In memory of my 95 extended cab
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98 Ranger XLT extended cab. I’ve added trailer brake control for livestock hauling and a modern stereo with bluetooth, handsfree calling, and a sealed 10" sub cause I’m a metalhead.
It’s got the pushrod V6 that will last forever, in 99 they switched over to those awful self-destructing cassette timed V6s.
It throws no codes. Redid intake manifold and valve gaskets about 18 months ago, but I’ve got increased Idle RPM and minor oil leak again. So, I have to redo it, looking for a more permanent fix.
My truck does 10x the work most of those oversized pavement princess trucks do. It’s a little truck for our little play farm.
Having a tiny bed is totally OK because the people that drive these silly things dont put anything back there anyway. They even have locking hard covers on them.
These aren’t trucks, they are lifestyle accessory vehicles for people who feel the need to prove that they are a big boy.
People that work in trades, construction or other manual work drive a van or they rock an old Chevy cruze to the jobsite. Why would they waste their own money on a truck when it doesn’t make them any more money?
It’s not like people with trucks haul anything nowadays. Just a status symbol.
I got an 87 F150 that hauls trash and kayaks… what’s my status?
Someone who isn’t trying to compensate for masculinity, or aerodynamics.
And more children die nowadays for the sake of… what? Small egos?
For the sake of bigger profits.
This is all a result of the absurdly idiotic chicken tax + American automobile companies refusing to build small trucks
2 things:
- The new truck has 4 doors. That’s a crew cab.
- Part of the reason for today’s massive trucks is a change in CAFE regs starting in 2012 that bases fuel economy standards on vehicle footprint. It’s easier to make a larger footprint than a more efficient vehicle.
I can see how 2 can be gamed by car makers, but I don’t know how I would fix it. Seems intuitive larger cars will use more fuel, e.g. can’t use the same standards on 18 wheelers and sedans.
Are there good alternatives? Is my intuition dead wrong
Tax carbon, by raising gas tax. Let the market figure out the details. This lets the market optimize for efficiency instead of optimize towards defeating the entire point of regulation.
The issue is they used to base it on vehicle classification AND size, but the manufacturers just classified everything as a light truck to getbaround hlthe regulations. So they got rid of that loophole, but now a Toyota Corolla has less-strict fuel economy standards than an old-style Ford Ranger. So they essentially outlawed small trucks.
It’s not just trucks, either. The small cargo van no longer exists. The Ford Transit Connect, Ram Promaster City, and Nissan NV200 were all discontinued around 2021 because they can no longer meet CAFE regulations at that size.
The Gord Maverick is a small truck, but it comes standard as a hybrid and has very little towing or hauling capacity as a result.
It’s
easiermore profitable to makea larger footprintthe consumer buy a larger vehicle than a more efficient vehicle.Minor fixes, spot on otherwise.
I really want a Kei Truck, and I can’t be the only one.
Yeah I really don’t get it.
I drive an old pickup truck with a standard sized bed. Every time I’ve needed the bed of the truck, I’ve needed it to be as big as it is. If it was as short as modern truck beds I’d be making more trips or hiring a U-Haul or something.
I get a normal, functional bed AND it’s still a normally sized vehicle that’s easy to drive and park. When this vehicle eats shit, whoever makes a normal sized pickup is getting my money.
It’s because they’re emotional support vehicles for suburban dudes who have an incredibly fragile ego. What they need is a van or a “sensible” SUV or even just y’know a fuckin car but these men are too sensitive and scared to drive one of those so they buy a truck as a family car instead.
It’s kind of pathetic honestly.
Most new trucks are basically just luxury SUVs for men who stomp their feet and say they want the boyyyy car, not the mom one.
Note to any offended truck owners: I said most! Some of my best friends are truck owners! :>
Actually true! And the best part is that my truck-owning friends are petite women. But they both do actual farm work in addition to their day jobs, so their trucks are beat up and dirty workhorses.
They insist on lending me a truck any time I need to do a big lumber run to home depot. You know that old saying about instead of owning X you want multiple generous friends who own X, lol.
In addition, I have been busy this summer and I have literally spent a couple grand on lumber for what is hopefully a once in a lifetime project. Believe it or not, I’m still driving an old Mazda3 and didn’t have to buy a truck! (Granted, my initial purchase was so big that I would have paid the delivery fee even if I daily drove a Canyonero with a trailer)
And those people who do buy trucks would often be happy with a much smaller one. They don’t exist. No, not even the Maverick. That’s “well, there’s spam egg sausage and spam, that’s not got much spam in it” for trucks.
I honestly doubt it they would even look at a smaller vehicle now. Most of the people I run into vastly overestimate their needs in a vehicle. They get a diesel 3/4 ton to tow their 4000lb boat because they “need” the towing capacity to do it. They would not believe that if they got the right model the Maverick, it could easily handle their needs.
I get an insane amount of comments about my work setup when I am fully loaded. “You need a bigger truck.” No I fucking don’t. It’s a F150 with a 16’ 10K trailer. The truck’s legal towing max is 10,200lbs. It’s engine is rated for 13,000lbs. Since I am using it for commercial use I have a maximum towing of 10,000lbs. Any more would require a DOT registration and pay fees crossing state borders etc. It’s a well balanced setup that I do around 100 deliveries with per year.
I could go up to a larger setup but the cost/benefit analysis doesn’t add up. I would save approximately 5 trips per year (around 20 hours) having a larger capacity but it would cost me $15K more per year in expenses for a 3/4 ton diesel truck and 17K trailer.
