2015's best six pickups

South Africans call 'em bakkies.
In Thailand they are pick-ups.
In the USA, cowboys call theirs a truck and Down Under these wheels are utes. Whatever you call your light commercial vehicle with a load bed, know now the six lcv's below are the purtiest darn good-looking machismo trucks on sale today.

At Nr 1, the Santa Cruz couble cab coupé concept, shown by Hyundai at the Detroit Auto Show, will give pick-up/ute/bakkie/truck drivers all over the world heart palpitations.
Even more so considering the amount of technical detail listed for the concept — like central
locking diffs — suggests it is ready for production.

Double cab? Yep. There be four doors hidden in them thar sleek lines.

Hyundai said their designers did not set out to make a workhorse with this double cab. Instead they created a ­bakkie to meet the specific needs of “urban adventurers”. And for city slickers, looks come first,  praise be.

The rear doors open from the C-pillar to make it easy for three passengers to get onto the rear bench. Tie-down cleats on the wheel arches, roof, and bed rails makes securing any type of load easy. The load bed is also expandable and can be easily reconfigured for longer cargo, using a unique drawer-like sliding function.

Under the hood a 2,0-litre turbo diesel powertrain delivers good fuel economy, using an all-wheel drive system.

While the concept looks big and menacing, its overall footprint is similar to a small cross-over vehicle, making it easy to park in spots any other pickup in America has to pass by.

At Nr 2 is Ford's lighter F-150. Ford group vice president Raj Nair unveils the new aluminium based Ford F-150 at this week’s Detroit Auto Show. The high fuel price had Ford in the U.S. considering downscaling to smaller bakkies, like our Made-in-Silverton little Ranger, but now the new F150 has stolen the Detroit show from the U.S. truck of the year.

Third spot goes to the Aton-Impulse, built in in South-West Russia by Viking. This giant seven-seater amphibious bakkie is equally happy on snow, mud or deep water, making it the ideal vehicle for northern climes to handle river and lake crossings.

It should be economical too, despite its three tons dry weight, because under the hood is a puny 1,7-litre engine. But with the sidewalls on those wheels to provide leverage, who needs torque on the flywheel, right?

In 4th place is the new GMC Canyon, because its makes claims its offers the segment’s best power and efficiency with its smaller engines, either a 2,5 litre l-4 or a 3,6 litre V6. How heavy is your voet, boet?

5fth place goes to Dodge’s concept pick-up, coz why it has SLIDING doors man! With the cabins of the big American bakkies similar in size to most panelvans, this looks like a direction more big utes could follow.

In Nr 6, last but not least is America’s truck of 2015, not because the still staunch-looking but all new Chevrolet Silverado finally boasts new exterior, interior, and drivetrains, with notably better quality plastics and more comfortable seats, but because the Yanks like it so much. Wait till these crusty ol' cowboys see that Sante Cruz double cab coupe in soft light... pure gansta drool, dude.