The 2022 Ford Maverick is one of the truck vehicle class’s most exciting new additions. Like the Rivian R1T, the Maverick is something truck lovers have never seen before. It is the smallest and most affordable Blue Oval pickup. People are so excited about the tiny truck that they have even made renderings of a Maverick SUV. Here’s why a Maverick SUV is a terrible idea.

A Ford Maverick SUV would lack the Maverick’s coolest feature

The 2022 Ford Maverick’s coolest feature is its specially designed truck bed, the Flexbed. The Flexbed was designed by Ford’s team to be the ultimate DIY truck bed. The Blue Oval noted that truck owners often make modifications to their truck beds.

The Ford Maverick comes with pre-threaded holes and slots so Maverick owners can have the DIY experience without drilling through their trucks for convenience. According to MotorTrend, the Ford Maverick’s Flexbed is about 4.5 feet long. It is about 6.5 feet long with its tailgate down.

The Flexbed is about 4.5 feet wide and 20.3 inches deep. One reason why a Ford Maverick SUV is a terrible idea is that it wouldn’t include the Flexbed. Even if Ford managed to carry over the Flexbed as customizable cargo space, losing a tailgate and the vertical freedom that a truckbed provides would mean less utility.

The Ford Maverick’s size works for a truck but not an SUV

A huge reason that the Ford Maverick works is that there are few compact pickup trucks on the market. There are plenty of compact SUV models on the market, and they don’t always sell well. The Ford Maverick is so exciting because truck models are typically much larger and consume much more fuel.

If Ford were to produce a Maverick SUV, it wouldn’t be as impactful as the tiny pickup because several compact SUVs already exist and are unsuccessful. One example of a compact SUV that isn’t very popular is the Honda HR-V. The HR-V is the smallest Honda model on the market. It suffers from safety issues because of its design. Since there are better compact SUV alternatives available, the HR-V is less appealing.

As one of just two tiny trucks, the Maverick’s biggest rival is the Hyundai Santa Cruz. If it were an SUV model, it would face stiffer competition.

The Ford Maverick is attracting new truck buyers

The 2022 Ford Maverick is attracting more young female buyers than any other pickup truck, according to Maverick sales, reservations, and pre-orders. It is also attracting buyers from crowded cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles.

The Ford Maverick is attracting new buyers that a Maverick SUV would not because SUVs are much more ubiquitous in America. Truck ownership isn’t as common as SUV ownership. For that reason, the Ford Maverick pickup provides a unique experience that a Maverick SUV simply could not replicate.