown jewel of more than 30 years of planning and restructuring at General Motors. Projects currently underway include the automaker’s next-generation aluminum small-block V-8 engines that will power the company’s latest pickups and SUVs. To find out more, check out the full piece over at PickupTrucks.com.

Inside GM's State-of-the-Art Powertrain Engineering Center (PickupTrucks.com)

NHTSA Expands Ford F-150 Investigation

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expanding an ongoing investigation of the 1997-2001 Ford F-150 over an issue with the fuel tanks on some of those vehicles, according to PickupTrucks.com

There have been complaints that fuel tank straps on some models show signs of rust or have failed. At least six cases have involved fuel spilling when the tank dropped or detached. No fires have been reported; though NHTSA goes on to say that a fire can start if a dragged fuel tank ruptures.

An original investigation, starting in September, looked into 1.4 million F-150s; today, NHTSA is expanding that to 2.73 million pickups. For additional information, go to PickupTrucks.com.

NHTSA Expands Investigation into Ford F-150 Fuel Tank Straps (PickupTrucks.com)

PickupTrucks.com: Mopar Jeep JK-8 Video

There has long been speculation about a Jeep pickup, a modern successor to the 1992 Jeep Comanche. Mopar’s Jeep JK-8 conversation kit is not necessarily the Jeep pickup many fans had in mind, but the modified four-door Wrangler Unlimited may be a hint at a full production truck down the line. Continue watching the video from PickupTrucks.com above to see how the Mopar kit works.

Big Trucks of the 2011 Work Truck Show Video

We don’t typically cover heavy-duty trucks of this caliber, but we thought you’d like to see what PickupTrucks.com’s Mike Levine discovered at the 2011 NTEA Work Truck Show. In this video, Mike finds the five most interesting trucks he can find, including an electric full-size van, several new snowplow models and the official boom truck of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The best is saved for last: a semi-militarized armored truck. Check out all the trucks in the video above.

Former Dodge Cargo Van Now the 2012 Ram C/V Cargo Van

Ram unveiled its new 2012 C/V cargo van at the 2011 NTEA Work Truck Show today, and PickupTrucks.com’s Mike Levine was there, where he also caught up with these other developments.

The Ram cargo van should look familiar; it’s the 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan with modifications to the inside and the suspension.

The commercial van features sliding rear doors and metal panels on the rear windows instead of glass, though glass is available.The second- and third-row seats have been replaced with a rugged aluminum flat load floor that can have optional Stow ’n Go bins underneath it. The van features the new 283-horsepower, 3.6-liter V-6 that's standard on the updated Grand Caravan.

The suspension has been retuned for heavy-duty loads and maximum hauling capability. The van can tow 3,600 pounds.

No pricing has been announced, but the 2011 Dodge Grand Caravan C/V starts at $21,800. Ram also might add another commercial van to its fleet, derived from either the Fiat Ducato or Fiat Doblo vehicles, according to Levine. There are no official mileage estimates, but Ram execs say the C/V should be able to go 500 miles with its 20-gallon gas tank.

For more information, go to PickupTrucks.com.

First Look: 2012 Ram C/V Cargo Van (PickupTrucks.com)