A pickup truck should be the hardiest car you can lay your hands on. It should be designed to withstand any kind of brutality thrown its way while maintaining impeccable levels of performance, reliability, and style. Of course, these needs keep evolving over the years. That’s why better pickup trucks are being introduced to the market every year, with each presenting a better package than the previous years. Just look at Ford’s new, revolutionary, F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck. Critics so far are calling it the better pickup truck, compared to the company’s gas offering. But what if anything shiny is not entirely as good as you thought. Save for the new F-150 Lightning (still no rampant complaints about that), there are several “cool” American trucks that few realized had terrible flaws until they bought them. To save you from the frustration of figuring it out on your own, here are ten you should be wary of.

10 Chevrolet Colorado

Chevrolet Colorado
Via Consumer Guide Automotive

The Chevy Colorado is one of the best performing pickup trucks in the market. Individuals who can’t buy the F-150 or RAM, and wish the Ford Ranger was a bit more accessible (thank goodness it came back), opt for this rather impressive marque. But it’s not as good as it looks. RELATED: Battle Of The Pickup Trucks: Chevy Colorado Vs Jeep Gladiator

Chevrolet Colorado
Via Concept Carz

The 2004, 2005, 2008, and 2015 model years are all flawed. The 2004 – 2005 Colorado had A/C and heater problems. It could only work on high or not at all. There were also engine start failures and a check engine light that never went off.

9 2014-2015 GMC Sierra 2500

2014-2015 GMC Sierra 2500
Via GM Media

Just from looking at the GMC Sierra and Chevrolet Silverado, you’d notice a lot of similarities. That’s because both these pickup trucks share the same platform. After all, they’re built by sister brands. Sadly, the 2014 – 2015 GMC Sierra comes packed with a few issues.

2014-2015 GMC Sierra 2500
Via The Times Weekly

The biggest of these is a multitude of fire hazards that pose a great safety risk to drivers. The 2014 – 2015 GMC Sierra is also plagued with a multitude of build quality issues that often results in faulty parts and expensive maintenance.

8 2006 Ford F-250

2006 Ford F-250
Via Cord and Kruse Auctions

The Ford F-250 is one of the hardiest pickup trucks you can get on the market. This marque is built to withstand a zombie apocalypse and an alien invasion. However, Ford didn’t get everything right for not only the 2006 model year but also the 2008 and 2011 model years.

2006 Ford F-250
Via YouTube

The most notable of these flaws was a very shaky suspension. For the 2006 model, the issues extended to engine failure that extended to the 2008 model year as well. There were also other safety-related issues such as unintended acceleration and sudden braking.

7 2012 Dodge Ram 3500

2012 Dodge Ram 3500
Via IH8MUD Forum

You can hardly go wrong with the Dodge Ram. However, if you bought the 2012 Dodge RAM 3500, there are a couple of things that went sideways, not unless you were lucky. The 2012 Dodge RAM 3500 contributed to the brand’s historical recall count of 55.

2012 Dodge Ram 3500
Via Pinterest

The biggest issue that plagued the smaller 2012 Dodge RAM was reliability. There were plenty of fire hazards, faulty seats, faulty electronics, faulty steering wheel linkages, faulty accelerator pedals, and faulty airbags. Most of these issues were safety-related which made owning this marque at the time rather dangerous.

6 GMC Canyon

GMC Canyon
Via Consumer Guide Auto

The GMC Canyon is another hardy, useful, and well-loved pickup truck. However, when it came to faults, it was plagued with the same disease that crumbled its sister, the GMC Sierra, plus its distant cousin, the Chevrolet Colorado, with which it shares some functionality. RELATED: This Is The Best Feature Of The 2021 GMC Canyon

GMC Canyon
Via Edmunds

The GMC Canyon suffered through a long list of faulty parts and recalls. The strangest of these issues was a faulty storage console latch that could fail in the event of a crash. The result would be a vicious blow to the driver by their spare change, in case of a head-on collision.

5 Chevrolet Avalanche

Chevrolet Avalanche
Via Wikipedia

The Chevrolet Avalanche was a revolutionary truck. It introduced, defined, and solidified the concept of having a truck as your daily driver, especially for the average Joe. Sadly, its heavenly experience was often sabotaged by a barrage of issues that made the car impossible to drive.

Chevrolet Avalanche
Via Wikiwand

The most prominent issues with the Avalanche were faulty fuel rails, faulty ignition locks that would suddenly shut down the engine while driving, faulty wheel nuts, and windshield washers that would spontaneously burst into flames. The result was a rather unreliable car that should have performed slightly better had Chevy fully dealt with these issues.

4 Dodge Ram 1500

Dodge Ram 1500
Via Car and Truck

The Chevrolet Colorado we’ve already talked about has a list of about 20 known faults. The Dodge RAM 1500 on the other hand tops that list with 48 known faults across its production. That’s not something worth dismissing.

Dodge Ram 1500
Via Wikimedia Commons

The Dodge RAM 1500’s faults are not as simple as a glitch in the radio. The biggest known issues include faulty battery wiring, faulty brake pedals, faulty suspension welding, faulty drive shafts, faulty engine intakes that spontaneously catch fire, and a faulty differential. Worse, the Dodge RAM 1500 also suffered from the death wobble that scared so many drivers.

3 2000-2008 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD

2000-2008 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD
Via Car and Driver

This heavy-duty full-size pickup truck was almost built like a tank. The Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD still stands as one of the best full-size pickup trucks you can buy in the market. However, for the 2000 – 2008 model years, a barrage of issues related to poor quality control and bad engineering botched a great experience for most drivers.

2000-2008 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD
Via YouTube

The 2000 – 2008 model years of this marque suffered from serious issues such as loose brake pedals, faulty steering column pins, faulty battery connectors that either melted or caught fire, and potential engine fires that scared most drivers.

2 Dodge Dakota

Dodge Dakota
Via DODGE DAKOTA

The Dodge Dakota was the next option for anyone who didn’t want to drive home with a Chevrolet Colorado. Sadly, it came with a barrage of more issues than the Colorado it competed directly against. RELATED: Here's How Much A 1989 Dodge Shelby Dakota Costs Today

Dodge Dakota
Via Car info

This rather popular mid-size truck was plagued with serious issues such as faulty, heated seats that could burn through the fabric and possibly your skin as well. It also had a faulty suspension, faulty transmission lines that could spontaneously catch fire, and faulty wheel hubs that could give you a Bottas-worthy wheel-changing experience.

1 2004-2005 Ford F-150

2004-2005 Ford F-150
Via Power Auto Brokers

The Ford F-150 is not just Ford’s best-selling pickup truck. It is also the best-selling vehicle in America. However, this formidable machine hasn’t always served roses to its drivers. For the 2004 to 2005 model years, in particular, drivers experience the worst form of pain. Any F-150 gifted with Ford’s 5.4L 3V V8 engine was a terrible mess.

2004-2005 Ford F-150
Via YouTube

This engine earned a reputation for being highly unreliable. It was a 3 valve replacement of the tried and tested 5.4L V8 engine that served the F-150 from 1997 to 2004. The spark plugs for this engine, which was used up to the 2010 model year, tended to break off spark plugs, shooting repair costs to the tune of $1,000 to $3,000. NEXT: These Are The Best Trucks And SUVs To Turn Into Overlanding Vehicles