I don't think that 5-6' with the tailgate down is enough, it fails the dirtbike test. If it can hold four or five adults then it needs to be able to carry the gear of at least three in my opinion, and 6' isn't even enough for a good stout dirtbike, let alone three of them.
Remember, when Nissan and Toyota introduced their crew cab pickups to the US in the late nineties, originally they were the same total length and same wheelbase as a regular-cab "long" 8'+ bed and as a club-cab "short" 6'+ bed, which meant that the bed was only about 5' long, if that long. They'd already discontinued the traditional 8' bed at that point, but these trucks were built on the same frames as the others. At the same time both Toyota and Nissan made a regular cab with a 6'+ bed with a shorter wheelbase. Eventually Nissan realized they were losing sales, and they dropped the regular-cab-short-6'-bed entirely around '03, to introduce a new, even-longer wheelbase, which gave them a crew-cab with 6'+ bed, and I *think* they designed the frame so that the same 6'+ bed from the club cab truck fits the crew cab truck.
I live in a part of the country with a disproportionate number of pickup trucks, and I see far fewer trucks with short, stubby 5' beds than I do trucks with 8' beds, and the 6' bed is by far the most common, regardless of the the truck having a regular cab, a club cab, or a crew cab. I just don't think that the numbers are there for a cartruck with a bed less than 6' long, especially if it's intended as a lifestyle truck. Heck, if the bed is less than 6' long then I could carry the same load by taking the hatch off of my wife's Integra.
The Australians seem to have this market figured out, perhaps we should look at the Ute designs.
Remember, when Nissan and Toyota introduced their crew cab pickups to the US in the late nineties, originally they were the same total length and same wheelbase as a regular-cab "long" 8'+ bed and as a club-cab "short" 6'+ bed, which meant that the bed was only about 5' long, if that long. They'd already discontinued the traditional 8' bed at that point, but these trucks were built on the same frames as the others. At the same time both Toyota and Nissan made a regular cab with a 6'+ bed with a shorter wheelbase. Eventually Nissan realized they were losing sales, and they dropped the regular-cab-short-6'-bed entirely around '03, to introduce a new, even-longer wheelbase, which gave them a crew-cab with 6'+ bed, and I *think* they designed the frame so that the same 6'+ bed from the club cab truck fits the crew cab truck.
I live in a part of the country with a disproportionate number of pickup trucks, and I see far fewer trucks with short, stubby 5' beds than I do trucks with 8' beds, and the 6' bed is by far the most common, regardless of the the truck having a regular cab, a club cab, or a crew cab. I just don't think that the numbers are there for a cartruck with a bed less than 6' long, especially if it's intended as a lifestyle truck. Heck, if the bed is less than 6' long then I could carry the same load by taking the hatch off of my wife's Integra.
The Australians seem to have this market figured out, perhaps we should look at the Ute designs.
