> but we don't know for sure because nobody builds the trucks we want.

Americans collectively purchase over 1 million trucks a year. They come in all kinds of different form factors from work truck with unpainted bumpers to 700HP supercharged dune runners, there are massive couches on wheels with interior made from saddle leather, to trucks pushing 1000ft-lbs to torque. There are EVs trucks with 400 miles of range and crossovers with the hatch turned into a tiny bed. There's even a Jeep Wranger with a bed (Gladiator).

If there's a significant market for a truck niche, it's covered. Trucks are far and away the most diverse segment of the US auto market. If manufactures killed of the truck you want, it's because they apparently can't find 1,999 other people to buy that trim.

> Americans collectively purchase over 1 million trucks a year. They come in all kinds of different form factors. If there's a significant market for a truck niche, it's covered.

They do not come in all form factors. Compact trucks are missing.

> If manufactures killed of the truck you want, it's because they apparently can't find 1,999 other people to buy that trim.

If that were true, Ford wouldn't have stopped selling the Ranger in the US. They stopped making them in December 2011.

Yearly sales [2] were

   2005  120,958
   2006   92,420
   2007   72,711
   2008   65,872
   2009   55,600
   2010   55,364
   2011   70,832
   2012   23,848

Canadian sales were about 20k a year, with 2011 and 2012 combining to hit 20k-ish. [2]

If it's not sales, and it's not competition (because all of the competition stopped servicing this market, too), it's because CAFE forced us to buy bigger or older trucks.

[1] https://carfigures.com/us-market-brand/ford/ranger#year-sale...

[2] https://carfigures.com/canada-market-brand/ford/ranger#year-...