The Grand Daddy Of All

If you think the Ford F-350 or Chevy Silverado 3500 HD are large pickups, this mega-rig from International Trucks is quite literally on another level

If you're in the market for a massive pickup, you'll probably be looking at one of the heavy-duty variants of the Ford F-Series pickups or the Chevrolet Silverado HD series, but what if you want something even more massive? America has had a long history of pickups that were way too massive than anyone probably asked for, and if you want to see the granddaddy of them all, you need to look away from the big three American brands. Instead, you need to start digging through International's history to find the biggest mass-produced pickup ever made.

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If there's one brand you can count on in turning a commercial heavy-duty truck into a pickup for consumer use, that'd be International--a brand that's known for making large commercial trucks. The biggest pickup to be ever mass-produced is called the International CXT, which is an abbreviation for "Commercial Extreme Truck".

The CXT is just part of the brand's range of XT trucks, which also included the RXT and MXT. Serving as the basis for the CXT is International's 7300 truck chassis, a heavy-duty vehicle meant to have a gross vehicle weight of 25,999 pounds as it hauls cargo from one state to another. In its transformation into a massive pickup, you'd probably imagine that it'll be indeed heavy enough to have its own gravitational pull, and indeed it is (but probably not the gravitational pull part).

Tipping the scales at 14,500 pounds, it's the absolute heaviest pickup ever produced from the factory. For reference, the Ford F-150 weighs around 4,069 to 5,697 pounds depending on the trim and configuration. And if you thought the F-150's maximum towing capacity of 14,000 pounds is already capable, the International CXT could pull 6,000 pounds more. The CXT is a massive pickup with massive capabilities.

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In case you probably didn't know, International has had a long history of making pickups. In 1908, when International was still known as International Harvester because the company catered mostly to creating tractors for farmers, the company created the Autowagon. It is this model that is credited to have made the pickup market popular in America.

Let's not even forget the popular crew cab layout, because it's also thanks to International that the world now loves the practicality of four-door pickups. Things continue to be good for International well into the 1970s, and it began making the heavy-duty commercial trucks that we've become accustomed to. With International's long history of making pickups, why aren't they producing one anymore? Well, in the 1980s, International suffered major financial losses, which meant most of the businesses it entered had to be sold off.

The only business it maintained is its heavy-duty commercial truck business, but even the International Harvester name and its logo even had to be sold in order to stay afloat. In 1986, Navistar--an American holding company, acquired the name and the logo, and it's currently operating the International that we know today.

At this point, you might be wondering how International ended up creating a massive pickup in the mid-2000s. Pickup sales have grown from two million units in 1980 to its peak of twelve million units sold in 2019. In addition, the average pickup grew bigger and heavier whilst becoming less of a tool and more of a comfortable daily driver for many Americans. This meant more features, more luxurious interiors, and a greater level of driving comfort and thus a higher price tag.

People were willing to pay more for a pickup as they turned from a commodity into a luxury item, and as with plenty of things in America, bigger is always better. At a time when Ford is making F-350s or Chevy making Silverado 3500 HDs, International thought of creating a pickup right out of a heavy-duty truck, and thus the International XT model range was born. The XT range consisted of the CXT and a slightly lower but longer model called the RXT.

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The 2008 recession spelled doom for many automakers, and that included International. Along with the ever-growing environmental concerns that owning such a large vehicle posed, the International CXT and RXT eventually went the way of the dodo. As the economy recovered, the motivation of creating an even bigger pickup was brewing.

With International not producing the XT model range anymore, it collaborated with a custom truck builder called Extreme SuperTruck based in Georgia. For its latest and final truck project, International went all out and used the HV507 truck as a basis for its monster of a pickup, and indeed what a monster it is that our friends from Donut Media were able to drive. That's because the HV507 is part of a model series that International calls their "Severe Duty Truck". It's so big and so tough, its payload capacity matches the 20,000-pound towing capacity of the CXT.

That also meant giving it the heart to match its size. It packs a massive Cummins 8.9-liter turbo diesel V-8 that produces 370 horsepower and a massive 1,250 pound-feet of torque that's already available at just 1,400 rpm--way bigger than the more powerful DT466 7.6-liter inline-six turbo diesel that produced 220 horsepower and 540 pound-feet of twist.

This truck didn't just come with a lot of capability. It was also luxurious. The interior was trimmed in plush leather, plus you even get an infotainment system and rear seats that are able to convert into a bed. It was the definition of excess and with a price tag of $185,000, it did not come cheap. However, since this wasn't a mass-produced vehicle and is instead more of a custom job, it's not the biggest mass-produced pickup ever made. It is, however, the absolute biggest pickup you can buy.

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While pickups and SUVs are all the rage these days, don't expect these trucks to make a comeback, though. On the upside, did you know that International helped Chevrolet develop the heavy-duty models of the Silverado? In turn, International has rebranded models of the Silverado HD called the International CV. This is perhaps the closest you could get today to owning a pickup from the brand that made excessively large pickups a thing.

Isaac Atienza is a Filipino motoring journalist who joined TopSpeed.com in 2021. He also owns a Filpino motoring website called Go Flat Out PH and is also a contributor to a local newspaper called The Manila Times. Isaac Atienza is a car enthusiast who especially thinks that wagons are the best type of vehicle, though sports cars and anything with three pedals also tickles his fancy.