this post was submitted on 07 Aug 2023
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Fuck Cars
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I have no idea why F-150's keep getting bigger. Do people really like that shit? Old trucks are so much better, from design to MPG.
It has to do with new standards for fuel effiency being based on the size of the vehicle.
> In the Obama era, Edmunds explained, fuel economy regulations “changed from just a straight average across the board to what’s called a platform-based fuel economy standard. So your fuel economy target for a given vehicle is based on its wheelbase and its tread width, which is the width between the tires left to right. So if you multiply that you find the area of that rectangle and there’s a table that shows what your fuel-economy target is. The bigger the vehicle, the smaller the target.”
> In other words, the regulations put in place to get better mileage out of vehicles also led to an increase in truck size. “There was kind of an incentive to maybe stretch the wheelbase a couple of inches and set the tires maybe an inch [farther] apart, because you get a bigger platform and slightly smaller target,” said Edmunds. “Now, the bigger vehicle would be heavier and might use more fuel, so it’s not as easy as just doing that. But certainly there was a feeling that if they did need to make it bigger to accommodate more passengers, the fuel economy target wouldn’t be onerous. They could do it.”
Basically, it was easier to make bigger trucks than it was to build more efficient engines, so we have this gargantuan trucks pushed on us and then they go "ITS WHAT THE PEOPLE WANT" because there are literally no other options besides these giant trucks if you want something with a bed.
Like, even the "small trucks" like the modern Rangers and Colorados are about the same size as the 90s F150s and Silverados. Its nuts.
And even still, if you're not looking for 4 doors you're doubly SOL. You can have the fleet vehicle, poverty-spec or you can have crew cabs.
Again, proof that more regulation is the root cause.
Regulations are not the issue. Short sighted regulations with loopholes you could drive a new F150 through are.
I think there's a huge percentage of truck drivers who never use their truck for truck stuff. It's simply a status symbol to them which is pathetic. And bigger equals better in their feeble minds.
I have a 13 yr old Tacoma and it's tiny compared to even the modern "small" trucks. When this thing finally dies, I have no idea what I'll get. I love the size of it though. Maybe a Ford Maverick, but those are on backorder for years I heard from several friends who tried to get one.
> When this thing finally dies...
...you swap a replacement engine into it and keep going anyway.
my main concern is frame rust - it doesn't get many miles, but it does live outside. I should probably build a carport for it.
I discovered this hack and I'm never buying a new vehicle ever again. I have a 25 yr old truck and a car nearly as old. On the car I've long since ditched the old head units to get bluetooth and Android Auto, cleaned up the minor surface rust on the frame and got a protective coating sprayed on, had the seats reupholstered, and upgraded brakes and suspension.
All that cost me less than a new car including the cost of the car and I didn't have to either pay a massive lump sum all at once or go into debt to buy it.
I drive similarly old vehicles (my oldest is 33; my newest is 18). The other reasons for it are:
I avoid the exploitative misfeatures of new cars, such as privacy-violating "telemetry" and property-rights-violating "subscription features"
I get features that are hard or even impossible to find these days, such as manual transmissions even on my SUV and pickup truck.
Even the new Tacoma is still smaller than those F-150 monstrosities. The only other small pickup other than the Maverick is the Santa Cruz, but it isn't really a utility truck if you actually need to haul a ton of stuff.
What about the Ranger?
Despite being a "smaller" truck, that's still bigger than many 2010 Tacomas. In Ford's lineup, only the Maverick is under 200" long, less than 70" tall. Despite being a "teeny tiny truck", it's still bigger than a 1995 Ranger by a fair margin.
I use my truck for hauling stuff and camping.
For hauling big is objectively better. Without a doubt.
And for camping it’s nice that I can sleep in the 6.5 foot bed of my truck with the camper on it, and also fit my camping supplies in the back seat of my full sized cab. I only put maybe 300 miles a month on it. So it’s not like I’m driving it as my primary. But yes, it’s huge.
Driving to the coast, pointing the back of my truck toward the ocean, and laying in the comfy queen sized bed with a roof and windows, reading a book, with my my wife is one of my favorite weekend activities. And having the instant privacy is very nice.
My other car is a tiny Honda. Which is great for everything else.
Toyota Stout is on the way. It should be the same size as the old Tacomas.
whoa, I hadn't heard of this, looks amazing!
Thank you, yes I'm hoping to get a full 20 yrs out of it, but we shall see. Rust killed my father Land Cruiser before it hit 20, so I'm hoping I don't meet the same fate.
Exactly. I wanted a pickup for the convenience of the bed for the occasional project I might work on but 98% of the time it will just be me in there going to and from work.
I ordered my hybrid Maverick September 2022 and it's finally scheduled for production. On the one occasion every year or two that I need the power of a full size pickup, I'll just borrow it or rent some from Home Depot for a few hours.
They have a higher profit margin because they are less regulated than standard size cars. So auto manufactures are incentivized to shift production to larger vehicles and market them to consumers.
People don't actually want them, car companies have just convinced them they do.
https://youtu.be/azI3nqrHEXM
Here's an excellent video explaining why.