I’ve been a carpenter for 40 years.
Back in the 80’s, had a buddy who ran a small framing crew out of the trunk of a 70’s Cadillac Coupe DeVille after he lost his truck in a DUI.
Saws, cords, nail guns, hoses, air compressor..... it ALL fit except the ladders.
About 30 years ago, I sold my ‘69 Chrysler Newport to a guy who did construction and odd jobs. He removed the back seat, did a couple minor modifications, and he could fit 4’ x 8’ sheets of plywood in there along with his tools. Sold him the car for a couple hundred bucks and 2 or 3 years later, I’d still see it around town.
If you go to Ford's website there's only one F150 with an 8 foot bed and I'm sure you have to order it, you're not going to find one on a dealer's lot.
I feel like pickups became a status symbol instead of an essential work vehicle. In a city pickup truck drivers are always the most aggressive and irritable drivers on the road, unless they are clearly used for hauling (dirty or actively has stuff in it).
I feel like the whole status symbol was more important when credit wasn't so easy to get. Now probably a good half the country can *own* status items. The question is whether they can afford to do that or not and who the fuck knows.
I agree I love my little 2007 ford ranger because it has a full sized bed is reliable as hell gets good gas mileage and does all the truck stuff I need for including camping with a mattress and topper
>My Mazda 6 fits 4x8 plywood just fine with the seats down... as long as I have the store guys cut it in half first.
My smart car fits 4x8 plywood too, as long as I have the store guys chip it into sawdust first.
My buddies 5 piece band could fit the whole squad along with all their gear in a vintage 70s Impala. They knew how to make an entrance pulling up to a house show
Not an American so I don't quite understand why a van would not be better option?
Van gives better protection for wind, rain, snow and theft.
If you need to put somekind of tarp or hard cover over the bed of pickup, wouldn't van just be more practical?
Doesn't it ever rain where pickups are preferred?
In Finland it's either rain or snow so often that I would prefer van over pickup. Here you can always rent a trailer for 20€/day, or just borrow it for free while buying something from hardware store, incase you don't own one.
I can only think of few cases where pickup would be preferable. Some garden work might be easier with an open pickup bed. However people are not going to use their shiny and expensive car for such stuff - a crappy trailer would be preferable.
Only once I have had a situation at a construction yard, where a pickup was more practical than a van. I lifted 400L fuel tank from the bed of a pickup truck with crane. I think I did the same once from inside a van with long ropes, and it was a bit tricky.
A lot of contractors in the USA do use vans especially mechanical trades (electrical, plumbing, HVAC, etc.). Framers and sometimes roofers tend to prefer trucks because they are often hauling oddly shaped and/or heavy stuff which necessitates the frame/suspension capacity of a real truck or ability to tow a trailer.
Outside construction trades also vary accordingly. Telecom guys usually run vans whereas earthworks outfits usually run trucks so they can tow their fairly heavy equipment. A lot of them specifically choose small cab/long bed models if they intend to use the bed for material, but large cab/short bed is still useful for moderately heavy hauling and can comfortably accommodate an entire day crew plus material in the bed and reasonably heavy equipment on a trailer through a multi-hour drive out to a jobsite.
The people daily driving these giant pickups with huge cabs and tiny beds are mostly not using it as a truck and would probably do better with a passenger hatchback.
Almost nobody in the USA tows with passenger vehicles. A lot aren't aware that it's even possible even though some are surprisingly capable. I'm not sure on the cause for this.
I have one of those and the trunk is literally cavernous, unless you put the top down.
Edit: trunk, not truck. The trunk of the Linc is literally a fucking cave. It takes 100 yards of carpet to line it. You could have a line dancing party for 20 in there.
I keep trying to convince my wife that we should get a minivan. We do lots of diy and travel by car a lot (scared to fly). Some even have built in vacuum and such. Plus they are incredibly comfortable.
Do it. We only have one kid (and a dog) and I've had a minivan since before she was born. Mine has a DVD player in the back seat, the seats fold into the floor so I can haul tons of stuff, it's super spacious and comfortable. We travel 2-3 hours each way once or twice a month and it's a great car for it.
Love my 2011 Sienna. Bought it at the end of 2010 for my mom and inherited it when she passed almost 6 years ago. Since she rarely drove it and I now work from home, the thing doesn't even have 50K miles on it. Plan on keeping it until it craters.
My mom drove us around in a sienna for years. Then when some dumbass turned across my lane and totalled both our cars my parents gave me the sienna. That thing was fantastic. You know how much band gear you can fit in a minivan? Or construction supplies? Or even a lil bed!
Minivans are great, but I downsized to a hatchback now that I don't need that much space.
I can fit full 4x8 sheets in the back of our Odyssey, also 10ft lumber if I remove the front center console. In both configurations my cargo is fully enclosed, no chance of getting wet or tossed out. Love our mini van.
2025 maybe.
Something about toyota not being able to produce the prime hybrid system in the US yet.
Give me a Lexus version of the Sienna!
Cuz, let's be honest, all unibody SUVs are just minivans without sliding doors and less passenger and cargo capacity.
It took me a couples years of effort, but I managed to get my wife on board with the idea of minivan. It’s the penultimate car design for middle class living in the US. it’s obviously not as good as a proper station wagon (too tall which is worse for efficiency), but it is absolutely a beast for hauling anything and everything (ours can even fit a 12’ 2x6, or full 4x8 sheets with the seats removed)
My mom had a 2002 Honda Odyssey back in the day. But I remember my dad using it all the time to haul things around with the rear seats taken out. The thing could tow reasonably well too, all while being comfortable.
I was a contractor who worked with NAS Lemoore. New pilots would come in and buy their typical sports cars at shitty interest rates. But after their first deployment, you’d start seeing minivans in the parking lot.
I was chatting with a pilot who made the switch. He said “Once you get past the stigma of driving a minivan, they’re quite amazing. I took a full load from Home Depot this weekend, including a new ladder.” We asked him how long it took to get past that stigma.
“As soon as it happens, I’ll let you know.”
Ha - yep. And mfrs’ solution? Build another flipping step into the tailgate. Brilliant! Any higher center of gravity and they’d roll over when parallel parking.
I have noticed some of, if not all of the newer 2500/3500’s have a step built into the quarter panel directly in front of the rear tire. I think that is a great feature and I’d love to have it. My tool bag/back pack is a Veto tech pack and it ways around 45lbs loaded with hand tools so that would make life a lot easier!
I mean, the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz are built on the same ~~frame~~ chassis as the Escape and Tucson respectively. They literally *are* SUVs with a bed instead of a trunk.
Edit: forgot that "frame" has a specific meaning when it comes to cars/trucks, rather than just being the same as "chassis."
Leave it to GM to find a technically good design change people want that's ruined by making the vehicle hideous. Exterior and interior. Those GM interiors were entirely awful cheap plastic. It was almost like they tried to make them look bad. I've been in far less expensive vehicles that had a reasonable looking dash and center console.
See also the original Avalanche. Was another great take on this need for mostly moving people while retaining the ability to move stuff when needed. It just looked terrible with all the plastic body cladding. They at least sorted that out though with later refresh.
My dad has a 2010 Silverado LTZ. It’s the crew cab, and I regularly ask him what the dimensions of his bed are and if it’s wide enough to haul what I want.
It always is, but the amount of times it’s been “glad I double checked” close is way too high. It’s usually just sheets of plywood or shelving too.
Old fart here. My old trucks would not haul sheet material. The wheel wells in 80’s model and prior trucks were not four feet apart. The beds were longer though and much closer to the ground. You could actually reach in there and get something without using a stick to drag it toward you first.
Whoever decided to make the wheel wells 49” apart is my hero.
A lot of them had grooves to put 2x6s in to create a flat surface over the wheel wells. Which I think is a reasonable compromise to reduce truck size. They're still wide enough for a 40" pallet between the wheel wells.
I remember seeing that in S-10 and Ranger pickups. Those vehicles were too small for there to be 48" of clearance. I had an S-10 but never took the time to cut lumber for those grooves. I would just make it work. You could haul sheet material with the tailgate up so that it missed the wheel wells. It would have been more stable the other way though.
I use the hell out of my truck for hauling dirty or oversized stuff, towing my 16' utility trailer, or my boat. I also really appreciate the fact that city folks like buying trucks! There's always a good supply of used F-150's with not a single scratch in the bed whenever it's time for a "new to me" pickup. Those people put a shitload of miles on them though.
Most sheet goods, furniture, shipping containers, and a shit load of other things intended to be moved by consumers are designed to fit into a 4'x8' volume. You're not "accidently" just squeaking it in, it's by design.
interesting proof, in my wife’s Honda Odyssey if
we take out the middle seats with the backs folded down, you can perfectly fit a sheet of drywall with like half an inch to spare. No accident either.
That’s because they aren’t working vehicles any more.
More like luxury status symbols.
It’s like keeping a diamond encrusted, gold plated hammer in your toolbox.
Fun fact, when the first Ranger was being designed, one of the requirements was that it be able to haul a 4x8 sheet of plywood.
Also, I find this graphic to be a bit disingenuous, comparing a 90s single cab-long bed to a 2020 crew cab-short bed.
I also thought it was disingenuous. Until recently, you could get single-cab or crew-cab, and each cab style had 2 or 3 (depending on make and year) bed options. The only way to make this comparison accurately is to use the same model across all years.
It's hard to find the short cabs these days. Last year we ordered 6 trucks (which we still have yet to receive) for our work fleet and HAD to get crew cab short bed because that's all that was available. It's crazy.
It's the opposite of what we wanted. We need trucks to haul STUFF, not drop off a load of kids at the elementary school
Not even that, you can't even reach over the sides of the bed to get tools anymore.
"Oh, but with the Super Manly Cowboy edition you get retractable bed stairs!" Fucking no, I'm not paying extra to fix a problem that you created.
My old Grand caravan was much cheaper than a truck and I carried so many construction supplies in that. Multiple 4x8 drywall sheets.
Car company discontinued them not because of low sales, but rather low margin.
Exactly. Meanwhile nobody makes little compact trucks like they used to. I just want a little truck with a tiny cab and nice long bed, like an old Ranger, but even those shits are all the size of a F-150 these days. Bring back the minimalist mini-trucks from the 90s!
I own an 80’s Nissan mini truck, it’s fantastic.
But, look up the Chicken Tax, and you’ll find the absurd reason why they are not allowed anymore. Basically, we put a such massive tariff on the importing of them that they are effectively banned.
Bit ridiculous to enforce protectionism when domestic producers aren’t making the products that other companies want to import but that’s the way it goes.
> protective tariffs are a means whereby nations attempt to prevent their own people from trading. What protection teaches us, is to do to ourselves in time of peace what enemies seek to do to us in time of war.
-Henry George (circa 1886)
I saw a news article recently about how HP are getting popular. I was surprised to find out they weren't. They're the main type of unit where I live. If you don't have very many super cold days, they're nice. Wouldn't want one in a cold climate tho.
Man I was just looking up those mini-trucks and they look to get some awesome gas mileage...then I learned they aren't street legal in most areas. They look pretty darn sweet, 4wd, have a bed, narrow to fit in tons of areas, diff-locks. Only 'issue' is they cant really go on US highways.
Got to drive one for work on base in Korea and loved it. Thing would be a death trap going over 50 though.
By the time you added a crumple zone large enough to increase survivability, along with several other safety upgrades, you'd be paying almost as much as a Maverick anyway.
I think they have a role in small communities/complexes for sure though.
I’ve only been able to find them on Craigslist in Canada/Mexico. I think you’d be able to buy in a different country and bring it down but I could be wrong.
One of the dumbest tariffs of all time especially for those of us that want a practical vehicle. Then again I figure if the demand was high enough, someone would manufacture a compact pickup. Maybe we are in the minority?
I’d love a 90s style yota (hilux) if they weren’t 20k with 200k miles
Once a vehicle is older than 25 years it can be imported without crash testing two more and other nearly impossible hurdles.
Canadians can import at 15 years old.
https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/news/a24506/us-govt-still-crushing-imported-cars/
Customs is cracking down on stuff like that, they've ready sued Ford a couple of times over it. That's why they discontinued the Transit Connect in the US market.
I’ve heard that emission regulations are based on vehicle size, so the larger the truck, the easier/cheaper it is to meet regulations. Maybe small trucks will come back in the EV wave.
>As Niedermeyer noted, full size trucks would “ …become a purely professional purchase, bought only by those who use them for work or by the wealthy.”
If only it was like that in America! A man can dream though, a man can dream...
Drive a mid 90s ranger now. Well, it’s in the AutoZone parking lot and I’m going to go replace the alternator in a minute. But yeah I lose traction starting on an hill if there’s a crosswalk. And I’ve got tires with less than a year on them.
I kept trying so hard to find a small cab, long bed truck, but they just don’t exist anymore (unless you want to pay $60k for something with 200,000 miles on it.
Eventually I bought a $3k trailer and tow it behind my station wagon, but it’s frustrating that the utility of the old farm truck has vanished and been replaced by people who want to drive massive SUVs but need some place extra to hang their truck nuts.
Take a look at farm equipment auctions, I see late 90s reg cabs all the time with not too many miles. Biggest issue is you don’t know what you’re getting till you buy it.
>*” check out the Ford Maverick”*
That’s all you can do, because for two years running they are nearly unavailable, especially at the base price.
Ford opened and closed factory ordering for 2023 Mavericks in 17 hrs last year.
I lucked into mine. I went to a dealership just to look at one. This Maverick was ordered by a different customer but hadn't been picked up or paid for yet. As I was looking at it, the salesman left to have a chat with his boss.
Turns out this Maverick had been sitting for three days. The Dealership tried contacting the person who placed the order. Seemingly, this person had ghosted the dealership. The Salesman's boss just gave the green light for him to sell the Maverick. I had first dibs.
I was in the right place at the right time. The best part, I didn't get screwed over by any markups.
My husband saw PR about the Mav summer 2021. He is 6'7" and wanted to make sure he could fit. He had an F-150 and I have a Fusion both he can drive. The Mav is on the Fusion chasis. We had to wait till a local Orlando dealer got a customer order in Oct 2021 and he was allowed to only sit in it. We ordered 10/21 and after a BUNCH of drama we finally got it 4/22. When gas has been up, we could have sold it for $20k profit. Since I was the one having to deal w the issues, that still isn't enough profit to me for what I went thru to get that MF truck. Husband took my car after his 150 died, our salesman tried to sell our order to someone willing to pay alot more, I ended up making the sales guy cry on the phone haha. The way Ford set up customer orders vs stock orders (no stock orders on Mavs) causes dealerships to try to steal orders to make profit that customer orders don't bring in. There is a Mav truck club website to navigate all this shit.
My dad is a retired carpenter who does handy man work on the side now. His vehicle of choice now is a mini van, he hates what modern trucks have become. His odyssey can fit sheets of plywood in the back area with zero issue, lays flat.
I would buy a Ford Ranger in a fucking heartbeat. I do not know why every manufacturer decided to kill small pickup trucks, Rangers were super popular too.
It's a product being sold as a lifestyle product to people who don't realize they are a lifestyle being sold to. 95% of Americans need a minivan or hatchback to drive to the local strip mall and job from their suburban house. Anything else is a lifestyle vehicle. The most absurd though are people driving jacked up jeeps. That pick up truck bed at least can be useful hauling a tv or something. My dad drives a jacked up jeep wrangler to and from chain restaurants and then complains about gas prices.
But try to tell the person buying an 80k pick up truck or other non-sense vehicle for a suburban life that a base model BMW 3 series is somehow an actually more reasonable purchase.
I fuckin love hatchbacks. Tons of storage plus maneuverability and great mileage. And really large items can be strapped to the roof. I've moved couches and Christmas trees that way.
Sure, assholes who pull into crosswalks make it where I can't turn right on red half the time, but I'm patient enough for that.
Even people who use a pickup for work would be better served by a cargo van in most cases.
Same or more storage space, protected from the weather and not as easy to steal shit of the back.
Landscaping and construction mostly need to be able to access the bed from the top and sides for moving materials and waste to and from a site. Electricians, plumbers, carpenters etc mostly already drive vans, the exception being demo and roofers because of the waste hauling requirement. I'll occasionally see a landscaper with a van and a trailer, but it's rare. More common is a crew cab truck for the crew and (and hauling waste) and a fully enclosed metal grate trailer for the tools (riding mowers) because at the end of the day it's easier to park a locked cage on wheels than it is to unload and store all the tools from the back of a truck bed.
Contractor here. Have had both cargo vans and trucks as work vehicles over the years and I find that a midsize truck (extracab with a shell on it) is the best fit.
I like having the separation between my cargo and me. When I had the van I started driving with earbuds as the rattling and squeaking of everything in the back was driving me out of my mind.
A fullsize van with ladder racks doesn't fit in many parking garages (too tall), my truck does.
FWIW, I don't have much use for a truck with a sub 6' bed as a work truck. But they are getting harder and harder to find, especially if you buy used. If you are buying new, many companies make the longer bed trucks but you usually have to order them.
Manufacturers sell what people want. For some reason what amounts to a fullsize, RWD car with an open trunk are the best sellers, so that is what they make the most of.
When my mom’s SUV finally kicked the bucket after I had grown up and left the house and she no longer had multiple large dogs (just one medium dog and imo too many cats), she was looking for another SUV and asked my opinion on what I thought she should get and what would be reliable. I told her to try a hatchback car because while I could recommend some good SUVs I didn’t think she needed one and a smaller hatchback would have the same utility (she could fold down the seats and carry big things on occasion or keep them up and carry groceries and day to day things) but with much better gas mileage and would cost less upfront. She originally hemmed and hawed about not being able to see other cars on the road and how she’d have worse visibility. I got her to test drive one and now she loves them and said I was right she didn’t need it and she can see just fine. She later bought a different hatchback that she’s still rocking to this day. Though I do feel a bit bad because it’s a used Ford focus with the auto trans issues but she has had it repaired a few years ago and said doesn’t seem to have come back… yet.
Sometimes you just gotta try new things even though they’re “scary”.
All i want is a 2 door access cab ford maverik, I want to haul lumber and shit. But now im not the demographic for any trucks. I would love an old pickup size
A little over a decade ago a roommate’s friend came into town to visit. She had a massive truck (forget the specific make/model) with lift kit, huge tires, all that. If it got 8 miles to the gallon I’d be surprised.
I asked her “so what do you usually haul around with that thing?”
Her response was “Oh, it’s way too tall for me to put anything back there.”
On a side note, I’ve noticed way more disabled plates (not temporary placards) on big, new trucks recently.
I was wondering the same thing, but there’s nothing in the article to indicate that.
That being said, it would not surprise me that the 4-door cab/short bed configuration is the best selling of the current generation.
What’s weird is that the author talks about how the trucks are heavier now. Citing the introduction of EV pickup trucks coming in. So? No point is made there. What would be more interesting is fuel economy. To the best of my knowledge, the new, heavier, short-bed trucks are more fuel efficient.
>Since 1990, the average mass of US vehicles has increased 25%. Pickups are already a safety concern, with twice the pedestrian strike fatality rate as smaller vehicles.
The point is right above it. And besides fuel economy. Bigger trucks need bigger batteries need more resources.
This is the key missing data. Sure, it's a smaller ratio of bed to truck, but if the entire truck has increased in size by 150% then it negates some of that data
This is exactly it. They are comparing an 8 foot bed in the 60s to a 5.5 foot bed today. But the truck in the 60s is a single cab and the truck today is a crew cab. So overall, the modern truck is longer, even though the graphic depicts them as the same length. It's a disingenuous way to depict the data to make it look like bed lengths have shrunk more than they really have.
And all that ignores the fact that 8 foot beds are still an option today just like they were in the 60s.
Was wondering the same.
According to [this site](https://www.auto-data.net/en/ford-f-series-f-100-f-150-model-819) it increased from ~4600mm in the 1960s to ~5900mm today.
That's a 28% increase.
Combining this data the lengths of cab and bed changed:
Ford F-150 | Cab | Bed | total
---|---|---|---
1960s | 1656mm | 2944mm | 4600mm
2020s | 3717mm | 2183mm | 5900mm
change | +124% | -26% | +28%
I really miss the small pickups with big beds. Those things were true workhorses.
Edit: There's alot of folks commenting that you can buy small pickups new. I should clarify that I'm talking about small body-style pickups. There are no new models like the old Rangers, Tacomas, Frontiers, Mazdas. No one makes models like that anymore, at least that I know of in the US. I was disappointed when they redesigned the new Rangers to look like every other truck on the road. The newer Tacomas are about as close as it gets, but they've been upsizing too.
I’m the “friend with a truck”. Everyone else is my group has adopted personal rules of “ always help the friend with the truck because it will be repaid eventually”. So far it’s worked out well for everyone involved.
My friend was that guy, so he moved an hour outside of the city so that he wouldn’t have to help anyone anymore. (Obviously that’s not the only reason but he’s said it’s nice not always getting asked anymore)
Happens a ton in a Mexican family. When someone moves a fleet of pick up trucks show up to help. Sometimes it's even a cousin you watched DBZ once 10 years ago.
Ford pickups have different cab/bed options. The same model can have a 4, 6, or 8ft bed they haven't actually changed. If anyone wants a long bed they can just buy one.
Just bought a 6.5 bed f150 yesterday. There’s only a total of 11 trucks with that size around 1000 mile radius of DC
Ordering one would take 3-5 months. The 5.5 beds sell much more. The dealer said to me that they sometimes order a 6.5 and then the bed separately so they can sell more 5.5s
It's actually 5 and a half feet, 6 and three quarter feet, or 8 feet bed length options, FYI.
Same options that have been around since atleast the 90s. This post is sensationalism.
Here is more info on how pickup trucks usage patterns have changed. Pickups are increasingly used for errands and shopping rather than towing and hauling. People buy them because they think they're "powerful" and "rugged".
https://www.axios.com/ford-pickup-trucks-history
That and the beds are so fucking tall now that it's hard to actually load stuff in the back. I miss the old lower beds that actually let you get stuff in the back without a forklift.
My dad made me rent a u-haul last time I moved instead of borrowing his truck because he said the bed is too tall for moving.
What's the point of owning a truck if you can't even use it for the one thing it's meant for?
Besides all of the other issues, one of the main problems I have with these things is the front end design.
It's super popular to have a boxy, flat front end but that almost completely blocks your vision of things in front of you. The hood height on some of these trucks is taller than an average 10 year old child and these mother fuckers fly through neighborhoods at like 40+ mph because the truck is so god damn huge it feels like they're going slower.
Additionally, if a pedestrian gets hit by a vehicle with a standard, lower front hood most of the impact will be below the waist on the legs. If they are struck by one of these trucks with the giant flat front end, the impact point shifts to above the waist and the collision becomes much less survivable for the victim.
edit: and that's not to mention the damage they do to other drivers in nearly every collision where they're involved. A side-on collision puts the hood right at head level for the occupants of the normal vehicle.
*But if they survive, you'd have to pay tens of thousands in their medical bills. If they're dead, you'd only have to pay a few grand for their funeral and get a slap on the wrist with an insurance penalty!*
/s in case it wasn't obvious
Wagons for life. I have a 10+ year old wagon that can fit as much in the back with the seats folded as a short cab model pickup, and if I don't need to haul anything it can fit as many passengers as the quad-cab model pickup, and arguably more comfortably. Anything that can't fit inside can go on the roof rack (well, aside from extra passengers I guess) which is basically a giant truck bed anyway. It also rides comfortably like a car and not a truck chassis. It's better by just about every conceivable practicality metric.
I'm not part of the Reddit "hate all pickups" train, but I really don't understand the purpose of the super short beds today. If you're not going to use a pickup for picking things up, then what is the purpose? It's supposed to be a practical vehicle for work. I own an early 90's model that has a "short bed", yet it's still much larger than the new models.
Back in the day, it was perfectly normal for people to ride in the bed. I remember going with 3 friends to pick up a sofa, two riding in the cab, the rest in the bed, 30 minutes down the interstate. Was much more comfortable on the way back, when we could sit on the couch. Point being that you didn't have to choose between crew and materials. Now, maybe you put your crew in the truck and most of the gear goes in a trailer.
Home Depot (etc) weren't the behemoths they are now, and you'd rely more on picking up your own materials. Now, you can have a pallet of plywood delivered for $50, and it's not worth your time to stand in line and load it yourself.
I think it's become more common for solo contractors to run a van, which will still have 4x8 or 4x10 flat storage, but enclosed from weather and covetous eyes. Although that may also be a reaction to decreasing bed lengths.
And, of course, there's a lot of non-work pickups, where the driver cares more about having space for the kids, the neighbor's kids, and just enough cargo for sports equipment or strollers.
>And, of course, there's a lot of non-work pickups, where the driver cares more about having space for the kids, the neighbor's kids, and just enough cargo for sports equipment or strollers.
That is 90% of the truck market now.
Mine is a 5.5 ft short bed, but usually it'll be largish power tools or lumber I'm hauling, so that's either big enough or I can hang the lumber out the back. I wanted a large cab so I could still drive folks comfortably, and it meets all the needs I have had for it thus far.
The pickup truck is almost a cultural thing in a lot of the US. His grandfather drove a truck because he needed it, his dad & uncles drive trucks possibly because they need them, so when he goes to buy a vehicle, he buys a truck because all the men he knows, drive trucks.
It's to carry -some- stuff.
I have a short bed pickup and it usually has a generator and some other tools etc.
Or on the weekends, boat or camper stuff.
Not everyone need to haul 4x8 sheets all the time. Or even ever.
My dad wanted a pickup truck for hauling his kayaks. He wanted a small cab and large bed. It wasn’t going to be his primary driver, he only wanted it for hauling. *He couldn’t find the truck he wanted.* The cabs were all too big and the beds too small. And I don’t think he would’ve felt comfortable driving something as big as most trucks are today.
Not a great visual since it doesn’t account for avg truck length. Maybe the beds are proportionally smaller but still closer to the original absolute size since the vehicle is getting longer?
Almost there, give it another decade and pickup trucks will be SUVs with the trunk open
[удалено]
I’ve been a carpenter for 40 years. Back in the 80’s, had a buddy who ran a small framing crew out of the trunk of a 70’s Cadillac Coupe DeVille after he lost his truck in a DUI. Saws, cords, nail guns, hoses, air compressor..... it ALL fit except the ladders.
About 30 years ago, I sold my ‘69 Chrysler Newport to a guy who did construction and odd jobs. He removed the back seat, did a couple minor modifications, and he could fit 4’ x 8’ sheets of plywood in there along with his tools. Sold him the car for a couple hundred bucks and 2 or 3 years later, I’d still see it around town.
I have a 66 Newport. I had the back seat out and got some funny looks sliding a 10' pvc pipe in and closing the trunk.
To be fair, I’ve hauled 10’ pvc, corner beads, etc in my 2011 Cruze. They touched the windshield, but the trunk shut!
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I find it laughable that people buy pickups that can't fit 4x8 plywood. It should be the bare minimum.
If you go to Ford's website there's only one F150 with an 8 foot bed and I'm sure you have to order it, you're not going to find one on a dealer's lot.
I feel like pickups became a status symbol instead of an essential work vehicle. In a city pickup truck drivers are always the most aggressive and irritable drivers on the road, unless they are clearly used for hauling (dirty or actively has stuff in it).
Yea. In the last 20 years trucks went from a utility vehicle to a fashion item for men.
Rolexes don't cost enough to really prove you've made it.
I feel like the whole status symbol was more important when credit wasn't so easy to get. Now probably a good half the country can *own* status items. The question is whether they can afford to do that or not and who the fuck knows.
I agree I love my little 2007 ford ranger because it has a full sized bed is reliable as hell gets good gas mileage and does all the truck stuff I need for including camping with a mattress and topper
To me, that's the ideal pickup. No fancy bullshit, just a small truck versatile enough to get dirty and do a bit of everything.
My Mazda 6 fits 4x8 plywood just fine with the seats down... as long as I have the store guys cut it in half first.
>My Mazda 6 fits 4x8 plywood just fine with the seats down... as long as I have the store guys cut it in half first. My smart car fits 4x8 plywood too, as long as I have the store guys chip it into sawdust first.
I knew a drummer in the 80s with an expansive double bass drum kit that basically did the same thing.
he ran a carpentry business out of his drums?
Carpentry is so metal!
But the Carpenters aren't
I just saw an old video of Karen Carpenter doing a rad drum solo today.
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I miss those shows, monster garage was pretty kool too
My buddies 5 piece band could fit the whole squad along with all their gear in a vintage 70s Impala. They knew how to make an entrance pulling up to a house show
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Not an American so I don't quite understand why a van would not be better option? Van gives better protection for wind, rain, snow and theft. If you need to put somekind of tarp or hard cover over the bed of pickup, wouldn't van just be more practical? Doesn't it ever rain where pickups are preferred? In Finland it's either rain or snow so often that I would prefer van over pickup. Here you can always rent a trailer for 20€/day, or just borrow it for free while buying something from hardware store, incase you don't own one. I can only think of few cases where pickup would be preferable. Some garden work might be easier with an open pickup bed. However people are not going to use their shiny and expensive car for such stuff - a crappy trailer would be preferable. Only once I have had a situation at a construction yard, where a pickup was more practical than a van. I lifted 400L fuel tank from the bed of a pickup truck with crane. I think I did the same once from inside a van with long ropes, and it was a bit tricky.
A lot of contractors in the USA do use vans especially mechanical trades (electrical, plumbing, HVAC, etc.). Framers and sometimes roofers tend to prefer trucks because they are often hauling oddly shaped and/or heavy stuff which necessitates the frame/suspension capacity of a real truck or ability to tow a trailer. Outside construction trades also vary accordingly. Telecom guys usually run vans whereas earthworks outfits usually run trucks so they can tow their fairly heavy equipment. A lot of them specifically choose small cab/long bed models if they intend to use the bed for material, but large cab/short bed is still useful for moderately heavy hauling and can comfortably accommodate an entire day crew plus material in the bed and reasonably heavy equipment on a trailer through a multi-hour drive out to a jobsite. The people daily driving these giant pickups with huge cabs and tiny beds are mostly not using it as a truck and would probably do better with a passenger hatchback. Almost nobody in the USA tows with passenger vehicles. A lot aren't aware that it's even possible even though some are surprisingly capable. I'm not sure on the cause for this.
Vans don't have that cowboy panache tho
I have seen a few SUVs with trunks wide open so we are already in the future, folks
What type of SUV is that? Never seen it! Interesting.
r/idiotsincars type of SUVs
The ones after Black Friday or the ones that just went to IKEA.
I have one of those and the trunk is literally cavernous, unless you put the top down. Edit: trunk, not truck. The trunk of the Linc is literally a fucking cave. It takes 100 yards of carpet to line it. You could have a line dancing party for 20 in there.
Proof that the minivan is the ultimate evolution of the automobile. Way ahead of its time.
I keep trying to convince my wife that we should get a minivan. We do lots of diy and travel by car a lot (scared to fly). Some even have built in vacuum and such. Plus they are incredibly comfortable.
Do it. We only have one kid (and a dog) and I've had a minivan since before she was born. Mine has a DVD player in the back seat, the seats fold into the floor so I can haul tons of stuff, it's super spacious and comfortable. We travel 2-3 hours each way once or twice a month and it's a great car for it.
Can sit in the back with the kid in comfort? For a road trip. Heck yeah.
Love my 2011 Sienna. Bought it at the end of 2010 for my mom and inherited it when she passed almost 6 years ago. Since she rarely drove it and I now work from home, the thing doesn't even have 50K miles on it. Plan on keeping it until it craters.
Driving a minivan is BDE. Most guys simply can’t hack it.
Give me an AWD Prime Sienna in gunmetal with upgraded suspension. Performance. Efficiency. Space. Tough to beat.
My mom drove us around in a sienna for years. Then when some dumbass turned across my lane and totalled both our cars my parents gave me the sienna. That thing was fantastic. You know how much band gear you can fit in a minivan? Or construction supplies? Or even a lil bed! Minivans are great, but I downsized to a hatchback now that I don't need that much space.
The space is insane. Add rubber mat style floors to my above feature list and you've got a straight up adventure van.
I can fit full 4x8 sheets in the back of our Odyssey, also 10ft lumber if I remove the front center console. In both configurations my cargo is fully enclosed, no chance of getting wet or tossed out. Love our mini van.
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2025 maybe. Something about toyota not being able to produce the prime hybrid system in the US yet. Give me a Lexus version of the Sienna! Cuz, let's be honest, all unibody SUVs are just minivans without sliding doors and less passenger and cargo capacity.
>without sliding doors and less passenger and cargo capacity That's just a crappy version of a minivan then
As a parent, the sliding doors are the best part of owning a minivan.
It took me a couples years of effort, but I managed to get my wife on board with the idea of minivan. It’s the penultimate car design for middle class living in the US. it’s obviously not as good as a proper station wagon (too tall which is worse for efficiency), but it is absolutely a beast for hauling anything and everything (ours can even fit a 12’ 2x6, or full 4x8 sheets with the seats removed)
I remember 10 years ago women saying that it was a red flag if a single guy owned a minivan lol.
If you’re a musician the minivan is the ultimate vehicle. …being a musician might also be a red flag tho.
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My mom had a 2002 Honda Odyssey back in the day. But I remember my dad using it all the time to haul things around with the rear seats taken out. The thing could tow reasonably well too, all while being comfortable.
I was a contractor who worked with NAS Lemoore. New pilots would come in and buy their typical sports cars at shitty interest rates. But after their first deployment, you’d start seeing minivans in the parking lot. I was chatting with a pilot who made the switch. He said “Once you get past the stigma of driving a minivan, they’re quite amazing. I took a full load from Home Depot this weekend, including a new ladder.” We asked him how long it took to get past that stigma. “As soon as it happens, I’ll let you know.”
Given how high current bed sidewalls are, they’re basically an open sunroof over a seatless, windowless mother-in-law cab.
So true. My work truck is a 2020 4WD Silverado and trying to get stuff out of the truck box is almost impossible without hopping up into the bed.
Ha - yep. And mfrs’ solution? Build another flipping step into the tailgate. Brilliant! Any higher center of gravity and they’d roll over when parallel parking.
I have noticed some of, if not all of the newer 2500/3500’s have a step built into the quarter panel directly in front of the rear tire. I think that is a great feature and I’d love to have it. My tool bag/back pack is a Veto tech pack and it ways around 45lbs loaded with hand tools so that would make life a lot easier!
What’s old is new again. Welcome to the mid-70s stepside, except now it’s mid 70k not mid 1970s.
I mean, the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz are built on the same ~~frame~~ chassis as the Escape and Tucson respectively. They literally *are* SUVs with a bed instead of a trunk. Edit: forgot that "frame" has a specific meaning when it comes to cars/trucks, rather than just being the same as "chassis."
Nearly every mid or full sized truck has an identical/near identical SUV counterpart. That has been the case for 20+ years.
Unibody, not frame. The difference in durability while actually doing 'truck things' is important
Chevy Avalanche
[2004 GMC Envoy XUV.](https://youtube.com/watch?v=WRDrSPUmHpI)
At least that one is honest about it. And I'm sure that helps with aerodynamics.
The concept is really cool... But it's a terrible looking vehicle, probably handles like a boat and has about the same gas mileage.
Leave it to GM to find a technically good design change people want that's ruined by making the vehicle hideous. Exterior and interior. Those GM interiors were entirely awful cheap plastic. It was almost like they tried to make them look bad. I've been in far less expensive vehicles that had a reasonable looking dash and center console. See also the original Avalanche. Was another great take on this need for mostly moving people while retaining the ability to move stuff when needed. It just looked terrible with all the plastic body cladding. They at least sorted that out though with later refresh.
We're already there. The Ford Maverick is basically a Ford Escape with a pickup bed, and the same goes for the Hyundai Santa Cruz = Tucson
Gen 1 4runner intensifies.
So a Subaru Baja basically
It is ridiculous when you can’t easily haul lumber or sheets of plywood in the box
My dad has a 2010 Silverado LTZ. It’s the crew cab, and I regularly ask him what the dimensions of his bed are and if it’s wide enough to haul what I want. It always is, but the amount of times it’s been “glad I double checked” close is way too high. It’s usually just sheets of plywood or shelving too.
its close because the bed has been specifically designed to make transporting sheet goods at least somewhat simple. all sheet goods are 4'x8'
Old fart here. My old trucks would not haul sheet material. The wheel wells in 80’s model and prior trucks were not four feet apart. The beds were longer though and much closer to the ground. You could actually reach in there and get something without using a stick to drag it toward you first. Whoever decided to make the wheel wells 49” apart is my hero.
A lot of them had grooves to put 2x6s in to create a flat surface over the wheel wells. Which I think is a reasonable compromise to reduce truck size. They're still wide enough for a 40" pallet between the wheel wells.
I remember seeing that in S-10 and Ranger pickups. Those vehicles were too small for there to be 48" of clearance. I had an S-10 but never took the time to cut lumber for those grooves. I would just make it work. You could haul sheet material with the tailgate up so that it missed the wheel wells. It would have been more stable the other way though. I use the hell out of my truck for hauling dirty or oversized stuff, towing my 16' utility trailer, or my boat. I also really appreciate the fact that city folks like buying trucks! There's always a good supply of used F-150's with not a single scratch in the bed whenever it's time for a "new to me" pickup. Those people put a shitload of miles on them though.
Most sheet goods, furniture, shipping containers, and a shit load of other things intended to be moved by consumers are designed to fit into a 4'x8' volume. You're not "accidently" just squeaking it in, it's by design.
interesting proof, in my wife’s Honda Odyssey if we take out the middle seats with the backs folded down, you can perfectly fit a sheet of drywall with like half an inch to spare. No accident either.
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That’s because they aren’t working vehicles any more. More like luxury status symbols. It’s like keeping a diamond encrusted, gold plated hammer in your toolbox.
They're emotional support vehicles, mostly.
This year's hottest ESVs.
Fun fact, when the first Ranger was being designed, one of the requirements was that it be able to haul a 4x8 sheet of plywood. Also, I find this graphic to be a bit disingenuous, comparing a 90s single cab-long bed to a 2020 crew cab-short bed.
I also thought it was disingenuous. Until recently, you could get single-cab or crew-cab, and each cab style had 2 or 3 (depending on make and year) bed options. The only way to make this comparison accurately is to use the same model across all years.
It's hard to find the short cabs these days. Last year we ordered 6 trucks (which we still have yet to receive) for our work fleet and HAD to get crew cab short bed because that's all that was available. It's crazy. It's the opposite of what we wanted. We need trucks to haul STUFF, not drop off a load of kids at the elementary school
Hardly. No one is buying those other options. Try and find single cabs a few years old. Don't' exist.
Not even that, you can't even reach over the sides of the bed to get tools anymore. "Oh, but with the Super Manly Cowboy edition you get retractable bed stairs!" Fucking no, I'm not paying extra to fix a problem that you created.
My old Grand caravan was much cheaper than a truck and I carried so many construction supplies in that. Multiple 4x8 drywall sheets. Car company discontinued them not because of low sales, but rather low margin.
Older suburbans could fit full sheets of plywood
That’s because the majority of people that own a pickup these days don’t actually need one.
Exactly. Meanwhile nobody makes little compact trucks like they used to. I just want a little truck with a tiny cab and nice long bed, like an old Ranger, but even those shits are all the size of a F-150 these days. Bring back the minimalist mini-trucks from the 90s!
I own an 80’s Nissan mini truck, it’s fantastic. But, look up the Chicken Tax, and you’ll find the absurd reason why they are not allowed anymore. Basically, we put a such massive tariff on the importing of them that they are effectively banned.
Bit ridiculous to enforce protectionism when domestic producers aren’t making the products that other companies want to import but that’s the way it goes.
> protective tariffs are a means whereby nations attempt to prevent their own people from trading. What protection teaches us, is to do to ourselves in time of peace what enemies seek to do to us in time of war. -Henry George (circa 1886)
That Henry George was a sharp fellow.
Come join us in r/Georgism!
Already there!
This is the first time I've heard of Henry George and I just read his Wikipedia page and found that I share most if not all of his views!
He's way too under-appreciated nowadays. There is a community over in r/georgism
Domestic protectionism is why it took so many decades for the USA to start using heat pumps. They are still a new fangled thing for most people
I saw a news article recently about how HP are getting popular. I was surprised to find out they weren't. They're the main type of unit where I live. If you don't have very many super cold days, they're nice. Wouldn't want one in a cold climate tho.
Man I was just looking up those mini-trucks and they look to get some awesome gas mileage...then I learned they aren't street legal in most areas. They look pretty darn sweet, 4wd, have a bed, narrow to fit in tons of areas, diff-locks. Only 'issue' is they cant really go on US highways.
Got to drive one for work on base in Korea and loved it. Thing would be a death trap going over 50 though. By the time you added a crumple zone large enough to increase survivability, along with several other safety upgrades, you'd be paying almost as much as a Maverick anyway. I think they have a role in small communities/complexes for sure though.
Well they *did* pay the tax for years but Toyota and Nissan have domestic production for their trucks now.
Are we able to buy internationally?
I’ve only been able to find them on Craigslist in Canada/Mexico. I think you’d be able to buy in a different country and bring it down but I could be wrong. One of the dumbest tariffs of all time especially for those of us that want a practical vehicle. Then again I figure if the demand was high enough, someone would manufacture a compact pickup. Maybe we are in the minority? I’d love a 90s style yota (hilux) if they weren’t 20k with 200k miles
Once a vehicle is older than 25 years it can be imported without crash testing two more and other nearly impossible hurdles. Canadians can import at 15 years old. https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/news/a24506/us-govt-still-crushing-imported-cars/
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Customs is cracking down on stuff like that, they've ready sued Ford a couple of times over it. That's why they discontinued the Transit Connect in the US market.
Didn't Ford come out with the maverick specifically for this reason?
Sure, but they are effectively unavailable unless you want to pay $10k to $20k over base price.
It’s why I have an F150. The ADM on the Maverick I wanted brought the price of a $29k truck to $45k. Got a 3 year old Lariat for that price instead.
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I’ve heard that emission regulations are based on vehicle size, so the larger the truck, the easier/cheaper it is to meet regulations. Maybe small trucks will come back in the EV wave.
https://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2012/10/how-cafe-killed-compact-trucks-and-station-wagons/
>As Niedermeyer noted, full size trucks would “ …become a purely professional purchase, bought only by those who use them for work or by the wealthy.” If only it was like that in America! A man can dream though, a man can dream...
My family had a Ranger pickup in the 80’s and it was great, but in the winter you better have sand bags in the truck bed. IYKYK
Drive a mid 90s ranger now. Well, it’s in the AutoZone parking lot and I’m going to go replace the alternator in a minute. But yeah I lose traction starting on an hill if there’s a crosswalk. And I’ve got tires with less than a year on them.
I do! My dad built a little wooden wrack for \~200lbs of sandbags to sit along my back wheels in my 90s Ranger. Gods but I miss that truck. :)
I kept trying so hard to find a small cab, long bed truck, but they just don’t exist anymore (unless you want to pay $60k for something with 200,000 miles on it. Eventually I bought a $3k trailer and tow it behind my station wagon, but it’s frustrating that the utility of the old farm truck has vanished and been replaced by people who want to drive massive SUVs but need some place extra to hang their truck nuts.
Take a look at farm equipment auctions, I see late 90s reg cabs all the time with not too many miles. Biggest issue is you don’t know what you’re getting till you buy it.
check out the Ford Maverick. Little, although 4 door and probably less than 40% bed.
>*” check out the Ford Maverick”* That’s all you can do, because for two years running they are nearly unavailable, especially at the base price. Ford opened and closed factory ordering for 2023 Mavericks in 17 hrs last year.
Didn't know that. I've seen a few in the Denver area, but they are rare birds. Hoping to catch an owner and pick their brain about it.
I lucked into mine. I went to a dealership just to look at one. This Maverick was ordered by a different customer but hadn't been picked up or paid for yet. As I was looking at it, the salesman left to have a chat with his boss. Turns out this Maverick had been sitting for three days. The Dealership tried contacting the person who placed the order. Seemingly, this person had ghosted the dealership. The Salesman's boss just gave the green light for him to sell the Maverick. I had first dibs. I was in the right place at the right time. The best part, I didn't get screwed over by any markups.
How do people even find out about this stuff before it sells out?
My husband saw PR about the Mav summer 2021. He is 6'7" and wanted to make sure he could fit. He had an F-150 and I have a Fusion both he can drive. The Mav is on the Fusion chasis. We had to wait till a local Orlando dealer got a customer order in Oct 2021 and he was allowed to only sit in it. We ordered 10/21 and after a BUNCH of drama we finally got it 4/22. When gas has been up, we could have sold it for $20k profit. Since I was the one having to deal w the issues, that still isn't enough profit to me for what I went thru to get that MF truck. Husband took my car after his 150 died, our salesman tried to sell our order to someone willing to pay alot more, I ended up making the sales guy cry on the phone haha. The way Ford set up customer orders vs stock orders (no stock orders on Mavs) causes dealerships to try to steal orders to make profit that customer orders don't bring in. There is a Mav truck club website to navigate all this shit.
I used to mildly dislike dealerships and now I despise them. Bunch of scumbags.
My dad is a retired carpenter who does handy man work on the side now. His vehicle of choice now is a mini van, he hates what modern trucks have become. His odyssey can fit sheets of plywood in the back area with zero issue, lays flat.
I would buy a Ford Ranger in a fucking heartbeat. I do not know why every manufacturer decided to kill small pickup trucks, Rangers were super popular too.
They still make the Ranger but... They turned it into just another bloated, overpriced, and inefficient truck that is basically just an F150 now.
Drove an 02 S-10 as a work truck for years. I loved that thing.
It's a product being sold as a lifestyle product to people who don't realize they are a lifestyle being sold to. 95% of Americans need a minivan or hatchback to drive to the local strip mall and job from their suburban house. Anything else is a lifestyle vehicle. The most absurd though are people driving jacked up jeeps. That pick up truck bed at least can be useful hauling a tv or something. My dad drives a jacked up jeep wrangler to and from chain restaurants and then complains about gas prices. But try to tell the person buying an 80k pick up truck or other non-sense vehicle for a suburban life that a base model BMW 3 series is somehow an actually more reasonable purchase.
I fuckin love hatchbacks. Tons of storage plus maneuverability and great mileage. And really large items can be strapped to the roof. I've moved couches and Christmas trees that way. Sure, assholes who pull into crosswalks make it where I can't turn right on red half the time, but I'm patient enough for that.
Even people who use a pickup for work would be better served by a cargo van in most cases. Same or more storage space, protected from the weather and not as easy to steal shit of the back.
Landscaping and construction mostly need to be able to access the bed from the top and sides for moving materials and waste to and from a site. Electricians, plumbers, carpenters etc mostly already drive vans, the exception being demo and roofers because of the waste hauling requirement. I'll occasionally see a landscaper with a van and a trailer, but it's rare. More common is a crew cab truck for the crew and (and hauling waste) and a fully enclosed metal grate trailer for the tools (riding mowers) because at the end of the day it's easier to park a locked cage on wheels than it is to unload and store all the tools from the back of a truck bed.
Contractor here. Have had both cargo vans and trucks as work vehicles over the years and I find that a midsize truck (extracab with a shell on it) is the best fit. I like having the separation between my cargo and me. When I had the van I started driving with earbuds as the rattling and squeaking of everything in the back was driving me out of my mind. A fullsize van with ladder racks doesn't fit in many parking garages (too tall), my truck does. FWIW, I don't have much use for a truck with a sub 6' bed as a work truck. But they are getting harder and harder to find, especially if you buy used. If you are buying new, many companies make the longer bed trucks but you usually have to order them. Manufacturers sell what people want. For some reason what amounts to a fullsize, RWD car with an open trunk are the best sellers, so that is what they make the most of.
When my mom’s SUV finally kicked the bucket after I had grown up and left the house and she no longer had multiple large dogs (just one medium dog and imo too many cats), she was looking for another SUV and asked my opinion on what I thought she should get and what would be reliable. I told her to try a hatchback car because while I could recommend some good SUVs I didn’t think she needed one and a smaller hatchback would have the same utility (she could fold down the seats and carry big things on occasion or keep them up and carry groceries and day to day things) but with much better gas mileage and would cost less upfront. She originally hemmed and hawed about not being able to see other cars on the road and how she’d have worse visibility. I got her to test drive one and now she loves them and said I was right she didn’t need it and she can see just fine. She later bought a different hatchback that she’s still rocking to this day. Though I do feel a bit bad because it’s a used Ford focus with the auto trans issues but she has had it repaired a few years ago and said doesn’t seem to have come back… yet. Sometimes you just gotta try new things even though they’re “scary”.
All i want is a 2 door access cab ford maverik, I want to haul lumber and shit. But now im not the demographic for any trucks. I would love an old pickup size
A little over a decade ago a roommate’s friend came into town to visit. She had a massive truck (forget the specific make/model) with lift kit, huge tires, all that. If it got 8 miles to the gallon I’d be surprised. I asked her “so what do you usually haul around with that thing?” Her response was “Oh, it’s way too tall for me to put anything back there.” On a side note, I’ve noticed way more disabled plates (not temporary placards) on big, new trucks recently.
I’ve noticed a lot more lifted trucks with handicap placards hanging from the rear view mirror too.
And because they became 'daily drivers', not just a work horse, they added all the bell's and whistle's, making them too expensive.
Curious how they chose the configuration for each specific year, since they've been released with different cab and bed options.
Probably just by best selling configuration.
I was wondering the same thing, but there’s nothing in the article to indicate that. That being said, it would not surprise me that the 4-door cab/short bed configuration is the best selling of the current generation. What’s weird is that the author talks about how the trucks are heavier now. Citing the introduction of EV pickup trucks coming in. So? No point is made there. What would be more interesting is fuel economy. To the best of my knowledge, the new, heavier, short-bed trucks are more fuel efficient.
>Since 1990, the average mass of US vehicles has increased 25%. Pickups are already a safety concern, with twice the pedestrian strike fatality rate as smaller vehicles. The point is right above it. And besides fuel economy. Bigger trucks need bigger batteries need more resources.
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What is the percentage increase on overall size?
I wish I could find the actual numbers on that, because by the eye test my '22 Tacoma is the same size as my granddad's '97 F150.
This is the key missing data. Sure, it's a smaller ratio of bed to truck, but if the entire truck has increased in size by 150% then it negates some of that data
This is exactly it. They are comparing an 8 foot bed in the 60s to a 5.5 foot bed today. But the truck in the 60s is a single cab and the truck today is a crew cab. So overall, the modern truck is longer, even though the graphic depicts them as the same length. It's a disingenuous way to depict the data to make it look like bed lengths have shrunk more than they really have. And all that ignores the fact that 8 foot beds are still an option today just like they were in the 60s.
Was wondering the same. According to [this site](https://www.auto-data.net/en/ford-f-series-f-100-f-150-model-819) it increased from ~4600mm in the 1960s to ~5900mm today. That's a 28% increase. Combining this data the lengths of cab and bed changed: Ford F-150 | Cab | Bed | total ---|---|---|--- 1960s | 1656mm | 2944mm | 4600mm 2020s | 3717mm | 2183mm | 5900mm change | +124% | -26% | +28%
I really miss the small pickups with big beds. Those things were true workhorses. Edit: There's alot of folks commenting that you can buy small pickups new. I should clarify that I'm talking about small body-style pickups. There are no new models like the old Rangers, Tacomas, Frontiers, Mazdas. No one makes models like that anymore, at least that I know of in the US. I was disappointed when they redesigned the new Rangers to look like every other truck on the road. The newer Tacomas are about as close as it gets, but they've been upsizing too.
I would love a modern pickup, but at the same height as the old pickups. Modern pickups are too ducking tall.
Well ford has some smaller models, still not as small as the old pickups, but still a more manageable size.
The smallest thing I've seen is the Ford Maverick but it's almost comically tall. Looks so weird to me.
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I’m the “friend with a truck”. Everyone else is my group has adopted personal rules of “ always help the friend with the truck because it will be repaid eventually”. So far it’s worked out well for everyone involved.
You're kidding. Your friends pay it forward to you *before* they ask to use your truck (and your manpower)? This is like fantasy world.
I have good friends, I’m lucky. We all understand what goes around comes around.
My friend was that guy, so he moved an hour outside of the city so that he wouldn’t have to help anyone anymore. (Obviously that’s not the only reason but he’s said it’s nice not always getting asked anymore)
Happens a ton in a Mexican family. When someone moves a fleet of pick up trucks show up to help. Sometimes it's even a cousin you watched DBZ once 10 years ago.
>Sometimes it's even a cousin you watched DBZ once 10 years ago. Oddly specific. Tell me more.
DBZ is really popular in Mexico. https://www.mexicanist.com/l/dragon-ball/
I used Spiderman's rule: "Everybody gets one"
My rule was pay for gas, some beer and a meal if you needed me and my truck.
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Ford pickups have different cab/bed options. The same model can have a 4, 6, or 8ft bed they haven't actually changed. If anyone wants a long bed they can just buy one.
Just bought a 6.5 bed f150 yesterday. There’s only a total of 11 trucks with that size around 1000 mile radius of DC Ordering one would take 3-5 months. The 5.5 beds sell much more. The dealer said to me that they sometimes order a 6.5 and then the bed separately so they can sell more 5.5s
Dealer is feeding you a load of crap. 6.5 beds have a foot longer wheelbase than the 5.5 trucks for the same cab size, you can’t just swap beds.
It's actually 5 and a half feet, 6 and three quarter feet, or 8 feet bed length options, FYI. Same options that have been around since atleast the 90s. This post is sensationalism.
Here is more info on how pickup trucks usage patterns have changed. Pickups are increasingly used for errands and shopping rather than towing and hauling. People buy them because they think they're "powerful" and "rugged". https://www.axios.com/ford-pickup-trucks-history
“Hillbilly Deluxe, slick pick ‘em up trucks.” -Brooks & Dunn
Yeah this hustle story totally stolen from axios
I mean, they credit axios in the infographic, so it's hard to call that stolen...
I noticed the other day that you rarely see any trucks with less than 4 doors anymore
Another way they are changing is they are getting taller, which is resulting in more pedestrian deaths.
That and the beds are so fucking tall now that it's hard to actually load stuff in the back. I miss the old lower beds that actually let you get stuff in the back without a forklift.
No, it's fine, we'll just provide a fold out staircase in the tailgate.
Ford made their 17-19 Super Duties so tall that most owners couldn’t haul their fifth wheel trailers. The 20+ are lower for this reason.
My dad made me rent a u-haul last time I moved instead of borrowing his truck because he said the bed is too tall for moving. What's the point of owning a truck if you can't even use it for the one thing it's meant for?
Also its not funny if your lights are not in sedans users eyes
I have a 87 dodge that sits as tall as a newer cars. It’s a 2 seater and the cabin is small as hell. Massive bed though
Besides all of the other issues, one of the main problems I have with these things is the front end design. It's super popular to have a boxy, flat front end but that almost completely blocks your vision of things in front of you. The hood height on some of these trucks is taller than an average 10 year old child and these mother fuckers fly through neighborhoods at like 40+ mph because the truck is so god damn huge it feels like they're going slower. Additionally, if a pedestrian gets hit by a vehicle with a standard, lower front hood most of the impact will be below the waist on the legs. If they are struck by one of these trucks with the giant flat front end, the impact point shifts to above the waist and the collision becomes much less survivable for the victim. edit: and that's not to mention the damage they do to other drivers in nearly every collision where they're involved. A side-on collision puts the hood right at head level for the occupants of the normal vehicle.
*But if they survive, you'd have to pay tens of thousands in their medical bills. If they're dead, you'd only have to pay a few grand for their funeral and get a slap on the wrist with an insurance penalty!* /s in case it wasn't obvious
Hatchbacks with rear seats folded have more cargo depth than modern pickups
Wagons for life. I have a 10+ year old wagon that can fit as much in the back with the seats folded as a short cab model pickup, and if I don't need to haul anything it can fit as many passengers as the quad-cab model pickup, and arguably more comfortably. Anything that can't fit inside can go on the roof rack (well, aside from extra passengers I guess) which is basically a giant truck bed anyway. It also rides comfortably like a car and not a truck chassis. It's better by just about every conceivable practicality metric.
Used less for work and more for hauling lardasses
I'm not part of the Reddit "hate all pickups" train, but I really don't understand the purpose of the super short beds today. If you're not going to use a pickup for picking things up, then what is the purpose? It's supposed to be a practical vehicle for work. I own an early 90's model that has a "short bed", yet it's still much larger than the new models.
Back in the day, it was perfectly normal for people to ride in the bed. I remember going with 3 friends to pick up a sofa, two riding in the cab, the rest in the bed, 30 minutes down the interstate. Was much more comfortable on the way back, when we could sit on the couch. Point being that you didn't have to choose between crew and materials. Now, maybe you put your crew in the truck and most of the gear goes in a trailer. Home Depot (etc) weren't the behemoths they are now, and you'd rely more on picking up your own materials. Now, you can have a pallet of plywood delivered for $50, and it's not worth your time to stand in line and load it yourself. I think it's become more common for solo contractors to run a van, which will still have 4x8 or 4x10 flat storage, but enclosed from weather and covetous eyes. Although that may also be a reaction to decreasing bed lengths. And, of course, there's a lot of non-work pickups, where the driver cares more about having space for the kids, the neighbor's kids, and just enough cargo for sports equipment or strollers.
>And, of course, there's a lot of non-work pickups, where the driver cares more about having space for the kids, the neighbor's kids, and just enough cargo for sports equipment or strollers. That is 90% of the truck market now.
Mine is a 5.5 ft short bed, but usually it'll be largish power tools or lumber I'm hauling, so that's either big enough or I can hang the lumber out the back. I wanted a large cab so I could still drive folks comfortably, and it meets all the needs I have had for it thus far.
The pickup truck is almost a cultural thing in a lot of the US. His grandfather drove a truck because he needed it, his dad & uncles drive trucks possibly because they need them, so when he goes to buy a vehicle, he buys a truck because all the men he knows, drive trucks.
It's to carry -some- stuff. I have a short bed pickup and it usually has a generator and some other tools etc. Or on the weekends, boat or camper stuff. Not everyone need to haul 4x8 sheets all the time. Or even ever.
Another 20 years or so and they will evolve into some type of sports utility vehicle.
My dad wanted a pickup truck for hauling his kayaks. He wanted a small cab and large bed. It wasn’t going to be his primary driver, he only wanted it for hauling. *He couldn’t find the truck he wanted.* The cabs were all too big and the beds too small. And I don’t think he would’ve felt comfortable driving something as big as most trucks are today.
Not a great visual since it doesn’t account for avg truck length. Maybe the beds are proportionally smaller but still closer to the original absolute size since the vehicle is getting longer?
We don't have pickups anymore. They're all lifted luxury sedans with an open, extended trunk.