[Big Dave]

What happens when you put the pickup through bariatric surgery and wind up with a 2,800 lb truck that won't pass US crash tests?

Will designers drop the "crush zone" and go to the fortifed passenger citadel surrounded by a vehicle that is flimsily built and shreds in a wreck. This is common practice on race cars where weigh and safety are at a premium.

It might be one way to meet weight and safety requirements but your vehicle is "one and done" in accidents.