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If you live in an apartment or a condo, I can see where you wouldn't need a truck, you can just have any big items you buy delivered. However, if you live in a house with a yard, you'll need a pickup occasionally. I put all sorts of things on the back of mine... bags of mulch, bales of pinestraw, jugs of gas for the lawnmower, etc....
Now what I do see as pointless, is the people who put the giant lift kits and huge mud tires on their trucks. I was behind one at McDonalds a few days ago that was so high the guy driving couldn't even reach his food from the drive up window, he had to pull up and get out.
I don't get huge lifted trucks either.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SportyandMisty
Q: Why spend $65,000-ish on a Ford 150 Raptor 4x4 when you don't tow or haul?
A: How else do 28 year-old divorced men pick up 18 year old girls at bowling alleys?
Image or want. Why buy a Maserati when a Honda Fit gets you there? Why buy a Infiniti when a Daewoo works?
Why buy a boat? Nobody really needs a boat. We don't live in Venice Italy
People are always going to drive or buy what others label as unneeded or excessive. Truthfully it's nobody's business what people choose to buy and the reason they made that choice.
Let people drive what they want to drive. Some people feel comfortable in a truck, others don't. Feel free to decide which car is appropriate for you.
The term "need" anyways is misleading. What do people really "need"? Do they need a TV? Do they need a classic car? do they need a sportscar? Do they need a house bigger than 1 bedroom 1 bathroom?
Rather ask what people WANT. If they want a truck just for fun, and they can afford it, its fine for me.
In defense of lifted truck. People who like to go mudding or rock crawling pretty much need a lifted truck. I could also see the benefit to a lifted truck when you are hauling a huge load so your truck doesn't bottom out.
Either way I think it's funny when people with only cars ask you to move, or get mulch, or move bricks the list goes on and on. Not that I have any problem helping people move or move yard waste but it gets to the point of being annoying. I like driving trucks because I don't have to rely on people to move things. I like that I can see farther on the road. My truck is my daily driver I can get 20 mpg on the highway which is pretty much the same as a Suv. I can also park in pretty much every parking spot, and parallel park so I don't take up any more room then a car.
Lots of people buy trucks and never haul anything in the bed except for groceries. They buy them to make up for shortcomings. On this very forum is a thread "Should I buy a truck or a sports car". There are lots of people that need trucks but I think the vast majority of truck buyers do not. Trucks are too big these days, too. Not only do they guzzle gas, they take up a lot of room on the streets and parking lots, too.
I am an avid do it yourselfer. I have a 1993 Nissan truck that I bought new. It's given me 24 years of good service and great mpg. I will never buy another truck because even the so called compact trucks are too big and thirsty these days.
I am not following the basis for these statements. Trucks get better mileage than they used to. So while some trucks are bigger these days, it does not make them use more gasoline.
Trucks take up exactly 1 parking space. A Chevy Spark also takes up 1 parking space. How does the size of the truck int he space make any difference? You can say some trucks improperly take two spaces, but then some sparks do too.
What shortcoming do you think people are trying to make up for? I have heard that as kind of a silly slight from jealous people who wish they had a truck, but never anything real.
Overall this thread seems laughably judgmental and self centered. If we do nto meet certian posters particular standards for "needing" a truck then we are wasting money, being stupid or trying to make up for a mystery "something."
What constitutes "needing" a truck? An avid DIYer does not "need" a truck. You can still do the same thing with a minivan, or even a small vehicle. I have seen a Chevy Spark with sheets of plywood tied on top. They get much better mileage than any truck.
Is one use sufficient to justify "need?" If I "need" a bigger truck once a year to pull out bushes or small trees while doing volunteer work at schools or other public locations, does that count as "need?" What if I just happen to enjoy pulling stuck people out of the ditches and medians?
What about carrying dirt, rocks, firewood, brush, bicycles (for camping) trees (for planting), long tools, atlatl darts, lumber, high school or church people in a parade, camping gear, teenagers (off road), water, canoe and/or kayaks, mattresses or large furniture, for people who are moving, a generator, giant dog crates, hay or straw bales for targets or barriers.. . . How many such things do I need to carry before being a legitimate truck owner to the posters who hate truck owners? All of this stuff can be transported in another way wither with smaller vehicles, a trailer, renting a truck, or getting it delivered. I guess there is no need" for a truck for anyone except a commercial user.
What if I have a big family and haul huge amounts of groceries from Costco? Is that equal to an occasional DIYer for truck legitmacy?
Do I have to haul a dead animal and tow a giant camper or boat to be a legitimate truck user in your eyes?
What if someone just hangs out with truck people and a truck actually does make them look cool? Is that acceptable reason? If not then are you opposed to Corvettes? Luxury Sports sedans?
Is it OK with you folks if a soccer mom buys a truck so she can carry the team gear along with part of the team, or does she have to get a van?
In defense of lifted truck. People who like to go mudding or rock crawling pretty much need a lifted truck. I could also see the benefit to a lifted truck when you are hauling a huge load so your truck doesn't bottom out.
Either way I think it's funny when people with only cars ask you to move, or get mulch, or move bricks the list goes on and on. Not that I have any problem helping people move or move yard waste but it gets to the point of being annoying. I like driving trucks because I don't have to rely on people to move things. I like that I can see farther on the road. My truck is my daily driver I can get 20 mpg on the highway which is pretty much the same as a Suv. I can also park in pretty much every parking spot, and parallel park so I don't take up any more room then a car.
There is a law of diminishing returns in truck lifts. I guess it depends on what people consider huge lifted trucks. Huge lifted trucks are usually a one shot wonder. They do one thing well. Usually after spending 10k in lifts and tires they are destined to be street cruisers. If you want a all around performer a giant lifted truck isn't the way to go.
There is a law of diminishing returns in truck lifts. I guess it depends on what people consider huge lifted trucks. Huge lifted trucks are usually a one shot wonder. They do one thing well. Usually after spending 10k in lifts and tires they are destined to be street cruisers. If you want a all around performer a giant lifted truck isn't the way to go.
You are totally right for some a giant lift could just be 6 inch lift for some a giant lift could be 10-12" inches so who honestly knows what people think is a giant lift. You are also totally right about them being one hit wonders most people I knew who lifted their trucks did it because they loved rock crawling or mudding and they wanted a vehicle that could handle those activities. When they were on the road they didn't handle very well unless the owners put more money in try to combat the sucky steering. I think most people who buy them recognize they aren't going to give you the all around performance but most people I knew who drove them used them for one purpose. The people who buy giant lift kits and never take them off the road, I call them fake rednecks, luckly the need to have the biggest baddest truck usually ends after college
But can you fit the wife and kids in the back watching a dvd, and a quad or 2 dirt bikes in the cargo area?
How about your crew when you have a small block anchored down in the bed to swap into a race car that's on the trailer behind you?
Before I threw headers, went catless and had a custom written tune, my 14 Silverado was getting 28 sometimes 30mpg in 4cyl mode doing 70...
The rams with DOD hemis were getting 22-28mpg...
These aren't old carbed, or Tbi small blocks anymore...
Ditch the emissions BS from diesels the mpgs get out of single and low teens to high teens low 20s... especially if they have the trashcan of doom-Destroys Pickups Fast deleted...
Yeah, screw the environment, but hey, it's all about you, right?
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most people I knew who lifted their trucks did it because they loved rock crawling or mudding and they wanted a vehicle that could handle those activities. When they were on the road they didn't handle very well unless the owners put more money in try to combat the sucky steering. I think most people who buy them recognize they aren't going to give you the all around performance but most people I knew who drove them used them for one purpose. The people who buy giant lift kits and never take them off the road, I call them fake rednecks, luckly the need to have the biggest baddest truck usually ends after college
