Just a year or so before the next Ford-F150 debuts, the 2014 Ram 1500 has snagged this year's top truck prize from Motor Trend. The latest Ram 1500 has just been named this year's Motor Trend truck of the year. The publication was particularly impressed by the fact Ram is offering the full-size pickup with an optional diesel engine, the first time an automaker has offered a half-ton pickup in the US with one for more than 15 years. This 3.0-liter turbodiesel V6 pumps out 240 horsepower and 420 lb-ft of torque.

The bottom line is that half-ton trucks customers have been asking, rather begging, for a diesel-powered pickup for years, and only Ram was listening. MT was also impressed by the truck's design inside and out as well as its air suspension and those beyond cool "Rambox" truck bed storage units.

Read more about the best 1-ton trucks.