pickup truck size

[Ed Weber]

To me, today's trucks are glorified cars with no cargo room.
Them made the truck bigger, added all the creature comforts, shrunk the bed from 8" to about 5.5" and raised the price. All so they could add a backseat and doors to make it the family car that gets poor MPG.

 

[Big Blue Florida]

HEY, it's only money & this is the market

 

[RollingsFarms]

I recently bought a 2021 F150 that had a sticker price of $46790. My 2018 Silverado I had was $48000. The funny thing is the F-150 has a higher payload than the older more expensive truck by about 200lbs, gets better gas mileage, and has some features my older one didn’t have. I know you can find the $60,000-80,000 trucks all day long but I honestly got a nice truck that had everything I wanted with even some bonus features (center console, vinyl floors, 2kw power in the bed) for a what I’d say is a decent price. If you stay under the $50,000 msrp you can still get a nice truck for the money if you equip it right and don’t get gadget crazy. Mine still has an 8” screen with nav and satellite radio and I was still under 50,000.

 

[oakhilltop]

I've often wondered in recent years how is it that American (& foreign) full size pick up trucks have become so large, luxury laden, and overwhelmingly expensive almost requiring a 2nd mortgage to purchase. (i'm not talking about those who make a living from their pickups, just everyday owners who cruise the country, malls, & trips to Lowes...)

What is your take? this is observation only, we all have our preferences. I'm talking sheer size & price. I travel narrow dirt roads almost daily, & drive very defensively around blind curves knowing most current pickups almost aggressively consume 2/3 or more of the road while insulated with power & luxury. That's ok, but puts me at risk. Most of the time i just pull off to the side...

So has it been the result of 1) modern owners actually needing all if it? 2) or is it Americans love affair with bigger, better, & more technology laden? I also note that the size of the payload bed continues to shrink all the while. (some 4 full size door models can't even carry a sheet of ply)
Personally i feel both are true: we now use pickups for in a wider range of activities, & want having it packed into one large size. But dang, the price & size
Hey, just as a simple metaphor to compare: look at the vat sized drink tumblers now served @ fast foods. do we really need it?

On the flip side, i've also noticed that especially since '08 crash, Detroit has done an outstanding job of producing more fuel efficient & modest sized passenger vehicles...strange. So tell me about the big pickup truck size craze. Again, not dumping, just observing.
Apologize in advance if this seems like an inane post, but i'm blown away every day of what the full size pickup has now become. best regards

You don't need a truck that can tow 20,000 tons up a ramp with fire burning all around it? Do you ever have to tow a space shuttle? How do you carry a couple of 2x4's from the store without that power.

Make sure you keep it sparkling clean and avoid dirt at all cost.

 

[pacosperson]

I've often wondered in recent years how is it that American (& foreign) full size pick up trucks have become so large, luxury laden, and overwhelmingly expensive almost requiring a 2nd mortgage to purchase. (i'm not talking about those who make a living from their pickups, just everyday owners who cruise the country, malls, & trips to Lowes...)

What is your take? this is observation only, we all have our preferences. I'm talking sheer size & price. I travel narrow dirt roads almost daily, & drive very defensively around blind curves knowing most current pickups almost aggressively consume 2/3 or more of the road while insulated with power & luxury. That's ok, but puts me at risk. Most of the time i just pull off to the side...

So has it been the result of 1) modern owners actually needing all if it? 2) or is it Americans love affair with bigger, better, & more technology laden? I also note that the size of the payload bed continues to shrink all the while. (some 4 full size door models can't even carry a sheet of ply)
Personally i feel both are true: we now use pickups for in a wider range of activities, & want having it packed into one large size. But dang, the price & size
Hey, just as a simple metaphor to compare: look at the vat sized drink tumblers now served @ fast foods. do we really need it?

On the flip side, i've also noticed that especially since '08 crash, Detroit has done an outstanding job of producing more fuel efficient & modest sized passenger vehicles...strange. So tell me about the big pickup truck size craze. Again, not dumping, just observing.
Apologize in advance if this seems like an inane post, but i'm blown away every day of what the full size pickup has now become. best regards

It's marketing and profit, nothing more.
You can still buy little pickups in Mexico and South America. The makers KNOW Americas want them but do not offer them in order to sell $45,000 baseline 'trucks'. It is impossible to simply order a 'heavy duty radiator'. Now it comes as part of a package with other stuff you would never order and a huge price tag. 'It's what we sell. If you want it; pay up'. ALL pickups used to have recessed or otherwise protected taillight lenses. They lived in a tough environment and were subject to breakage. (They were generally 'flat'. Change them with two screws) Now they are garish wraparound expensive targets for every branch and twig. Yes, they are expensive.
This is why the price of used pickups keeps increasing. People know what they want. And the manufacturers are not offering it.

 

[jjeff]

Jeff,

That's why I still drive my 1995 Dodge Ram 2500 12V Diesel. 1, I can't get a truck with a manual transmission anymore and 2, I don't need a 4 door truck with a 4-1/2' bed. Now a truck with a full 8' bed is as long as a small school bus. Hoping my '95 will last!

Does Dodge still make manuals for there trucks I used to enjoy manuals every taco I owned had a 5speed useless for towing and hauling anything in the bed though? I can comfortably squeeze three kids in the double cab, unfortunately next one may have to be the crew cab, wife calls it a freight train.

 

[michaelegan]

I think what you're getting at is the shift away from the 1960s "longbed" pickups which were a full 8ft by a bit more than 4ft between the wheel wells so you could fit plywood (no OSB then) in with the tailgate closed. We were different then: not so rich, not so fat, not so addicted to big gulps, latte fraps, designer beers, although cigarrettes killed quite a few back then. Now we want cup holders, gps, surround stereo and Siri to make us feel right. Go to any "poor" country and you'll see variations of how we used to be: bicycles with trailers, 90cc motorcycles hauling huge amounts of freight (and entire families), people walking. The old days weren't easy but you could work on your own vehicles and they did more work than today's fancy ones.

 

[Oaktree]

Truth is, the overwhelming majority of truck buyers DO WANT their trucks bigger, more HP, more passenger room, less cargo room, more bells, more whistles, higher lift, bigger tires, less accessible bed, etc. and that's why trucks have evolved into what they are. "You can't rape the willing" as some say. The market delivers what consumers demand (as determined by what they buy). The manufacturers couldn't have done this to us against our will. If they could, we would all be driving Chevy Avalanches.

True to an extent, but most people will only buy what the dealer has on their lot. Very few will special order, and even then there are generally only a handful of packages available. In order to get xxx desirable feature you want you have to get the upgraded package with lots of stuff you don't. Of course the higher trim levels mean more profit for the dealer, so guess what they mostly have in stock? Long gone are the days when you could special order a vehicle the way you want it.

Not sure the point you were trying to make on the Avalanche. Everyone I've known who had one liked it.

Once people figured out how awesome it was to sit up high versus dragging your rear end on the ground where you can't see anything, the utility of the pickup became a no-brainer for many. Today the manufacturers are simply making them with the same luxury and tech options you could always get on sedans. And honestly, the weekend warrior types don't need an 8 foot bed because all they're hauling is bicycles and fertilizer. Those types largely weren't buying trucks 30-40 years ago but they're most definitely the majority of the market now which is why the shorter beds are so common.

As huge as full sized trucks are today, could you imagine a 4 door one with an 8' bed? I recall seeing a few when they were still made 30+ years ago, they took up 2 parking places they were so long.

Looking into it, the Tacoma is pretty much the same dimensions as a 90's C-10 GMC. Length Width and height. Big difference is there are no "cab only" models.

It's either Access cab and a 6 foot bed, or dual cab and a 5 foot bed. Gone are the 8 foot beds ....

Are you sure the beds are that long? The 4 door tacomas I've seen look like the bed is closer to 3'. Short enough to be almost useless IMHO.

 

[Pleease]

Hey now, my Ridgeline is comfortable and not as large as an F150, Silverado, RAM, Tundra, etc., but it's hardly a "trucklet", lol. Kidding aside, it has payload capacity near 1500#, can carry a 4x8 sheet lying flat in the bed, and tows up to 5000#. Not a 1:1 substitute for a body-on-frame vehicle - especially for towing - but just what many consumers need, myself included, obviously.

Pickups have generally grown in size, as posted. A guy in a Ridgeline group posted this size comparison of three trucks he has owned - a recent Ridgeline, 2000 GMC Sierra 1/2 ton, 1976 Chevy Scottsdale 1/2 ton - which I found pretty illuminating. Would be interesting to see some 2021-era models tacked onto this table - bet many are much bigger.

 

[twomorestrokes]

Agree 100% with the OP! Modern trucks are absolutely ridiculous and look like Coca-Cola cowboys going down the road. Way too much bling and shine to even think about taking off road or hauling a load of gravel. The low profile tires are absolutely silly to think about rough terrain. And the price is geared more towards folks that lease because it would be crazy to spend that much money on a vehicle. My last decent truck was a 2500HD and I got rid of that because I could not take getting dings and scratches in it especially when a front end loader was dropping firewood in the bed. What's the point of a truck if you are afraid of using it for a truck? Give me a bare bones truck with a crank windows and a rubber mat.

I now drive an 86 Chevy turbo diesel K3500 M1008 military surplus. It's rated at 1 1/4 ton. Rides rougher than a cob, has no radio, no intermittent wipers, no power windows, no A/C, and even no floor covering at all but it will go through the woods with a load of firewood at cab height with ease.

 

[OzarkChris]

I've often wondered in recent years how is it that American (& foreign) full size pick up trucks have become so large, luxury laden, and overwhelmingly expensive almost requiring a 2nd mortgage to purchase. (i'm not talking about those who make a living from their pickups, just everyday owners who cruise the country, malls, & trips to Lowes...)

What is your take? this is observation only, we all have our preferences. I'm talking sheer size & price. I travel narrow dirt roads almost daily, & drive very defensively around blind curves knowing most current pickups almost aggressively consume 2/3 or more of the road while insulated with power & luxury. That's ok, but puts me at risk. Most of the time i just pull off to the side...

So has it been the result of 1) modern owners actually needing all if it? 2) or is it Americans love affair with bigger, better, & more technology laden? I also note that the size of the payload bed continues to shrink all the while. (some 4 full size door models can't even carry a sheet of ply)
Personally i feel both are true: we now use pickups for in a wider range of activities, & want having it packed into one large size. But dang, the price & size
Hey, just as a simple metaphor to compare: look at the vat sized drink tumblers now served @ fast foods. do we really need it?

On the flip side, i've also noticed that especially since '08 crash, Detroit has done an outstanding job of producing more fuel efficient & modest sized passenger vehicles...strange. So tell me about the big pickup truck size craze. Again, not dumping, just observing.
Apologize in advance if this seems like an inane post, but i'm blown away every day of what the full size pickup has now become. best regards

Just my 2 cents, I really agree with you on all of your points except one (I like 40+ ounce drinks ). As far as pickups, I live in a really large community of about a dozen full time residents (in a 1,000 acre "subdivision" split up into 5-50 acre plots - we have 45). We get many "big city" folk out here several times a year that have them 6 digit pickups - the go anywhere, do anything type - that have a really hard time taking them on the gravel road to their 5 acre plot (let alone off road). I've asked several of them why they have such an expensive truck living in the city - do you have big/heavy hauling loads, do a lot of "off roading", etc, and the most common answer is the pickup is a status symbol for them (although they don't actually use that term, they say things like "everybody at work thinks it is cool" or "yes sir, it's the best looking truck at work/on the block now" etc). Usually a waste of money if you ask me, a super duty 250/350, 2500/3500 etc 4 wheel drive lifted for off road clearance (but never taken off pavement - except here on a groomed gravel road). Some of them have boats that go 50+ mph too that typically don't go out of sight of the boat dock - but maybe that should be another thread. Bottom line, in my humble opinion, these folks have more dollars than sense - or more high dollar loans than I'd care to think about. Me, I have a 2 wheel drive '81 f-150 with a Napa crate '84 mustang 350 v-8 in it - in decent shape for its age. The beast will pull almost anything, go almost everywhere and pass everything on the road but a gas station, although it usually only stays on the farm, hauls stuff on trailers or makes trips to the co-op for feed, fuel etc.

 

[Oaktree]

Toyota just kept making the T100 and renamed it "Tacoma"

I thought the T100 became the tundra.

 

[zzvyb6]

Lifestyles, driver gender, shopping habits, campers, boats, and landscaping needs all drive the truck market. Then add safety. A PU head-on with a small anything is a walkaway if you know how to aim it. Even rollover is attenuated by stability control. Winter ground clearance and relatively cheap fuel plus 2 income, high salary couples escaping the 7 deadly crime states for the country top it off. Not everybody is broke, jobless, and lives on a postage stamp sized lot. We're just quiet while city folk kill themselves off. BTW: $100K+ Corvettes are in short supply around here. Yugo wannabees, not so.
Straight from GM Marketting Staff (I retired from Engineering).

 

[Oaktree]

I learned to drive on a 1972 Plymouth Fury. The monster was 18 feet long. My current f150 super crew is slightly smaller.

Heck, even the old Valiants of that era were as big as a modern day pickup. And they were considered a compact caar!

 

[Hardway]

I've often wondered in recent years how is it that American (& foreign) full size pick up trucks have become so large, luxury laden, and overwhelmingly expensive almost requiring a 2nd mortgage to purchase. (i'm not talking about those who make a living from their pickups, just everyday owners who cruise the country, malls, & trips to Lowes...)

What is your take? this is observation only, we all have our preferences. I'm talking sheer size & price. I travel narrow dirt roads almost daily, & drive very defensively around blind curves knowing most current pickups almost aggressively consume 2/3 or more of the road while insulated with power & luxury. That's ok, but puts me at risk. Most of the time i just pull off to the side...

So has it been the result of 1) modern owners actually needing all if it? 2) or is it Americans love affair with bigger, better, & more technology laden? I also note that the size of the payload bed continues to shrink all the while. (some 4 full size door models can't even carry a sheet of ply)
Personally i feel both are true: we now use pickups for in a wider range of activities, & want having it packed into one large size. But dang, the price & size
Hey, just as a simple metaphor to compare: look at the vat sized drink tumblers now served @ fast foods. do we really need it?

On the flip side, i've also noticed that especially since '08 crash, Detroit has done an outstanding job of producing more fuel efficient & modest sized passenger vehicles...strange. So tell me about the big pickup truck size craze. Again, not dumping, just observing.
Apologize in advance if this seems like an inane post, but i'm blown away every day of what the full size pickup has now become. best regards

Pick Up Trucks used to be work trucks and now they are status symbols!
Priced out of the reach of a working man.
To fancy to use as a tool!

 

[ljjhouser]

Your observation seems to be in line with what I am seeing. For years my wife and I have had a small car - Jeep Wrangler - (main vehicle) and an older truck for hauling. Usually a Ford or Chevy 1500 and one 2500. Then in 2017, my wife's mother passed away in Georgia and we had to bring back a grandfather clock and other things. We rented a truck from Enterprise to do that job. We live 1100 miles away. We were absolutely astounded - smooth ride, lots of space, well equipped, AND 21 mpg on the 2500 mile trip. We had saved for 8 years toward a new car. Our jeep got 15 mpg. In 2018, we decided to purchase a new 1500. Checked out the local Ford lot, hundreds of nice shiny trucks - not one under 50K. Finally decided on a Ram truck because of incentives. I live in KC where Ford trucks are assembled (Claycomo). By wife was taken with the panoramic roof and other features. I had to have the 3.92 rear end to permit towing my tractor and trailer. She loves the truck and so do I. It had everything that I said I WOULD NEVER BUY --all those things THAT NOW WE CAN'T DO WITHOUT. Ha! You know, heated and AC seats, auto wipers, auto headlights, music from my phone, integrated trailer tow mode that changes the transmission gearing, electric rear window.......and so on. In 2021, we traded the 2019 for a new 2021, had to have all the SAME stuff.
Lessons I have learned about new trucks: THEY DO NOT fit in parking spaces. Park in the North Forty lot. Improve you driving skills at the car wash by driving curb after the mirrors are folded up. Get a car wash monthly plan - There is NO WAY you can wash the top of a truck unless you are 8' tall. I talked with another guy with a truck like ours - He told me he opened the panoramic window and stood on the seat to wash the top! HA! I would be too embarrassed to even mention the retail price of my truck. (and that is for sure NOT what I paid).

 

[Gord Baker]

If I could only find a new 72 Chevy Cheyenne C-20 350 auto 4 x 4 with air. I would be one happy camper.

I' love a 2009 (last year of production) GMC Envoy Denali, 5.3L 300 HP, 4x4. I should never have traded it in. Got better mileage than 2013 acadian 3.6 271 HP

 

[Kschwennsen]

Frankly, Im really happy with “we can build it (him) bigger, stronger, faster”... (cheap reference to the “Six Million Dollar Man”).
Having my Ram 5500 so strong it’s GCWR is 44,000lbs keeps me from having to own and haul with a tractor trailer.
No I KNOW a tractor trailer will haul substantially more, but todays small-medium truck like mine with a 40’ trailer can haul 12 tons of hay. I can drive home at the end of the day, and park it in my garage. I can also do smaller jobs.
A tractor trailer with a 54’ trailer can haul about 18 tons of hay, but I can’t use it for much else.
I say keep on going. Make them bigger, stronger & faster.
The new GM 4500-6500 trucks show promise. Just need higher towing ratings.

Actually the GM 25/35 trucks have a gooseneck rated at more than 32k. I should know, I designed it.

 

[fender deluxe]

As someone who wants to buy a truck, I feel this. I live in the city but have a hobby farm. I really need a truck, but what's on the market doesn't really appeal to me. I have no desire to be some kind of urban cowboy, I really just need to haul stuff.

Just want a utilitarian truck with a regular cab and an 8' bed, it doesn't need to be aggressively designed or have 300HP. Just needs to haul stuff from A to B, and have 4x4 and enough ground clearance to drive in a field or a gravel bar. Something like a mid 90s F-150 would be ideal, but I don't want to have to depend on a 25 year old truck.

Even a current year base F-150 is just too big. Truck makers seem less concerned with functionality and are more concerned with making some kind of socio-political statement.

 

[ridgerambler]

Yeah trucks have changed. I bought a new Ford F100 flareside in 1973 and paid just under $2000 for a basic three speed on the column work truck. I still have it and it still runs pretty good. I also have a fairly new silverado with air, auto and "some" amenities but that old Ford is still a really good truck. I did drop a heavy duty 4 speed in it in the mid 80's and rebuilt the in line 6 in the 90's. The odometer has turned over at least twice and I put a new wood bed in it in 2003 and painted it at the same time but we still use on the farm and around town.