I really want true compact pickups to make a comeback. Back in high school my girlfriend had a 79 Ford ranger. Put a modern AWD and airbags on that thing and it's my dream car. Great mileage, some towing capacity, and an actually useful bed, without becoming a massive unwieldy thing.

Something that I can use 95% of the time to get groceries and not feel like it's overkill, but toss a couch, dirt bike or beehive in the back when the situation calls for it.

Don’t ignore the maverick. It completely fills that niche with the added bonus of not being a death trap.

They make a smaller model called the Ford Maverick

Those things are bigger than an old F-250, and they only have a 4.5' bed.

They're also not really pickup trucks, underneath they have the same SUV unibody as the Bronco (yikes) and the Escape.

Thanks, I can’t really get good information online

>They make a smaller model called the Ford Maverick

Unibody vs body-on-frame. Many consider that "not a real truck".