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> It also overlooks that people who only buy ONE vehicle are best off buying a truck or largish SUV so it can do "all they ever need" - to have a small car you
by rizzom5000 4y ago
> It also overlooks that people who only buy ONE vehicle are best off buying a truck or largish SUV so it can do "all they ever need" - to have a small car you kind of really need to have a second vehicle that's larger, or it gets quite annoying.
Logically, it appears to be a trade-off between money and convenience. The money argument is trivial as the total cost of ownership is basic math. The convenience argument is less obvious to me as it's very inexpensive to have Lowe's/Home Depot ship to home and hiring someone to haul a couch once a year is also much less than the cost to own a truck versus a car.
There is also the moral argument if you care about such things as climate change and being a role model for others in your community; and whether or not your need to own a truck/SUV outweighs those considerations in your own mind.
The one argument that does make logical sense to me is the one around safety. Outside of that I agree with the other commenter and would suggest that for the majority of truck owners, it's mostly cosplay.
- bombcar 4y agoThe convenience argument is huge - the additional TIME hassle for the Lowes truck/hiring someone is substation if you have the money to not have to think about it. A modern SUV can get quite decent gas mileage, too. Obviously there are people who buy an F350 just to drive to work for no good reason, but it's not as clear-cut as "nobody ever needs a truck/SUV and anyone who buys one is ontologically evil". I don't know the "actual new vehicle" cost breakdown, but I wouldn't be surprised if the average car price is quite high, comparable perhaps to the average truck. Most people who are "price sensitive" don't buy new anyway, and a number of manufacturers aren't selling cars at all anymore, only SUV/trucks.
- rizzom5000 4y agoTotally agree that the rare times I need to rent a truck, it's a major hassle. I wonder if there is an opportunity for an Uber/Lyft type of truck share service.
- bombcar 4y agoI've started to use delivery from places like HD, it's often not that expensive. The problem with the little rental truck is you have to drive it back and get your car. For largish but still not huge truck items Uber "SUV" might work, but most people just call their friends with a truck. A smallish vehicle with a trailer hitch is pretty good, but you have to know you're going to get something big so you bring the trailer.