COMMENTARY: Guzzlers No More?

NEW YORK - Trucks, pickups and big sport utility vehicles are where the money has been for Detroit. That is how General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler have survived the onslaught in the passenger car market from the likes of Toyota Motor, Honda Motor, Hyundai and BMW. Today, with gas prices at their current levels, the truck business - for both U.S. and foreign nameplates - is in serious trouble. In six months, Ford Expedition sales are down 33 percent; Dodge Durango sales, 37 percent; Chevy Avalanche sales, 45 percent; Nissan Armada, 23 percent; and Toyota Sequoia sales, 30 percent.