Ford has confirmed that they will consider building Ford-branded pickup trucks in China including customized models specific to meet local requirements.

Demand for pickups, both from traditional farm and construction-related customers as well as newer interest from general car buyers, has increased there and last year China became the world’s second-biggest pickup truck market overtaking Thailand.

But many big Chinese cities restrict pickups from entering their centers, an obstacle for sales growth. But some urban areas have relaxed the rules in recent years, boosting pickup sales.

Reuters quoted Joseph Liu, Ford China’s vice president for production innovation as saying: “If more areas relax restrictions on pickup trucks, we will plan to locally manufacture Ford-branded pickup trucks in China to meet the demands of Chinese consumers with considerations of the market situation.”

Currently, the carmaker doesn’t build Ford-branded pickup trucks in China, but its local partner, JMC, the same one that manufactures the Territory manufactures Yuhu series pickups with Ford technology.

Liu did not provide details about manufacturing plans or model specifications but said made-in-China Ford pickup trucks would be different from existing imported models, if and when Ford went ahead with the plans.

For instance, China-made pickup trucks would be of sizes that are suitable for China’s roads and are less likely to have capacity for towing trailers as current policies limit that.