Ford Somehow Won Truck Of The Year With A Trim

The Detroit Auto Show is officially underway and it kicked off with the 2026 North American Car, Truck and Utility Vehicle of the Year Awards. They’ll likely prove somewhat controversial, as one winner is simply a new trim.

Without further ado, the 2026 North American Car of the Year is the new Dodge Charger. It beat out the Nissan Sentra and overpriced Honda Prelude for top honors.

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It’s hard to argue with this pick as Dodge finally launched an ICE-powered variant with a twin-turbo Hurricane inline-six. It develops 420 hp (313 kW / 426 PS) and 468 lb-ft (634 Nm) of torque in the R/T, while the Scat Pack has 550 hp (410 kW / 558 PS) and 531 lb-ft (719 Nm).

Customers can also opt for the fully electric Charger Daytona Scat Pack, which starts at $72,495 for the 2027 model year. It features a dual-motor all-wheel drive system producing 630 hp (470 kW / 639 PS) and 627 lb-ft (849 Nm) of torque. However, a PowerShot function can increase the output to 670 hp (500 kW / 679 PS) for ten seconds at a time. Those are great numbers, but the 267 mile (430 km) range leaves a lot to be desired.

Moving on, the Hyundai Palisade won the title of North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. The model edged out the Lucid Gravity and Nissan Leaf.

This seems like another solid choice as the redesigned Palisade starts at $39,435 and features a new hybrid powertrain as well as a rugged XRT Pro variant. While a 3.5-liter V6 comes standard, the Palisade Hybrid has a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder producing a combined output of 329 hp (245 kW / 334 PS) and 339 lb-ft (459 Nm) of torque. It enables the three-row crossover to return up to 33 mpg city, 35 mpg highway, and 34 mpg combined.

That brings us to North American Truck of the Year, which went to the Ford Maverick Lobo. This is the biggest surprise as it’s little more than a sporty trim that begins at $35,930.

As part of the makeover, the truck has been equipped with a street-focused suspension and a lowered ride height. They’re joined by a beefier braking system, a torque vectoring rear drive unit, and a 2.0-liter EcoBoost engine with 250 hp (186 kW / 253 PS) and 277 lb-ft (375 Nm) of torque.

While there’s nothing wrong with that, it was selected over the facelifted Ram 2500. The heavy duty pickup features revised styling, an improved interior, and a new 6.7-liter Cummins turbodiesel engine that produces 430 hp (321 kW / 436 PS) and 1,075 lb-ft (1,456 Nm) of torque.

The Lobo also bested the Hemi-powered Ram 1500, although that’s more understandable as it’s simply an old engine making a return.