My how trucks have grown...

Appleseed said:

The Honda Ridgeline is the Japanese El-Camino. There, I said it.

I would rock one "Earl" style.

I'd be way more interested in a gladiator if you could get it with an 8' bed. I'd happily give up the rear doors to make that happen. I have a 12'7" kayak, and I frequently buy lumber. Short bed trucks are just "macho" sedans where all your stuff can get rained on.

• mazdeuce - Seth said:

Same with the Gladiator to be honest. Bed 3 inches shorter than even the Ridgeline! I LOVE how low the bedsides are and how Jeepy it is, but there is about two and half feet behind the front seat that I don't want. 

This so much.  If FCA is wondering why people like me arent buying gladiators, its because i want this:

• Yes, I want the regular cab.  I don’t need or want to carry lots of people.
• Yes, I want the longbed for using the truck as a TRUCK.  I have things to build, and I want to load the bed up weekly with construction materials.  No, 4’ is NOT a long bed.  
• Yes, I want to put the roof and windshield down.  That’s why I’m looking at this and not a dodge ram.  

And there’s always product planners that say, “Well that’s not what sells”.  No problem, going to look at this this weekend:

I’m not going to complain too loudly, because i don’t run a car company and can’t force them to build what i want, but if new trucks don't meet my needs, I’m not going to buy a new truck.  

If anyone is shopping Gladiator, I suggest looking into their steering problems before pulling a trigger.

Remember back in the 90's when we all thought the suburban was HUGE and the apocalypse for small sporty cars from a V2V crash standpoint?  With how tall the ride heights have gotten (even on stock trucks) my NA Miata is pretty much a guaranteed under-ride in an accident with one.  I DD an 07 Expedition now (hey, it was cheap and it tows) and I am still finding myself looking up at the factory bro-dozers. 

Others are nailing it, how useful is the bed when its nipple high on a 6 foot tall person?  

Aside from the increase in size of the brick part of the brick with a windshield that is a truck, I would pretty much be looking at a lowering kit for most new trucks right off the bat.  I seriously doubt that 95% of the trucks would see conditions where they would be hampered with a 3-5 inch (at least) lower ride height. 

I used to have a 2000 Tundra. The boss had the slightly updated version of it - 2002? Not the giant one. One of the difference between them was the height of the bed sides. And you know, his was a whole lot more useful. I could stack race rubber two high and still get them under the cover, which effectively doubled the number of tires I could toss in the bed for long tows to far away race tracks.

For the bed on my Dodge to be accessible over the side, the truck would have to be a couple of feet lower. I don't need the ground clearance as I mostly use 4WD for dealing with slippery/gravel situations and heavy loads - but I don't think I could drop it that far. I just hop up when I need something from inside. But I like that deep bed. I also very much like the extra capability and capacities of my big 2500 over the Tundra, even if it is bigger.

I don't understand the desire for a convertible truck, but then again I put hardtops on my Miatas :)

I will take one of these , single cab or double cab :)

I saw a gladiator with a full size tool box in the bed that took up half of the length. There must have been only 2 feet or so of bed left. At that point, why bother with the truck at all?

ShawnG said:

In reply to Klayfish :

I think registration is up to the local authorities.

My wife's 1999 3/4 ton Suburban is a car but my 2003 Tacoma is a truck, according to the socialist insurance company of British Columbia.

Hmm. My wife's Escape is registered as a truck. It's dwarfed by a 3/4 ton.

I remember waaaay back when I got my license, I tried to convince my mother to sell me her old 97 Yukon that she was no longer driving because my brother had started to fix something under the hood but never finished. Her response was it was 'To big for me to handle with such minimal driving experience' which was probably right at the time.

Few years later I try to convince her again, I was mostly looking for something winter driving, same answer, too big. 

So I bought an 06 Silverado 2500HD extended cab, regular box Gas job (I was sold on the vinyl floor and floor mounted 4x4 shifter) And had it at the farm to do farm stuff for my mother and ended up parked beside the Yukon, and my truck was taller, wider and longer. 

Funny thing, the Yukon's last registration it had, it was classed as a 'Wagon' according to the Saskatchewan Government.

Klayfish said:

ShawnG said:

A Ridgeline is a truck?

The Ridgeline is a minivan with the back lopped off.  However, frankly it's all the "truck" the many people will ever need, so it makes sense in the right situations.

It's funny what's called a truck.  My Chevy HHR is registered as a truck. Go figure. 

It's got a loadbed that extends to be flush with the rear hatch without a step, the rear seats fold flat to make for a flat loadbed , and a couple other things that meet the definition of a truck.  

The Ridgeline makes for an excellent truck for most things, and they don't make an all wheel drive Odyssey.

I actually googled "my truck won't fit in my garage" and was unsurprised by the amount of threads in car forums

Appleseed said:

The Honda Ridgeline is the Japanese El-Camino. There, I said it.

Does that make the BRAT the Ranchero?  You know, because it came first, and was based on a smaller chassis? 

EvanB (Forum Supporter) said:

I saw a gladiator with a full size tool box in the bed that took up half of the length. There must have been only 2 feet or so of bed left. At that point, why bother with the truck at all?

The only Gladiator I have ever seen was driven by a woman in a halter top, and the truck thing had the doors removed.  She was hanging her leg out the opening as she was driving.

That garage pic is hilarious.

Weak little baby homes with tiny garages. I can fit my ramp truck in my garage. Then again, that was the big criterion when I bought my house. 

I wish I had a truck that towed better than my 96 F-350 dually, but I don't want one any taller (step height or bed height).  The 8' bed is very useful, to the point that I sold the 6' bed Ranger I was daily driving. OBS Ford's are the size sweet-spot I think.

I heard you all want a truck that's low, has 2 doors, a top that comes off, and fits 8 feet of lumber.

ShawnG said:

A Ridgeline is a truck?

You beat me to it haha. I suspect you beat a lot of people to it.

In reply to TopNoodles :

Put 4x8 plywood in there somewhere and I'll be very impressed.

Cactus said:

In reply to TopNoodles :

Put 4x8 plywood in there somewhere and I'll be very impressed.

It's got a backstop on the luggage rack, should be a piece of cake.

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

Go on...

I tow a 4' x 8' utility trailer with 2' high sides on it behind my Mazda2.  It'll carry 4 kayaks, a couple motorcycles, or some lumber.  Does what me needs it to do. And doesn't suck up a bunch of gas when I'm not hauling stuff. 

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

The Ranchero started out on a full size platform.

In reply to Cactus :

We've been calling them "metric garages".

ShawnG said:

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

The Ranchero started out on a full size platform.

D'oh!  I thought the Falcon had it first.

Trent (Generally supportive dude) said:

I actually googled "my truck won't fit in my garage" and was unsurprised by the amount of threads in car forums

Maybe that means in the future, home planning will have laws for increased minumum garage sizes?

we can hope right?

Pete. (l33t FS) said:

ShawnG said:

In reply to Pete. (l33t FS) :

The Ranchero started out on a full size platform.

D'oh!  I thought the Falcon had it first.

1957 was the first, way before they went Falcon based. I've always wanted one. I personally think they were the prettiest Rancheros ever.