An interesting video from the Cybertruck designer Frank von Holtshauser on the tesla half ton truck.

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You can thank the segment of the public that did not need a truck,, but found it to be "the american thing to do",,, and they also demanded all the comforts of their Buick as well..>>>Dan
 
I don't really think it has stopped,, the market just responds to the demands of the public.. You cannot sell to a market that wont buy,, and the manufacturers are sensitive to that..>>>Dan
 
I wish I still had my old truck. 1966 Chevy two tone white and green. Small rear window, 292 CI straight six, one barrel carburator with oil bath air filter, 4 speed on the floor with granny low and 4:10 rear end.

That thing had torque like no other truck I've ever had
 
It's not a truck-age thing, it's the cost of the contemporary gee gaws piled into it that someone who just wants utility has no use for. Chevy has/had the "W/T" series that was on the right track but for the most part power everything/everything's better with a microcontroller in it is "standard". And why not, the margins are so much better and there's a willing consumer that will pay for it. There is no business reason to create a version without that stuff, take it or leave it. For what one of these techno wonder rolling social media platforms sells for today I could rebuild mine - the cloth seat, AM/FM radio, crank window model - several times over. I'm gonna run it until someone smashes into it or I hang up the keys.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM
 
I had an 89 Chevy 1/2 short bed 350 that I put 260,000 miles on and owned it for 25 years until I GAVE IT AWAY to a friend,, that truck owed me nothing..>>>Dan
 
Some folks have misconstrued my earlier post about good, cheap work trucks. Not talking about a 30, 40, 50 year old truck. I’m talking about why can’t truck makers offer a good inexpensive work truck with a bench seat, roll up windows, rubber floors an AM/FM radio and heater.
 
Oldgator73 said:
Some folks have misconstrued my earlier post about good, cheap work trucks. Not talking about a 30, 40, 50 year old truck. I’m talking about why can’t truck makers offer a good inexpensive work truck with a bench seat, roll up windows, rubber floors an AM/FM radio and heater.
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Good question. It might be as simple as what market research is telling them. How many would buy them etc and is it worth an assembly line change. Hard to say. Interesting though.
 
Viajeros said:
Hi all. Ran across this and found it interesting. Enjoy.
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I too found it interesting, thanks for posting. I find that 'wedge' design to be ugly, although I realize the tradeoff is being able to use (and form) more-durable materials.
 
Tom said:
I too found it interesting, thanks for posting. I find that 'wedge' design to be ugly, although I realize the tradeoff is being able to use (and form) more-durable materials.
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Yah. I’m warning up to the idea of stainless steal. Never needs a wax job. You can whack it with a car door or 2 x 4 when loading and no issues. We have a reservation for one. Should be fun. I think we are 3 or 4 years down the list though. 😳
 
Not sure stainless is the answer, though their argument about making the shell "durable" when contrasted to thin steel or aluminum and eggshell thin paint is valid. Thing about stainless is it does scuff and scratch and dents are difficult to remove. You can buff and polish it to some extent but getting the "grain" to match is a trick. No doubt if this becomes a popular option there will be techniques and methods to deal with damage but I recall this issue came up with the deloreans in the 80's. Collision repair was highly specialized and even just keeping them looking nice was a job. Think about what your stainless fridge looks like if you have small kids and you figure out in a hurry that sometimes the cheap textured paint is the better option. While maybe this exact material isn't ideal, I think there's something to the guys with offroad vehicles that paint them with truck bed liner paint. Very tough, hides damage and fills body imperfections.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM
 
Oldgator73 said:
Some folks have misconstrued my earlier post about good, cheap work trucks. Not talking about a 30, 40, 50 year old truck. I’m talking about why can’t truck makers offer a good inexpensive work truck with a bench seat, roll up windows, rubber floors an AM/FM radio and heater.
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I feel like the mid-late 2000's were the sweet spot for work trucks. You could by an S10 or Ranger with vinyl floors and cloth seats, manual transmission and a few basic amenities for <$10k all day long. A full-size in the same trim could easily be found under $20k.

For comparison, base price on a 2023 Chevrolet Colorado is $30k.
 
Mark_K5LXP said:
Not sure stainless is the answer, though their argument about making the shell "durable" when contrasted to thin steel or aluminum and eggshell thin paint is valid. Thing about stainless is it does scuff and scratch and dents are difficult to remove. You can buff and polish it to some extent but getting the "grain" to match is a trick. No doubt if this becomes a popular option there will be techniques and methods to deal with damage but I recall this issue came up with the deloreans in the 80's. Collision repair was highly specialized and even just keeping them looking nice was a job. Think about what your stainless fridge looks like if you have small kids and you figure out in a hurry that sometimes the cheap textured paint is the better option. While maybe this exact material isn't ideal, I think there's something to the guys with offroad vehicles that paint them with truck bed liner paint. Very tough, hides damage and fills body imperfections.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM
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Yah for sure. I’ll let you know how it works out in 3 or 4 years. 😊
 
Right, and what led to the demise of the Ranger in 2011 or whenever was feature creep - engines and bodies got bigger, beefier transmissions and transfer cases, power everything added and by the end of the model series it was slightly smaller, less capable and not much less expensive than an F150. Ford "improved" it right out of its market. When they reintroduced the Ranger couple years ago I have to wonder why - it already starts out large and heavy with lots of geegaws, crapola and a hefty sticker price. I get it - limiting configurations adds to production efficiency and margins, and there's no shortage of pickup buyers these days so load 'em up with everything. If they sold a less optioned model that would cut into sales of the spendy ones, so that's not going to happen. Thinkin' there's a market there of grumpy cheapasses like me that would be loyal customers of practical and maintainable transportation. But clearly we're being outvoted by the manly-men that want the image but don't want to give up their touch screen rear camera bose sound hotspot climate controlled six-way reclining seat glitz wagon with a cargo bed just large enough for golf clubs.

Mark B.
Albuquerque, NM
 
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