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Well said, Lloyd. As a contractor, I've been driving trucks for 4 decades and have experienced first-hand the inflation in trucks size. The current F-150 dwarfs one from the 80's or 90's. In fact Ford now has a "maverick" that's about the size of an old F-150. I had to get a screw-on ladder for the tailgate of my most recent truck becaus…
Well said, Lloyd. As a contractor, I've been driving trucks for 4 decades and have experienced first-hand the inflation in trucks size. The current F-150 dwarfs one from the 80's or 90's. In fact Ford now has a "maverick" that's about the size of an old F-150. I had to get a screw-on ladder for the tailgate of my most recent truck because it's so high off the ground I could no longer easily climb in (and I'm 6' tall).
I'm always amazed when I see trucks that clearly are mostly commuter vehicles. My current fleet (a Silverado 1500 and an F-250) get about 16 and 12 mpg, respectively. I would never drive a truck if i didn't have to. A vehicle useless for anything but hauling shit around.
And the reactions you get show how much driving these stupid behemoths are seen as lifestyle signifiers more than anything else. Every SUV ad seems to show them somewhere where no vehicle should be - the conquest of nature is always the subtext in the marketing. Even if a soccer field is as close as the vehicle ever gets to off-road.
Yes, Dan - please get louder with your opinion/expertise as a contractor who has a fleet etc. The fact that you'd "never drive a truck if I didn't have to" is gold. I live in a quiet neighborhood in Seattle and in the past few years have seen a lot of households get new trucks (minimally, the double cab Honda version - but all the way up to gigantic), and these are all for cases where the drivers are NOT in a construction or such fields. I'm hoping way more contractors might speak to this. It's about the right tool for the job. Meanwhile - people are dying. Maybe the campaign is "what vehicle do you use when you are not on the job?"... and loads of contractors say "ebike for local trips" (I can dream...).