2009 GMC Canyon

Base MSRP $16,705

The Canyon is between compact and mid-size among pickup trucks, and is a very useful size for city-dwellers as it's small enough to easily fit into just about any standard parking spot. The new V8 engine for 2009 fills a void in the compact-truck arena and turns the Canyon into a very capable, exciting-to-drive muscle truck. Price might be its most attractive attribute, though; comparably equipped, even with the V8, it comes priced several thousand dollars below a full-size truck.