Trucks and SUVs are the last bastion of market dominance for North American automakers.

They sell three of every four trucks in Canada, compared to two of every five cars, but now and now the imports want to knock them off that perch too.

"We're on a serious mission to build big truck market share that will match our strong presence in cars," said Jim Press of Toyota Motor Sales.

Toyota will soon start selling a larger version of its Tundra model.

"I think we can convince the traditional truck buyer to come and look at a Toyota," said Tony Waring of Toyota Canada.

Honda is getting into the pickup business with its SUT, or Sport Utility Truck -- one that will be built at its Alliston plant about 60 kilometres north of Toronto.

It should begin production in 2005.

Nissan's Titan will hit showrooms this week.

"People have bought Chevs or Fords for a long time so we need to enter with some caution," said Nissan's Ian Forsyth. "We don't want to overwhelm the market with volume or try to push. We need people to be convinced we've done the right thing."

The bestselling trucks in Canada are Ford's F-series trucks, but the Japanese say the truck segment is ripe for the picking, that North Americans are stuck in the past.

But the Big Three aren't resting on their laurels.

Chrysler is unveiling a new Jeep at the International Auto Show in Detroit this week: the Rescue.

"It's a rugged, honest, no-nonsense design statement created by a team of designers at the Jeep studio. And delivered to you in the manner befitting a hero," said Trevor Creed, vice-president of DaimlerChrysler.

Automakers are becoming less traditional and offering a greater variety of vehicles than in the past, in part because changes in production techniques allow them to do so economically.

This will mean a blurring of lines.

For example, Chevrolet will be offering something called the SSR roadster. Wags have described it as a sporty pickup -- or conversely, a sports car with a pickup bed.

Such vehicles were the fastest-growing sales category in 2002.

That approach won't quite reach full-sized pickups yet. If you look at current advertising, things like horsepower are being touted. Motor Trend magazine said the 2004 Ford F-150, the world's best-selling truck, is looking more truck-like than last year's model, " the exterior of which tried to look too sleek and modern, earning it a wimp image in some camps."

At the same time, the tailgate will be easier to raise and the interior will be more car-like, with heated leather seats and a rear DVD player available as options.

But the day is coming when your truck won't be very much like dear old dad's.