Joe Machens in Columbia sells about 65 vehicles a day and more pickups than anything else, said owner Gary Drewing.
The company sells Ford, Toyota, BMW and Isuzu vehicles, and the Ford F-150 is its No. 1 seller.
Trucks make up 21 percent of registered vehicles in Boone County, according to a report from the Missouri Department of Revenue.
Drewing said high truck sales are based on the diverse Columbia and Boone County markets.
Those markets depend upon three main uses of pickup trucks: agriculture, commercial and personal, Drewing said.
“Trucks nowadays will drive just as nice as a car.”
Abby Ladlie, a recent MU graduate, drives a 2004 diesel GMC Seirra 2500. She grew up around farms and always liked trucks.
“I have always liked a heavy-duty, powerful vehicle as opposed to a small one,” she said.
Patrick Darby, sales manager at Legend Automotive Group in Columbia, estimated that the best-sellers at Legend are Pontiacs and Mazdas, such as the Pontiac Grand Prix or Mazda 6. Legend sells Cadillac, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz and Pontiac vehicles.
Drewing said customers look for styling, performance and fuel-efficiency in their vehicles.
Gas prices have driven some people to look at smaller vehicles, but Legend is still selling many SUVs and trucks, Darby said.
“It’s my belief that the higher gas price hasn’t hurt the car business,” he said.
Carol Robinson, who drives a Toyota 4-runner, said it runs well and is low-maintenance. After seven years, she’s never had to get a new battery or new tires, and it has always passed inspection.
“If you’re going to have to pay for an automobile, you need to get one that will last,” Robinson said.