Title pretty much says it all, I guess. Everywhere you go (at least in NJ) there are people driving pick-ups with no apparent use for them. So I wonder what the primary motivation for regular people (meaning as opposed to those whose business requires a truck) is to buy them. Is there some utility of the truck that they want, or is it just the image of driving around in one?
Here in St. Paul, they have a number of advantages.
- Smaller cab. Easier to heat in winter.
- Haul stuff.
- Tow stuff.
Much like other vehicles, except for the smaller cab thing.
We have 3. The old Ford is for beatin’ up. I use it to haul rocks, trash, dirt, horse-poop and the old camper once in a while. The Big Ford is used to haul livestock long distances with the kid in the back seat. The little Nissan was the wife’s before we met and she used it to haul lots of booze for the bar she ran. Now, its for hauling small livestock economicly and hay, grain and local crap.
I prefer to ride motorcycles.
I wished I had a pickup truck today. Would have came in handy. Next vehicle WILL be a pickup. No question about it.
I’m thinking when my Aerostar dies, I’ll probably replace it with a pickup that will be able to drag the trailer. I like that I can get a pickup cheaper than a car, I can haul stuff in it, and it can tow.
At least that’s my thinking now. If someone comes up with a van I like as much as my Aerostar, all bets are off. But the bottom line for me is comfort and utility. There is no vehicle that captures my image!
In my household we have an older model (but sharp looking) Chevy truck and a newer model Chevy Blazer. We use the pick up for hauling stuff all the time. The truck especially gets used for “dirty” stuff. Trash, sticks, hay, cut grass… The blazer we use to haul small pieces of furniture and stuff like that more often. Both are handy.
We’re always hauling something. Either a trailer full of motorcycles, or wheels, sheet metal, lumber, groceries, trash, whatever. I don’t think I would be happy without one anymore. Ours is only a little four-banger, but the next one will most likely be a six with an extended cab.
I once saw a booth selling frames for license plates with cute slogans on them. One of the frames I remember:
Above the plate were the words, “Yes, this is my truck.”
Below the plate were the words, “No, I won’t help you move.”
I have a small 4-banger pickup with a 5 speed manual transmission. The original purchase price was much less than a comparable car, and it gets 28.5 to 30 miles per gallon of gas. For those with a long commute to work, it can’t be beat.
I also use it frequently for hauling, though if you want to tow a big load, like a loaded livestock trailer, you’ve gotta’ go find somebody that has a bigger truck.
Also, I live 2 miles down a dirt road, so the higher clearance comes in handy in bad weather.
rowing frame
raft + oars, etc.
cooler(s)
kayak
malamutt
and oh yeah, the additional cargo box with tools, fishing rods, hi-lift jack, jumper cables, tow straps, jump kit, frisbees, football, dog food and room for the laptop and a small suitcase.
Three years ago I sold my 84 Toyota longbed pickup. It has accumulated 214,000 miles with few problems (we had purchased a new car and I got the next vehicle in line). I really miss owning a small pickup because it could haul lots of stuff easily like sheets of plywood, soil, appliances etc. They hold their value quite well, too.
Only problem is that they are quite unsafe.
Everybody who answered so far seems to haul a lot of stuff. I think people like the height and the rugged image it portrays.
Personally, I think a stationwagon with a trailer hitch is more usefull for a family. Then there’s the fuel economy. If I had the space, I would keep a beater around for abuse. depending on the cost of insurance.
Holy Cow, I miss my trucks.
I first owned a regular cab with a long bed, standard V-8…I worked for a window and door company. It was great but for going over mountain passes with a load of windows and a dog that is a chow/shepard/lab mix.
So the next truck, kicking my arse over for now keeping it. Was a Chevy Ext Cab, long bed with a 454. I could tow a U-Haul trailer ( a pretty big one) over east bound Vail Pass going 70 mph, easily. In addition, it was safer for my dog so he could lay on the floor in the back of the truck rather than in the front seat of my regular cab.
Today, I drive a Honda Accord and find I don’t do any 4 wheeling, obviously, so I don’t get into remote sites that my Flinstone Mobile can’t get to and go hiking. With the recent budget cuts, the roads up in the mountains suck so even taking a Honda can harm to your car.
I miss my truck and I should have have never traded it in for the Suburban, damnit. The truck was paid for and I could go anywhere with that one, damn. Granted the gas sucks but it was my trusted friend and used to go a lot of places that a Honda simply can’t go.
REAL TEXAS MEN DRIVE TRUCKS; PERIOD!
No, but seriously I drive one becuase its functional. Now granted I don’t use my bed every day. But man, those days that I do, boy am I glad I have a truck!
What he said. Without the dirt road. I wouldn’t trade my little truck for anything.
We just bought a small pickup this weekend. 
It’s mostly going to take my husband to and from work, but we chose the pickup for our second vehicle because, especially now that we have a house, there’s a lot of hauling we do on weekends that the Neon just can’t handle. We’ve got this huge pile of brush in our yard…now, we don’t have to wait to borrow someone’s truck or pay someone to take it away. I’m sure that my husband won’t miss trying to fit lengths of lumber in a Dodge Neon, or tying a lattice panel to the roof and hoping it doesn’t blow away! We can even buy furniture at garage sales without fear. Don’t people in NJ have the same sorts of weekend projects?
I have the opposite problem: I currently have a car, and I probably need a pickup for hauling stuff… and I just can’t bring myself to buy one. Given my limited parking area, I’d probably trade from the car to the truck. But I’m 41 years old and really don’t want to drive The Titanic every damned day. Small trucks seem to come as a) starvation models, or b) some decent options with a huge (and unjustified, IMO) price tag for a decent engine and cab area. Large trucks are… barges. I don’t want to drive a barge to go Safeway. Decisions, decisions.
When I lived in New Orleans, I wanted a truck just for the ground clearance. Watching my Toyota sink like the Titanic in one of our many floods irritated me.
If you have the storage space you can get a trailer that folds and stands on it’s end. Another alternative is to buy a trailer and keep it at someone else’s place. They get the use of the trailer when you’re not using it. My brother in-law as a 4X8 trailer and I have a 4X4 trailer. Both are kept at his place and both are available to either of us.
I wouldn’t mind having an older Ranger to commute with. I like the 31-mpg I get with my car everyday.
F-150 owner here. Just a plain old truck, nothing fancy.
If you have a house, you need a truck. Where are you going to put an 8’ sheet of plywood in a station wagon?