Will UAW Strike?

[Hay Dude]

8.5 ft CM flat bed is life changing. I will never go back to a regular bed.

I wish I could get a mega cab and a 10 ft bed

Next time just get a cab & chassis with 84” C/A. That’s the best flatbed configuration For a farm/ranch truck.
Leaves room up front for large fuel cell and tool boxes.

 

[hiddentacocatneddih]

Next time just get a cab & chassis with 84” C/A. That’s the best flatbed configuration For a farm/ranch truck.
Leaves room up front for large fuel cell and tool boxes.

If I could find one 2wd with the 5.9 Cummins and 6 SPd I would in a heart beat

 

[Torvy]

Crew cab diesel/8'box...they are indispensable to the far-flung ranches here in Nevada, 100 miles and more from town. I see them pull in to town early on a Sunday morning...the whole family (sometimes more than 6 people) in the truck. After church services they fill the bed of the truck with whatever was on their shopping list and head back to the ranch. All the farm supply and hardware stores are open Sundays to accommodate them.

Definitely some people need those...others just want the biggest thing to show off. I'm sure no one here would be like that, but in the city there are a bunch of 'professionals' who drive oversized trucks. Don't tow, no kids don't DIY. They buy them to show how 'Texan' they have become since they moved here.

 

[WM75Guy]

Definitely some people need those...others just want the biggest thing to show off. I'm sure no one here would be like that, but in the city there are a bunch of 'professionals' who drive oversized trucks. Don't tow, no kids don't DIY. They buy them to show how 'Texan' they have become since they moved here.

Hey, I resemble that remark, although I am a native Texan. My new grocery getter coming into the dealer. We were worried the strike would delay it. Although for full disclosure I do tow occasionally, headed out this morning to get square bales.

 

[Torvy]

Haha...if you tow (especially hay) I wasn't taking about you. I used to live in a burb over near TMS. Lots of doctors, dentists and pilots who NEVER use the truck as intended. Heck, the Realtor we used to sell our house had a beast like that putting on tons of miles 'showing houses'. Not sure what he was compensating for.

Trucks are awesome, mine is a gas hog (lets face it, they all are, mine more than most). I use it when I need it or when it is the only car we have available. I drove our kid car (2005 Matrix, manual) in town unless I needed the bed for something. Now that is in Lubbock attending TTU.

 

[ruffdog]

It is common for the local horse people to haul a load of small square bales with a pick-up. They are quite constructive how they get that much in the truck...sticking out over the sides.

 

[5030]

...and very little securment if any. I see that all the time as well as lost squares on the roadside. Because I do large rounds, not an issue here as my one customer, I, load his semi's for them and they get all strapped down for transport anyway and the couple 10 I get off my back field on every cut and put in the barn, they all get picked by people with pickup trucks and they fit quite nicely in the back, 2 at a crack on an 8 foot bed and still close the tailgate. Around here, selling rounds isn't an issue, unlike small squares which are and why I quit running them years ago. Too much manual labor and nickel and dime customers too. I have no patience for that crap at my age. Your hay is fine (not that they have a clue anyway) but it's never good enough so they want to low ball me (kind of like selling on Craigs list or FB marketplace). I've thrown more than a few buyers off the property in the past. Don't ever come back here with that attitude, in fact, don't come back at all.

 

[WM75Guy]

That's why I have 5 trailers, to keep the bed spotless. Preserves the grocery getter look.

Back to the thread topic, looks like the UAW is going to spread the love to vehicle owners on Friday.

"A week ago, Fain announced that there had been progress at Ford toward a settlement, and that it would not expand the strike there. But he said the lack of progress at GM and Stellatis meant that the union would expand the strike to 38 parts distribution centers at those two companies. The parts shipped from those locations go to dealerships to allow them to make repairs on customers’ vehicles."

 

[Snobdds]

Things are getting spicy. If having Bide n and Trum p coming to town didn't spur things along...what will.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1707755167414722563

 

[ruffdog]

And one of those had fake auto workers and fake union workers carrying signs.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

International Longshore and Warehouse US dockworkers union files for bankruptcy

With Toyota and Tesla's commitment to design automotive factories with max use of robotics going forward one could wonder about union futures if they do not make the huge leap in the transition to EVs.

 

[bnold]

Trouble is with a 4 door truck with an 8' bed is that it's HUGE. I can't imagine it's much fun to try and park, realistically you need 2 spaces for it. Fine if you need something that big, but most of us don't. Agree that the the 4 foot beds you see on the compact 4 door trucks are pretty useless. To me a 6.5' is a good compromise. Personally, I don't need or even particularly want a 4 door truck, but not much of anyone makes extended cab trucks anymore.

Ram 4x4 Crew Cab Long Bed here, believe that is the longest conventional truck Ram makes?…

As long as you can learn to back into parking spaces, really non bad for 95+% of parking.

Downtown parallel parking or garages are what get you. There is an architect in Dallas that I could get in the garage just fine, but had to go ‘out’ the ‘in’ due to an impossible hairpin turn to exit.

For the most part I park away from folks if possible, trucks are too dang expensive for me to handle close situation door dings. Makes me want to ding someone’s forehead.


However… bed size for what you haul…
4’ is right for some, 6 or 6.5’ for others, 8’ for me, longer flatbeds for others.

Isn’t it terrible when we have choices and not everyone has the same needs or thoughts as us?

EV and ICE… have both, each have their place in my line up. If it doesn’t fit your use, I suggest you don’t buy it.

 

[Hay Dude]

Ram 4x4 Crew Cab Long Bed here, believe that is the longest conventional truck Ram makes?…

As long as you can learn to back into parking spaces, really non bad for 95+% of parking.

Downtown parallel parking or garages are what get you. There is an architect in Dallas that I could get in the garage just fine, but had to go ‘out’ the ‘in’ due to an impossible hairpin turn to exit.

For the most part I park away from folks if possible, trucks are too dang expensive for me to handle close situation door dings. Makes me want to ding someone’s forehead.


However… bed size for what you haul…
4’ is right for some, 6 or 6.5’ for others, 8’ for me, longer flatbeds for others.

Isn’t it terrible when we have choices and not everyone has the same needs or thoughts as us?

EV and ICE… have both, each have their place in my line up. If it doesn’t fit your use, I suggest you don’t buy it.

Sounds great. Now what do you do when oppressive government, both elected and bureaucrats, begin mandating one (EV) over the other (ICE)?
Then we HAVE to buy it.
Happening in some states.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Talk of strike running into 2024.

 

[lilranch2001]

As a former member of the UAW, I have absolutely no sympathy for the strikers.

Hopefully I will not need to buy another new vehicle in my lifetime either

 

[ruffdog]

As a former member of the UAW, I have absolutely no sympathy for the strikers.

Hopefully I will not need to buy another new vehicle in my lifetime either

You certainly benefited from past negotiations though.

 

[Torvy]

I don't think it going to 2024 is a big surprise. What would likely stop that is people having no money and wanting to work or intervention by DC.

 

[Torvy]

You certainly benefited from past negotiations though.

Who can say? Maybe if allowed to negotiate his own pay and be rewarded for excellence performance, he would have done better.

 

[lilranch2001]

You certainly benefited from past negotiations though.

Actually I did, and did not.

I endured the strike that the UAW broke IH, and they closed the local plant soon after the strike ended.

It was the worlds largest truck plant and within just a few years it was closed down, along with the Scout plant

Many times there are not as many benefits to the members as the union leadership like to promote

 

[lilranch2001]

Who can say? Maybe if allowed to negotiate his own pay and be rewarded for excellence performance, he would have done better.

Agreed, just a few short years later I hired on at a small local manufacturing plant, and within 4 years was the manufacturing manager, and 10 years later was a Director of Manufacturing making a much much higher salary than I ever would have yielded from IH.

The small plant was purchased by a huge Wall Street chemical company in 1994 so I was at the right place at the right time

I cannot say the same for many of my peers from IH though, most of them struggled to retirement