Why does "size matter" in N.America???

[mustangwarrior]

like said before, i'm 6'5", its hard t fit in smaller vehicle, although, i do manage to drive a 2 door escort, i absolutely hate it but the mileage is awesome

i wish they would bring in all the "baby" diesels, as we call them haha, from other countries, i'd for sure rock a diesel ranger like the ones in S. America, but this country is so far behind in my opinion, just like a picture i saw the other day:

 

[4x4x4doors]

I always love these rant threads, which is really what this is. I understand; my temper would be high after almost getting creamed by something big.

<snip>
For the record, I split my commuting time between the Expedition and a Suzuki Samurai. I generally like my stuff small, not because I'm noble, but probably because of my nautical nature. I found 9 years of submarine duty enlightening on what one can do with tiny amount of space. <snip>

Stimulating topic, of course, and it's nice that we can converse as gentlemen. Thank you for that!

I occasionally get questioned as to how comfortable I could possibly be in my teardrop trailer. Showed it to one of my former shipmates whose first comment was "D***! That's pretty spacious compared to a submarine rack". Perspective counts.

Not to sidetrack too far but what boat(s) were you on? 627 here.

 

[Riptide]

Now you're gonna hate me; 734. As your buddy would say, "D***! That's pretty spacious compared to the 627".

I love teardrops; that would be my choice in a trailer. In fact, I'm trying to get my former-submariner buddy to get one, instead of a RTT.

 

[IHDiesel73L]

I'm late to the party on this one but to get back to the OPs point, it is a little ridiculous when you see a landscaper, contractor, etc...with an F-350 jacked up 6" on 38" Super Swampers with stacks as a "work truck." It must be nice to claim tires that are $200 apiece that wear out in 20K miles as a "business expense." My DD is an F-350 regular cab diesel completely stock except for my vegetable oil conversion. I suppose I might have bought a smaller truck if I could have, but being able to carry as much firewood in a single load as I can with the 1 ton is nice. What the hell, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em-maybe I'll get a couple lawn mowers and weed trimmers, throw them in the back, and send the receipts for the Skyjacker lift, Intercos, custom wheels, and exhaust work to the account for a writeoff

 

[trump]

It must be nice to claim tires that are $200 apiece that wear out in 20K miles as a "business expense."

Point was taken, but you haven't bought tires recently have you?

 

[IHDiesel73L]

Point was taken, but you haven't bought tires recently have you?

Holy hell-I just Googled them! :Wow1: $200 apiece was a WAG-I had no idea I was $75 to $100 low... I've also never bought tires larger than 31" either-I was flirting with the idea of putting 35s on my Toyota hunting buggy-maybe I should rethink that.

 

[JCMatthews]

Between the early 80's and 1996 I had a succession of medium sized import 4x4's that would fit in to the OP's framework of what we really need. The major stars were a 1974 fj40,an 85 trooper and a 91 Montero. They either had 4 or 6 cylinder motors and none of them got any better then 17 or 18 miles to the gallon on a good day. I loved my imports and sneered at the big trucks even though I had already owned a few. What changed my point of view was a trip we took to raft the Smith River for 4 days in 1996. With my wife,son and a 90 pound golden retriever on board I had every nook and cranny packed to the bursting point.I was carrying the rowing frame ,oars and cooler on the roof. I was cruising along under the speed limit when a pickup that had just passed me lost his topper and deposited it in the middle of the road. More by luck then skill I managed to avoid a collision but it brought home the fact that I was pushing the limits of these designs and the results were niether safe or efficent. When I got home I put the Montero up for sale and ordered a one ton crew-cab powerstroke f-350 with a 5 speed. I put a platform and drawers in the bed and covered it with a cab-high topper. Compared to my past vehicles this truck was a revelation. I could carry six full size adults,I never managed to come close to filling all of the dry secure storage and I consistantly got twenty miles to the gallon on the hiway. The brakes and suspension were unfazed by the biggest loads I threw at them and the truck was rock solid and comfortable at hiway speeds or 50 miles of bad roads back in the Missouri River breaks. While it was'nt quite as nimble as the Montero around town it was never a problem in the small city where we lived. After eight years and a 100,000 miles I sold that truck for half of what I paid for it and it was just as tight as the day I got it. In thinking about why I followed the path I did I realized that the trucks that I owned in the 70's were standard cab gas motored half -tons that got ten miles to the gallon, rode bad but couldn't carry much and were for me a poor alternative to something like my first Trooper. I think that the thing that finally ended up turning me off on these smaller rigs was the dismal fuel mileage. Unlike the rest of the world where they would have been available with diesel motors we were saddled with inefficient gas engines. Considering that my crew-cab got better mileage towing one of these utes then they got on their own it's pretty hard to make a strong case for them. By the way during the time I owned the F-350 I also had a Suzuki Side Kick Sport. It was a great little ute for running around town and handling the light duty tripping chores but it paled in comparison to the truck.

Exactly!!!

I would also like to add that I have a 99 Saturn that gets 40mpg, however I hate being in it on the freeway. Even drivers in a Prius look down on us. Build a rig out of plastic put a 1.8l engine in it and it does great on gas. When the wind blows, I have to hold on tight because it wants to change lanes. I'd take my leveled Tundra on the freeway any day over the Saturn. I also had a Ford Expedition that I miss because when it comes time to haul a few extra people, now we have to take two rigs.

 

[trump]

Just thought it was kind of funny... even my 33's run over $200 per now. I can't even imagine what a 38" would be like.:Wow1:

 

[Tucson T4R]

Size does matter.

Just saying. :sombrero:

 

[JCMatthews]

I know you added some qualifiers that I omitted, but if you look back a couple decades, there was a tiny "One Ton" being imported to the states:

Though towing 5,000 pounds with that 22RE had to be interesting!

In 1990 you could also get a Jeep Comanche rated to a metric ton. But neither of them really had the power to haul it or a good back seat.

 

[Hilldweller]

Now you're gonna hate me; 734. As your buddy would say, "D***! That's pretty spacious compared to the 627".

I love teardrops; that would be my choice in a trailer. In fact, I'm trying to get my former-submariner buddy to get one, instead of a RTT.

When I pull my 6'5" body out of our teardrop, people say, "wow, what a small trailer..."
But it's a 6'x10' teardrop ---- so I correct them and tell them it's a huge teardrop.

 

[GroupSe7en]

Well, as rants go, this was pretty impassioned, but I think that the subject was a bit too wide ranging, and some of the conclusions drawn weren't quite on target.

The giant built trucks with their idiotic suspensions and swamps are a cultural thing.
These guys are the red-neck counterpart to the numbskulls with the ultra-lowerd Civics with 20" wheels, huge exhausts, nox, and speakers big enough to converse with ET. One is gigantic and the other is tiny, but it's the same thing. Low riders are another facet of this cultural phenomena.

Sorry to say it, but we are another cultural group doing the exact same thing. Our rigs are, for the most part, ridiculous. We don't need a great deal of the capabilities we build into these things. We farkle them to the maximum limit that our wallets and aftermarket manufacturers can support, and complain when there isn't enough aftermarket support to trick out our particular vehicle. We subscribe to this forum and maybe two or three more (like mud, etc.) where we can spend out time talking about, looking at photos of, and dreaming about over-built machinery and how we can use it - maybe 2% of the time?

I would suggest that the next time you're sitting at a light in your lifted whatever, with it's 33's, lockers, bushbar bumpers complete with 10,000 lb winch, safari rack with 3 fuel cans, shovel, hi lift, and enough light to illuminate a medium sized stadium, and one of those guys with the 'ridiculous' truck pulls up next to you, smile and say, "Nice truck".

We're all enthusiasts of one kind or another, brother.

Cheers,
Mark

 

[McZippie]

GroupSeZen... Bravo, well done indeed!

 

[Riptide]

I would suggest that the next time you're sitting at a light in your lifted whatever, with it's 33's, lockers, bushbar bumpers complete with 10,000 lb winch, safari rack with 3 fuel cans, shovel, hi lift, and enough light to illuminate a medium sized stadium, and one of those guys with the 'ridiculous' truck pulls up next to you, smile and say, "Nice truck".

We're all enthusiasts of one kind or another, brother.

That's crazy talk, Mark!!

Then again... ...you MIGHT be right.

 

[CJCA]

I didn’t wade through 11 pages, just read the first page……

……snip……I think its a pennis extention for the most part.

I think that pretty well sums up a large percentage of the giantisaurus rigs on the road. Seems like most of these drivers can’t seem to stay in their own lane on the narrower city streets and are always riding or crossing over the yellow line. Odd that semis, large delivery trucks, fire engines, etc with good drivers manage to stay on their side of the street, but the jacked up 1 ton dually pickups, 9 foot tall Ford Excursions, Chevy Suburbans, et al can’t drive well enough to pass a simple driving exam at the DMV.

When we get into the next fuel war and prices hit $5 to $7+ per gallon, we will see less of these unmuffled juvenile penis extensions on the roads. Until then, this is the good ol’ USA and children and posers will continue to make poor choices as is their right. I can understand the teenie bopper uber-testosterone mentality, I just don’t condone it.