Earlier quoted context omitted.
Both the Santa Cruz and the Ridgeline are unibody. The 1st gen Tacoma was body-on-frame. HUGE difference.
What? How? They have strikingly similar towing and payload. There’s nothing wrong or different about a unibody. It’s actually preferable in a lot of ways for small trucks
Similar towing a payload? A quick search shows a 2017 Ridgeline as having a rated 5,000 pound towing capacity compared to 6,800 for a Toyota Tacoma and 7,700 for a Chevy Colorado. I wouldn’t call that similar. Plus, unless you get the AWD version, it’s front wheel drive! I certainly wouldn’t want to pull a heavy trailer up a hill in the snow with a front wheel drive vehicle.
There’s nothing inherently wrong with a unibody - but it is absolutely different. People who buy trucks in the US typical don’t want a unibody vehicle. As a result, the Ridgeline and Santa Fe are seen more as “big cars with an open cargo area” than as trucks.