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> they're scaled up to look cool and own libs Somewhat ironically, they're as big as they are because of the libs ... or at least because of Obama's modificati

> they're scaled up to look cool and own libs Somewhat ironically, they're as big as they are because of the libs ... or at least because of Obama's modifications to the standards regulating vehicles through the use of the CAFE (corporate average fuel economy) program. The TLDR is that fuel economy standards are now based on the footprint of a vehicle, which was designed to encourage the production of more, smaller vehicles overall, but which resulted in the unintended consequences of it being easier to make the truck bigger than to make it more fuel efficient. Folks were warning that the standards would likely result in American cars getting "between 2 and 32 percent bigger[1]" years before, but it seems those warnings went unheeded. [1] - https://me.engin.umich.edu/news-events/news/cafe-standards-could-mean-bigger-cars-not-smaller-ones/ https://me.engin.umich.edu/news-events/news/cafe-standards-c...

bryanlarsen 3y ago
We're complaining about the height of the vehicle. The footprint doesn't include height.
- gottorf 3y ago
  Well, I suppose they're related. A pancake truck with a big footprint but short sides might look weird.
- bmelton 3y ago
  Breakover and departure angles for work vehicles are practical considerations when taking vehicles off of pavement even if you aren't trying to cross the rubicon, and those angles are determined by heights relative to lengths so as one scales up, so too do the others. This is similar to how boats get bigger in every dimension as they grow in length -- you don't just make a boat longer without also scaling up its width and cabin volumes.
digging 3y ago
For sure, I was using the term lightly as "liberals" has almost no meaning in the USA. Both parties in the US used to be primarily oriented around profits for big business which is what gave us the idiotic "gigantic light truck"[1] craze in the first place. [1] SUVs and pickups are both classified as "light trucks", which are more profitable due to weaker regulations. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_truck#United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_truck#United_States

bryanlarsen 3y ago

We're complaining about the height of the vehicle. The footprint doesn't include height.

gottorf 3y ago
Well, I suppose they're related. A pancake truck with a big footprint but short sides might look weird.
bmelton 3y ago
Breakover and departure angles for work vehicles are practical considerations when taking vehicles off of pavement even if you aren't trying to cross the rubicon, and those angles are determined by heights relative to lengths so as one scales up, so too do the others. This is similar to how boats get bigger in every dimension as they grow in length -- you don't just make a boat longer without also scaling up its width and cabin volumes.

digging 3y ago

For sure, I was using the term lightly as "liberals" has almost no meaning in the USA. Both parties in the US used to be primarily oriented around profits for big business which is what gave us the idiotic "gigantic light truck"[1] craze in the first place. [1] SUVs and pickups are both classified as "light trucks", which are more profitable due to weaker regulations. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_truck#United_States https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light_truck#United_States