Anybody else want a small USEABLE 4X4?

[85_Ranger4x4]

if a regular cab with room for a clipboard behind the seats meets my goals, why would i want a cab with room a folding shovel.... which I regard as useless anyway. Regular cab, short or long box is all I'll buy. So used it is.

As someone that has one they are not great for long trips. You basically don't have much more dry/secure storage than a motorcycle. For my big Ohio trip camera equipment had to ride in the back which I wasn't crazy about. I snagged a used $40 topper and spend another $60 rebuilding the lock to help the situation which was still far from bulletproof.

If I went a year newer so an extended cab was an option it would be better but still annoying as four doors were still 10+ years off. I am spoiled by them on my extended cab F-150.

My Ranger has a little shorter wheelbase than a JKU, a little narrower but probably similar in length. About the same OAL as a new Ranger. It was a friggen billygoat on trails. Turned nice, climbed nice, I loved it. I wouldn't want it any wider going thru trails made by/for Jeeps. Compared to my F-150 (which is small/old itself) it is like a go cart.

BTW a folding army shovel fits under my seat... 7' bed with a topper can swallow a lot of gear though.

Nothing is perfect, if I made it the same size as my '150 to have a big cab it would have been tripping all over itself on the trail. I drove it from SW Iowa to eastern Ohio (Southington Offroad Park) and it was very pleasant to drive on the road (probably thanks to the longbed adding wheelbase) 7mo pregnant wife's only complaint was the lack of A/C on the trail... which nobody runs on a trail anyway.

 

[Todd780]

Glad you didn't insult 5.5' bed owners...I get plenty of use out of my glorified soccer mom "truck."

Same here...

 

[Todd780]

I don't tend to take pictures of my truck loaded up with stuff. (Don't really feel the need to). But, it performed perfectly all summer towing a trailer with the 5'5" box loaded up with firewood and camping gear while carting around 2 adults, 2 kids and a dog....

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I don't tend to take pictures of my truck loaded up with stuff. (Don't really feel the need to)

I only did to remember how I had it for the next round of adult tetris to pack it back up.

One downside to a smaller truck with a big bed, even with a cast iron V8 for a counterweight it can be kinda picky on balance when loaded heavy.

I started out with as much weight forward as I could get trying to keep weight on both axles. It rode much better with the weight spread out a little more. I did a couple rounds of testing before we took off...

 

[Martinjmpr]

There are few things that are killing regular cab trucks. One of them is the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards. The CAFE regs were changed a few years back and now the fuel economy targets that vehicle have to hit is based on their "footprint" which is the measurement from wheel center to wheel center, basically a rectangle of the wheel centers. The bigger that rectangle is, the lower MPG is permitted before penalties kick in.

Since an extended cab or crew-cab truck or long bed with the same drivetrain is probably going to get about the same MPG as a regular cab short bed, the longer wheelbase and greater width mean a bigger "rectangle" which in turn means that it's allowed to get lower MPG than the regular cab short bed would.

The other factor that's killing small reg-cab trucks is that commercial users have turned to the new generation of small vans. Small businesses are switching to the likes for the Ford Transit and similar small car-based vans because they're cheaper, fully enclosed and get much better MPG numbers with their little engines and FWD design. They're shorter overall and easier to drive/park in the city, and they're cheap to maintain.

Finally the fact that the mid-sized body-on-frame SUV has all but disappeared (I think the Wrangler, Lexus GX-460 and 4runner are the last vehicles sold in the US in this category) means that mid-sized BOF pickups have become the new Suburban dad-wagon, and it's hard to put kids into the back of a regular cab pickup.

 

[rho]

My partner considered trying to find a jeep MJ for that reason, but we're going to be going the Gladiator route instead.

 

[AbleGuy]

My partner considered trying to find a jeep MJ for that reason, but we're going to be going the Gladiator route instead.

If you’re doing so at present, you might want to check up on the status of the gladiator sales freeze.

Sales of Jeep Gladiator Halted Over Driveshaft Problem - Motor Sport HQ

It’s not all that surprising when a wholly new model is launched for it to suffer from some early glitches, and Jeep’s highly touted new pickup has not been spared the growing pains, it appears.Temporarily, there will be no further sales of the new Jeep Gladiator. Jeep has issued a stop-sale...

motorsporthq.com

Also, just FWIW, the new Jeep Gladiator driveshaft recall is expected to begin October 18, 2019. Jeep dealers will replace the driveshafts, but customers with questions should call 800-853-1403 and make reference to recall number V95.

 

[chilliwak]

Here you go

Is that not a copy of an old Jeep? ?

 

[chilliwak]

I prefer vehicles that aren't well built, lol

Maybe fix up an old Toyota with a 22R?

View attachment 539956

I say take that DMC behind the Toyota and put a 12 inch lift in it and some 44s. the stainless body would love that, Cheers, chilli...?

 

[shade]

Is that not a copy of an old Jeep? ?

Maybe. How many recalls has it had?

 

[rho]

If you’re doing so at present, you might want to check up on the status of the gladiator sales freeze.


Also, just FWIW, the new Jeep Gladiator driveshaft recall is expected to begin October 18, 2019. Jeep dealers will replace the driveshafts, but customers with questions should call 800-853-1403 and make reference to recall number V95.

Yeah, its something we saw. Its a jeep, I expect dumb stuff like this to occur. Luckily greasing a drive shaft isn't hard. Be it a repezza joint or the spines on the shaft or whatever.

 

[Chorky]

no ideal this topic would bring out such heated discussions! I was just

Have you sorted out any ideas more yet? I would be curious to hear what you decide on. Looking at some older pics I came across my '90 ranger. It certainly had its issues due to poor engineering, but was a great truck that I miss. Wish I would have kept it to this day. Consicering my current vehicles, one being a large 7.3 F350, and the other a TJ, having a small-mid size truck would be a great balance between the two. The 7.3 is a great truck, but of course it's about as big as they come. And weight doesn't always play nice in the ice. On the other hand the TJ is a bit of a rough ride and hard on the body as one ages, as well as bieng a short wheelbase doesn't do well in ice either. A vehicle like my old ranger seems to be a perfect balance. Big enough to haul some things, small and light enough to not hamper you in weather. Of course the issue being the inability to haul or tow larger items if desired (hence why I got a big truck).

In retrospect though, I almost think having a ranger again might be better than either the TJ or the 7.3. It is sad we don't have the Hilux here in the states. Beat the crap out of mine across the pond, and it just kept going without complaining and easy to service/maintain

 

[nitro_rat]

Wish we could get the new Jimny (Samurai) here in the States!

 

[nickw]

With the recent Wrangler-killer thread about GMC's no-go SUV and the thread about the new Dakota I'm back thinking what I have been thinking for a LONG time. Who else besides me wants a true small truck (not mid-size) that is built well. My dream would be something along the lines of 4cyl(+ for TD option), 5or6spd manual available, vinyl seats and rubber floors, manual windows would be fine with me, Hi-Lo transfer case. utilizing common diffs for easy tailoring of gears/lockers would be awesome! To really top it off give us a steering box(not rack and pinion) and reasonably strong drive line. Basically I'm asking for a 80's-90's truck to still be available with more modern engine controls and efficiency .

Sounds good on paper, but realistically, theyd be too expensive. I bet a manuf couldn't produce that for less than $35k....at that price point, lots of full size domestics. Just isn't much of a market for it...

 

[6gun]

Sounds good on paper, but realistically, theyd be too expensive. I bet a manuf couldn't produce that for less than $35k....at that price point, lots of full size domestics. Just isn't much of a market for it...

From a manufacturing standpoint I disagree. Most manufacturers have everything on hand to produce this. All Jeep needs to do is offer the Gladiator in a stripped sport model and they could easily be in the 35K range. Nissan, Toyota, GM and Ford all have base model trucks near 20K throw a transfer case and front diff you're still less than 30K. I will admit, the market would probably not support it though.

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