Why Don't They Sell It Here? Mazda BT-50

Bill Crittenden
June 9, 2014

Patrons of the American automotive market might not realize that Mazda and Ford still collaborate on a pickup truck.  Heck, a lot of Americans don't know that Ford still makes a Ranger!

The current Ford Ranger is similar to the Honda Ridgeline in size and utility.  Made for the world market, it's a solidly built, comfortably appointed truck that ends up costing as much as an F-150 but isn't as big.  Having encountered confused consumers with this formula before (1990's Ford Contour), I can't blame them for not cluttering their showrooms with a truck they may see as redundant, with a narrow possible market and low sales expectations.

But Mazda's version of the truck, the BT-50, is a truck unlike anything on the American market.  Designed in the previous, pre-Kodo style of Mazda, it looks similar to the CX-9 crossover, but with a bed on the back.  The wide taillights even still resemble the CX-9's, even though that carries them over onto the tailgate!  This rare styling touch is behind a flowing front fender style that is more like the 6 and CX-7's design.

Mazda doesn't have a cluttered showroom, and it's enjoying a big upswing in popularity lately.  They serve a bit different of a market than Ford, drivers who are more style and performance conscious and less of the strict bargain-hunter type, they're willing to pay a little extra for a unique, quality performance-oriented vehicle.  What's a narrow market to Ford just may be worthwhile for a lower volume brand like Mazda, but without Ford's backing a U.S. version of the Ranger it probably isn't worth the expense of conversion and testing.  That's too bad, the BT-50 could be marketed as a better styled and more fun alternative to the oddly styled and aging Honda Ridgeline.

I miss having a pickup truck, and if I had just a bit more money coming in I could promise Mazda at least one sale...