Toyota Hilux

For fighting Soviets in Afghanistan or hauling lumber in California, the Hilux was perfect.

A lot of 50-year-olds don't look this good — or are as capable.

If you were to rank vehicles that do what they're told to do, the Toyota Hilux might be one of the top five greatest workhorses of all time. For 50 years, over eight generations, the Hilux has proved itself to be reliable, durable, yet modest about its achievements.

They range from mild to wild.

It was built by the team that created the Polar Hilux.

There are a number of new cab, engine and transmission configurations.

The Hilux has been absent from Japan for 13 years.

Just like the old Tamiya ad.

An Ohio company will modify the vehicles with heavily upgraded mechanicals, armor, and new communications and command equipment.

Whether hauling a dozen Kalashnikov-wielding fighters in Afghanistan or commuting to work in Albany, these trucks seem to live forever.

Toyota South Africa Motorsport is giving the Hilux a serious performance boost by slotting in the 5.0-liter V8 from a Lexus IS F. Making 449 horsepower, the truck also gets a suspension and brake overhaul to handle the extra power.

Coming trade deals in the Pacific and in the EU could finally put an end to the Chicken Tax that exerts a 25-percent import tariff on foreign pickup trucks. Although, it might be a while before we see a bevy of new models on US streets.

HiLux is one Toyota's top-selling nameplates and the most popular in Australia. The truck has just been replaced with an all-new, eighth-generation model that's tougher, more capable, safer, and more comfortable than the model it replaces.

The midsize truck segment is suddenly seemingly exploding with new vehicles worldwide, even here in North America. Not only will the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon be available very soon, Toyota is already testing a replacement for i

The Hilux might not be the only Toyota product that we Americans don't get, but with respect to our collective want for JDM jewels like the Alphard, Aygo and of course the noble Crown, it's the forbidden-fruit pickup that we most lust after. As you'd suspect, announcing a new Invincible trim-level fo

The Datsun 510 will always hold a special place in enthusiast's hearts. The anonymous little coupes and sedans quickly established themselves as willing performers on the nation's race tracks in the early '70s. But while the goons at BRE were busy embarrassing other manufacturers in the Trans Am Challenge, scads of 510 Wagons contented themselves with family hauler duty. These days, the unloved

Toyota has just wrapped up another impressive Antarctic expedition, this time traversing over 43,500 miles in the span of four months. In the process, the company says it snagged a new world record with three specially-prepared Hilux pickup trucks with each covering 5,903 miles of the frozen continent. Iceland-based Arctic Trucks handled conve