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Lots of poor people actually need those vehicles. They would just suffer from having to pay the taxes.

by cdot2 4y ago

SECProto 4y ago
I work construction. at least half of the people on the same jobs as me drive their personal trucks 80km to work, park them until the end of the day, and drive home. Not a single tool in them. The other half drive sedans.
- throwaway742 4y ago
  Yeah my girlfriend works construction and drives a Honda Civic. It fits all her tools just fine. On the job she drives a company truck. Still 75% of her coworkers drive their own personal trucks to work. It is more of a cultural thing.
- Thlom 4y ago
  In my neck of the woods the foreman/boss often drive a nice pickup, but he never has anything on the flatbed. The guys actually building drive a Hiace or Sprinter or something like that (company vehicle).
- mike_d 4y ago
  You probably see a ton of trade vehicles with tools in them, you just don't associate them as personal vehicles. Or your project is only subbing out to commercial trade companies.
  - SECProto 4y ago
    No, it's because I work in civil construction. "Tools" are brought to site on flatbed trailers or in panel vans. Foremen drive company branded pickups, they move smaller tools around site. Most crew drive their personal vehicles to site as described above, and the only gear they have is a safety vest, boots, and their lunch.
fmkamchatka 4y ago
Do they really need a pickup truck? There are so many alternatives to carry around loads which are much lighter. What do you think construction workers and farmers use in Europe?
- atoav 4y ago
  My farmer neighbour had one beatdown VW polo that he used for the field or the woods. Full motor swap for 500 €, a good car.
- Ekaros 4y ago
  Mostly vans I believe. With roofrack or trailer if something longer is transported. Or just get it delivered by actual truck.
- jbay808 4y ago
  In Japan they mostly use Kei trucks, which weigh around 700 kg (1600 lbs).
jononomo 4y ago
I can count on one hand the time I have seen someone driving a pickup truck with something actually in the back of the truck -- and it doesn't even make sense to put anything in the back of the truck unless you bring a stepladder with you as well in case you need to retrieve it.
pandaman 4y ago
Not to mention that the IRS requires a vehicle to be at least 6000 pounds in order to deprecate for business purposes. Buying anything under 6000 pounds for business means paying more taxes.
- SECProto 4y ago
  Note that a 6000lb minimum rules out the f150, the best selling vehicle in North America. Tax considerations can't be too top of mind.
  - pandaman 4y ago
    Not according to a google search for "6000 pounds vehicle list".
    - red369 4y ago
      Doesn’t look like any of the 2021 F-150s are over 6000 pounds curb weight (1). It’s not particularly close, so I would expect most of the newer model would be under 6000 pounds too (I didn’t easily find the newer brochure) (1) https://media.ford.com/content/dam/fordmedia/North%20America/US/product/2021/f150/pdfs/2021-F-150-Technical-Specs.pdf https://media.ford.com/content/dam/fordmedia/North%20America...
      - argiopetech 4y ago
        Curb weight is an irrelevant number, interesting only to calculate payload (which many ignore, albeit at their peril). The number of interest for regulators is Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), as that's the manufacturer's specification of the heaviest the vehicle can be in as-sold configuration and still drive down the road safely.
        SECProto 4y ago
        Thanks for the clarification. The lowest GVWR among the f150s is about 6010 lbs which makes the IRS' apparently minimum weight make more sense. > Curb weight is an irrelevant number, interesting only to calculate payload (which many ignore, albeit at their peril). Not just their peril, also any road users or others nearby. If you've ever seen an overloaded pickup, they tend to drift around their lane as all the extra weight in the back reduces the steering authority on the front. Double so if it's pulling a badly loaded trailer that puts a lot of weight on the hitch
badpun 4y ago
Lots of poor people work construction in Europe too, and they do fine without gigantic pickup trucks.
- iamacyborg 4y ago
  Sadly, pickups are becoming more and more common from what I've seen over the last couple years in London.
- Matthias247 4y ago
  +1. Hardly ever have seen a pickup in germany. Most trade companies will use vans.

Lots of poor people actually need those vehicles. They would just suffer from having to pay the taxes.

by cdot2 4y ago

Lots of poor people actually need those vehicles. They would just suffer from having to pay the taxes.

I work construction. at least half of the people on the same jobs as me drive their personal trucks 80km to work, park them until the end of the day, and drive home. Not a single tool in them. The other half drive sedans.

throwaway742 4y ago
Yeah my girlfriend works construction and drives a Honda Civic. It fits all her tools just fine. On the job she drives a company truck. Still 75% of her coworkers drive their own personal trucks to work. It is more of a cultural thing.
Thlom 4y ago
In my neck of the woods the foreman/boss often drive a nice pickup, but he never has anything on the flatbed. The guys actually building drive a Hiace or Sprinter or something like that (company vehicle).
mike_d 4y ago
You probably see a ton of trade vehicles with tools in them, you just don't associate them as personal vehicles. Or your project is only subbing out to commercial trade companies.
- SECProto 4y ago
  No, it's because I work in civil construction. "Tools" are brought to site on flatbed trailers or in panel vans. Foremen drive company branded pickups, they move smaller tools around site. Most crew drive their personal vehicles to site as described above, and the only gear they have is a safety vest, boots, and their lunch.

fmkamchatka 4y ago

Do they really need a pickup truck? There are so many alternatives to carry around loads which are much lighter. What do you think construction workers and farmers use in Europe?

atoav 4y ago
My farmer neighbour had one beatdown VW polo that he used for the field or the woods. Full motor swap for 500 €, a good car.
Ekaros 4y ago
Mostly vans I believe. With roofrack or trailer if something longer is transported. Or just get it delivered by actual truck.
jbay808 4y ago
In Japan they mostly use Kei trucks, which weigh around 700 kg (1600 lbs).

jononomo 4y ago

I can count on one hand the time I have seen someone driving a pickup truck with something actually in the back of the truck -- and it doesn't even make sense to put anything in the back of the truck unless you bring a stepladder with you as well in case you need to retrieve it.

pandaman 4y ago

Not to mention that the IRS requires a vehicle to be at least 6000 pounds in order to deprecate for business purposes. Buying anything under 6000 pounds for business means paying more taxes.

SECProto 4y ago
Note that a 6000lb minimum rules out the f150, the best selling vehicle in North America. Tax considerations can't be too top of mind.
- pandaman 4y ago
  Not according to a google search for "6000 pounds vehicle list".
  - red369 4y ago
    Doesn’t look like any of the 2021 F-150s are over 6000 pounds curb weight (1). It’s not particularly close, so I would expect most of the newer model would be under 6000 pounds too (I didn’t easily find the newer brochure) (1) https://media.ford.com/content/dam/fordmedia/North%20America/US/product/2021/f150/pdfs/2021-F-150-Technical-Specs.pdf https://media.ford.com/content/dam/fordmedia/North%20America...
    - argiopetech 4y ago
      Curb weight is an irrelevant number, interesting only to calculate payload (which many ignore, albeit at their peril). The number of interest for regulators is Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), as that's the manufacturer's specification of the heaviest the vehicle can be in as-sold configuration and still drive down the road safely.
      - SECProto 4y ago
        Thanks for the clarification. The lowest GVWR among the f150s is about 6010 lbs which makes the IRS' apparently minimum weight make more sense. > Curb weight is an irrelevant number, interesting only to calculate payload (which many ignore, albeit at their peril). Not just their peril, also any road users or others nearby. If you've ever seen an overloaded pickup, they tend to drift around their lane as all the extra weight in the back reduces the steering authority on the front. Double so if it's pulling a badly loaded trailer that puts a lot of weight on the hitch

badpun 4y ago

Lots of poor people work construction in Europe too, and they do fine without gigantic pickup trucks.

iamacyborg 4y ago
Sadly, pickups are becoming more and more common from what I've seen over the last couple years in London.
Matthias247 4y ago
+1. Hardly ever have seen a pickup in germany. Most trade companies will use vans.