Thinking of getting a new truck for 2021? Along with pickup trucks being workhorses since donkey’s years, today, they are more of a lifestyle choice doubling up as family carrier, especially if they are also capable off-roaders.
Of course, the newer the trucks get, the more technologically savvy and safer they are. So obviously, a 2021 pickup truck will come feature-loaded, and be safer than ever. And while it will make you spend more in the first go, a new pickup truck will be maintenance and hassle-free for a while to come.
Of course, not every pickup is meant to go off-road, and obviously, the more you spend on a vehicle, the less you’d want it to be mauled by the great outdoors. Scritches and scratches on brand-new and big-cost trucks can hurt you the most.
So keeping all these factors in mind, here are the best pickup trucks of 2021 that are also the most competent for off-roading.
10 Ram Power Wagon: A Legacy Well Carried
One of the best Dodge trucks ever, the Power Wagon, as a Dodge Ram at the time, came to the civilians as a workhorse just after WWII and was one of the first to offer a 4X4 function as well as a power take-off, which meant the vehicle’s power could be diverted to operate machinery like winches and such.
Today’s Power Wagon is a Ram and comes based on the Ram 2500 HD, and has a 6.4-liter gasoline V8 that can make 410 horses. It is one high-riding monolith perfect to take on ditzy terrains in. The front-mounted winch can handle 12,000 pounds as well.
9 Jeep Gladiator Rubicon and Mojave: The Sky Is The Limit
The Jeep Gladiator is basically the pickup truck version of the Wrangler, and works on the same removable roof and door premise, with an added pickup bed and an extended wheelbase. There’s an optional disconnecting front anti-roll bar that helps the truck solidly move on uneven terrain.
The Rubicon trim is the one to get if rock crawling and going where no pickup has gone before is your idea of fun. And to take on the desert, or any kind of sand, it’s the Mojave that will be able to withstand all that heat. Both come with 11 inches of ground clearance.
8 GMC Sierra 2500/3500HD with All Terrain X: The Name Says It
Technically speaking, heavy-duty trucks do not make the perfect off-roaders. They are heavy, a tad cumbersome, and not the most agile of workhorses around because of sheer bulk alone. But when you combine a Sierra, which is the GMC twin of the Chevy Silverado, with the All Terrain X package, things begin to look up.
Twin-tube shocks, hill-descent control as well as transfer-case protection make it a powerful pickup with some rather decent trail capabilities. That said; it cannot do what the Rubicon can. Then again, maybe it can.
7 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro: Trail Pro With Size Limitations
The Tundra is the biggest pickup Toyota has to offer, while the TRD stands for Toyota Racing Development. When the tundra becomes the Tundra TRD Pro, you better be sure it has some serious trail chops, with a 2.0-inch suspension lift and some internal-bypass dampers as well as special shocks.
Thick skid plates protect the vitals and as long as the trail is sizeable enough to let the large-sized Tundra fit, it will do okay with its 18-inch wheels and all-terrain Michelin tires.
6 Ford F-350 Super Duty Tremor: When The Earth Shakes
The Ford F-Series Super Duty is the truck to reach out to when you want to tow a house. Or something as big. But in case you get the Tremor package on it, what you tow better fits the off-road trails. Otherwise, the truck is capable enough, for sure.
The skid plates protect all that is vulnerable, and then there is the engine, the Godzilla, which’s a 7.3-liter push-rod V8, that makes 430 horses and 475 ft-lb torque and rides om a 10.8-inch lifted-suspension.
5 Nissan Titan XD PRO-4X: A Monstrously Featured Truck
The Nissan Titan is not the titan of sales, but Nissan is still holding on to it, although this beast is still trying to find its footing among the competition. The Titan XD PRO-4X comes loaded with everything a truck would need offroad. It has Bilstein dampers, a two-speed transfer case, an electronic locking rear differential as well as the looks to match.
The 5.6-liter V8 manages 400 horses, good enough power to take it up and down bad terrains, and still look good while doing with its red accents and badging.
4 Chevrolet Silverado HD + Z71 Off-Road: The ‘Vettes Of Pickups
The heavy-duty Chevrolet Silverado isn’t just a hauler to be used in rural setups or a lifestyle vehicle in urban places – it’s also one awesome hauler on the off-roads, especially if you take 2500/3500HD, with the Z71 package.
The Z71 package adds skid plates, anti-roll bars, and hill-descent control to your truck, the latter coming in especially handy when going down gradients with heavy loads being towed behind. The package can be had with either of the V8s, the gasoline, or the diesel, the latter of which makes an astounding 910 ft-lb torque.
3 Ram 1500 Rebel: Off-Ready & How
The Ram 1500 Rebel is one of the lighter pickups, but even more capable when it comes to off-roading. All the 1500 4X4s come off-road-ready but the Rebel also adds pizzaz to the whole truck. Along with the electronic locking rear differential, four-corner air suspension, two-speed transfer case as well as 33-inch DuraTrac Wrangler tires, the Rebel looks stunning too.
2021 sounds rather exciting for the Rebel because an all-new model is coming to town, taking on the Ford Raptor, and it's called the 1500 TRX, this one with a 700-horsepower 6.2-liter Hemi V8 from the Charger and Challenger.
2 Ford Ranger FX4 Off-Road: Simpler But Capable Goings
The Ford Ranger pickup is nowhere near as popular as the F-150s, but it is still a very capable mid-size pickup that comes with an affordability factor as well. To make it a capable off-roader as well, there’s the FX4 Off-Road package that adds a more focused suspension riding on better wheels and tires.
It has a terrain management system as well and basically is off-road agile because it keeps its weight light, even when fully-loaded. All this on a four-cylinder to keep costs affordable as well.
1 Chevrolet Colorado ZR2 Bison: A Step Into Greatness
Okay, we know, Colorado isn’t anyone’s idea of a pickup truck. While it did get bad ratings for years on end, things are perking up for it now especially since it comes bearing a ZR2 Bison package, that has it step out of its erstwhile bovine shadow into pure bull-headedness.
The Bison was developed with the help of the American Expedition Vehicles and features many upgrades that make it an easy-to-drive truck when it comes to off roads. In fact, it has so much agility, it makes off-roading look easy, even to a novice driver.
Sources: Autotrader, CarandDriver, AutomobleMag