3 ms·

I live in what most would consider rural America. Most people are buying the midsized SUVs, not necessarily the full size. Once you leave the city things change

I live in what most would consider rural America. Most people are buying the midsized SUVs, not necessarily the full size. Once you leave the city things change... things aren't on top of each other when you leave the city, so driving a big vehicle isn't as frustrating. we have big parking lots(parking spaces are bigger and not full, making it easier to park further out), no underground parking(height isn't an issue), real estate isn't as expensive so developers leave more parking and wider driveways, etc. I dread taking my truck into the city, but for average day to day life its much better then what id choose as a daily drive if i lived in the city full time. About the only thing a small car has an advantage on is parking and getting into and out of tight places, and MPG.

HeyLaughingBoy 8y ago
Pretty much this. I live out in the country and when I mentioned to a suburban friend who owned a Yukon Denali that we were going to buy an F250 (3/4 ton full size pickup), he said, "OK, just tell her that it's hard to find a parking garage it fits in." My wife's response was "when am I ever in a parking garage?" Once you leave the city/suburbs, there's essentially infinite free space for vehicles, so these things cease to be issues.
- war1025 8y ago
  What are you planning to haul that you need an F250 for?
  - Alupis 8y ago
    Campers, trailers, wooden planks, dirt or rocks... ... and sometimes "need" isn't the right question... why do people "need" a Tesla model S when a 3 will do just fine (or a Volt/Bolt/Leaf/Fusion!)? Why do people need a Mustang GT when the v6 or inline 4 would be just fine...?
    - war1025 8y ago
      As I commented in a reply to the parent's response, I misread the comment and thought it was someone who lived in the city and was buying an F250 as an alternative to an SUV.
  - dsfyu404ed 8y ago
    I'd speculate it's probably a typical suburban use case some combination of camper and/or toys several times a year and buying home improvement and landscaping materials the rest of the time. It often makes sense to buy a travel trailer and truck rather than class C camper. Also if you're going to be road tripping it it's usually wise to buy more truck than you need in order to make the road trip aspect more comfortable. As much fun as it is to white knuckle it with 7k behind a Ford Ranger that doesn't make for a fun road trip.
    - war1025 8y ago
      A couple years ago we were camping with my uncle, who drove a semi for many years, and he made the comment that a lot of people who buy the souped up trucks to haul their campers around don't actually have the right setup because the brakes are the most important part of having a truck for towing things. Lots of people (me included) assume you just need a big engine and stiff suspension. Thought that was a nice bit of insight.
      - EADGBE 8y ago
        A lot the larger-engined trucks out there have braking packages included in the tow packaging, now. Controls right in the dash, sent strait to the trailer plug. I can remember similar trucks of 15-20 years ago didn't have these; trailer brakes were always an aftermarket addition.
        war1025 8y ago
        I don't even mean the trailer brake / light package. He was referring to the fact that if you are going to be towing heavy things, you need to have much stronger brakes on the truck itself since most of the braking power on a vehicle ends up coming from the front wheels. Being able to stop a heavy thing that is going fast is as important, if not more important, than being able to get the heavy thing up to speed to begin with.
  - HeyLaughingBoy 8y ago
    Originally it was to avoid the annoyance of always having to borrow a truck if we needed to tow a horse trailer or the like. However, it was mainly (a) we needed a truck for general purposes, and at $4,500 for an 8 year-old full size pickup with a massive 7.3L diesel engine, it was a steal, even after putting a few more thousands into it.
    - war1025 8y ago
      That is a good deal. Trucks hold their value remarkably well.
    - war1025 8y ago
      Also I completely misread your comment and thought you were saying you lived in the city / suburbs and were planning to buy an F250 for daily driving.

HeyLaughingBoy 8y ago

Pretty much this. I live out in the country and when I mentioned to a suburban friend who owned a Yukon Denali that we were going to buy an F250 (3/4 ton full size pickup), he said, "OK, just tell her that it's hard to find a parking garage it fits in." My wife's response was "when am I ever in a parking garage?" Once you leave the city/suburbs, there's essentially infinite free space for vehicles, so these things cease to be issues.

war1025 8y ago
What are you planning to haul that you need an F250 for?
- Alupis 8y ago
  Campers, trailers, wooden planks, dirt or rocks... ... and sometimes "need" isn't the right question... why do people "need" a Tesla model S when a 3 will do just fine (or a Volt/Bolt/Leaf/Fusion!)? Why do people need a Mustang GT when the v6 or inline 4 would be just fine...?
  - war1025 8y ago
    As I commented in a reply to the parent's response, I misread the comment and thought it was someone who lived in the city and was buying an F250 as an alternative to an SUV.
- dsfyu404ed 8y ago
  I'd speculate it's probably a typical suburban use case some combination of camper and/or toys several times a year and buying home improvement and landscaping materials the rest of the time. It often makes sense to buy a travel trailer and truck rather than class C camper. Also if you're going to be road tripping it it's usually wise to buy more truck than you need in order to make the road trip aspect more comfortable. As much fun as it is to white knuckle it with 7k behind a Ford Ranger that doesn't make for a fun road trip.
  - war1025 8y ago
    A couple years ago we were camping with my uncle, who drove a semi for many years, and he made the comment that a lot of people who buy the souped up trucks to haul their campers around don't actually have the right setup because the brakes are the most important part of having a truck for towing things. Lots of people (me included) assume you just need a big engine and stiff suspension. Thought that was a nice bit of insight.
    - EADGBE 8y ago
      A lot the larger-engined trucks out there have braking packages included in the tow packaging, now. Controls right in the dash, sent strait to the trailer plug. I can remember similar trucks of 15-20 years ago didn't have these; trailer brakes were always an aftermarket addition.
      - war1025 8y ago
        I don't even mean the trailer brake / light package. He was referring to the fact that if you are going to be towing heavy things, you need to have much stronger brakes on the truck itself since most of the braking power on a vehicle ends up coming from the front wheels. Being able to stop a heavy thing that is going fast is as important, if not more important, than being able to get the heavy thing up to speed to begin with.
- HeyLaughingBoy 8y ago
  Originally it was to avoid the annoyance of always having to borrow a truck if we needed to tow a horse trailer or the like. However, it was mainly (a) we needed a truck for general purposes, and at $4,500 for an 8 year-old full size pickup with a massive 7.3L diesel engine, it was a steal, even after putting a few more thousands into it.
  - war1025 8y ago
    That is a good deal. Trucks hold their value remarkably well.
  - war1025 8y ago
    Also I completely misread your comment and thought you were saying you lived in the city / suburbs and were planning to buy an F250 for daily driving.