Avoidable Contact #87: How to lie about pickups, using this one weird pic! | Hagerty Media

[Hagerty]

Here's the great thing about automotive enthusiasm: it's a big tent, with room for everyone from Brass Era restorers to the fellows who rip Hellcat burnouts through downtown Atlanta.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/opinion/avoidable-contact/avoidable-contact-87-how-to-lie-about-pickup...

[Sunshine1868]

Here Here!

[RokemRonnie]

Not trying to break Godwin's Law but Pastor Martin Niemöller's "First they came for..." quote seems appropriate, or maybe Ben Franklin's "We must all hang together, or, most assuredly, we shall all hang separately."

[The-Dill-Man]

"Me neither, for the same reason I never tried BASE-jumping through a wind farm."

I cannot stop laughing at this line. I almost forgot the overall gist of your editorial. Almost. As per usual, well said and well written.

[TeutonicScot]

Why is it that I find myself having to spend so much time these days defending the things that I enjoy and that bring me happiness and worrying so much about the "witch hunters" and the self righteous who are trying to take it all away? Is it just because they can't find happiness in their own pathetic, meaningless lives and have therefore determined that if they cant make their own lives better, they'll just make everyone's else's miserable?
To what end........

[driverdude98]

Misery loves company.

[spoom]

'zactly! I decided to shut down my company and retire after the election. ( paying attention to all the Social Warriors has convinced me that people who pay lots of federal income taxes are the REAL problem.) Ever since, I've been waiting for the letter in the mail telling me that I no longer need an E350 Ford van, and I should turn it (and myself) in to the reprocessing center...

[SJacobT]

No step on Snayk!

[SJacobT]

I knew the Deep-state, Woke sleeper cell agents that have time to kill now that the election rigging is complete were low - but this? They’ll have to pry my pickup truck from my cold. Dead. HANDS! Or, possibly, just its steering wheel.

[driverdude98]

I can’t believe there’s still someone with enough guts to say this anymore. I love that Hagerty has paved the way for great writers like you, Jack, and Sam Smith to write unhindered by editorial decisions.

[donyas]

Well said, good sir.

[Flashman]

Once more, I am in awe of your insight and facility (both meanings) to state it. I especially like your reference to people for whom Everything is Political. When I first saw the picture, I thought it was merely a cute juxtaposition with, perhaps, a soupcon of social commentary. I suppose if you squint it could have other dimensions, but really, some people need to get a life.

[OLDERbastard1]

Great article, well written!

[JRJones]

At the risk of coming-off superior, I offer my (inferior) experience. You have skillfully avoided associated cultural aspects of large off-road trucks like 10K watt headlamps, exposed tire treads and "rolling coal".
We own 10 acres 8 and 17 miles from the nearest Big Box towns. A little over a year ago (in retirement) I assessed our daily drivers . Infiniti SUV, Acura AWD TL, a 4X4 pick-up and a Kubota. I realized we were heavy on utility and light on entertainment. (Four project cars are not in this assessment) The Acura went to Craigslist and an ebay post provided a Jaguar XKR coupe.
The snow/salt of Wisconsin is not depreciating the Jag; the sequester costs $80/mo. That leaves the truck as more than occasional during the winter, and it does a great job; I prefer it to the SUV. The truck has hauled car projects home from Athens, Ashville and Ohio, but a disassembled Ferrari replica in San Antonio required a 28 ft enclosed trailer and 3/4 ton Dodge. Bigger was better but DEF in the middle of the night @ $22/jug is a PIA.
The "Extremely Pick-up" types look down their noses and hoods at me; a relative pizz ant.
What does my truck deliver?
Suicide doors to a back seat with no leg room, but accommodates 80% of what I haul.
Completely analog and ergonomic, with comfort that surpasses the rental cars I encounter.
Climbs my 8% grade, 600ft driveway in winter.
Pulled a car and trailer up and down a 1/2 mile gravel mountain goat path in Appalachia.
Payload 1477lb and tows 7000lb. What fractional equivalent is that?
My wife is completely comfortable driving it, even in a skirt and heels.
It is a Series I Toyota Tundra, my second, the first was crushed by an oak tree at 270K miles.
Ironically the latest "mid size" Colorado/Canyon have identical specifications, except that I have a V8. The days-to-sale of used Tundras is short, and haggling is limited. IMHO "bigger" is more of a statement than a practical requirement.

[win59]

Well said Jack. The current "I deserve" culture has replaced the "I will earn" ethic we should have taught our kids.
And then we gave everybody a soapbox and a cellphone.

Or maybe we are just officially out of real problems....?!

[wdb]

" It’s true that Americans, in general, are buying more capacity in vehicles now than they did twenty or forty years ago, but this is probably a Good Thing. It’s a function of increased automotive longevity and lower running costs." And let's not forget those handy 8-year mortgage terms. Americans are buying bigger than they need and more than they can afford. It's Not Good. I don't care about big pickups and I am 100% behind the vastly improved efficiency, brought on let's not forget by those pesky gummint folks. But please people, stop buying huge pickups just so you get enough room for the family. There are better, FUNNER ways to haul them.

[RokemRonnie]

 I am 100% behind the vastly improved efficiency, brought on let's not forget by those pesky gummint folks. 

Not a single technology that has improved fuel mileage has been the product of government. Cars and trucks are more efficient today because of clever engineers in the private sector, not administrative state bureaucrats. Besides, I believe a persuasive argument can be made that it was market forces, the increased cost of fuel post 1973 and 1979 oil embargos, that pushed the car companies to improve fuel economy more than government mandates.

[Billthecat707]

The government didn't develop technology, just mandated improved mpg standards that forced it to be developed.

[Starter3]

It looks as if the photo was shot w a telephoto lense which would flatten the subjects and make anything behind the Tacoma look both closer and larger. Knowing how to photograph a vehicle can make it look anyway you want it too...

[Transamtim]

I agree with the overall point that we ought to be able to drive what we want. Where I'm concerned and confused has to do with two or more things. I'm sure that plenty of people choose trucks instead of cars because of the EPA and federal government rules that allow trucks to get lower fuel mileage and to pollute more than if they were comparably sized cars. Lots of people are driving the family station wagon from the 60s thru the 90s, in the form of a truck. My daughter just bought a 2021 Suburban LS 2wd, with the max trailering package. It's rated to tow 8300 pounds and it seats 9 people. She is using it to replace her 2007 Odyssey. The Suburban tows our 6900 pound Boat with ease. Yet so would a 1975 Pontiac Grand Safari properly equipped.

I'm 5'5" tall. I can't reach the dipstick in the Suburban without the use of a step ladder. With the headlights on low beam, many oncoming cars flash their high beams at us because they think the Suburban lights are on high beam. When I drive my 2000 trans am, I am constantly blinded by oncoming trucks and SUVs with their headlights on low beam.
The hoods on newer trucks are too darned high. Last time my buddy and I went to the new car show, I sat in a 2018 Chevrolet Silverado and asked my buddy to walk away from the front of the truck until I could first see his feet. I got out and paced off the distance. He was 72 feet in front of the truck. A 2007 Silverado 1500's hood is approximately a foot lower than a 2018's hood. Why is this? Sure new trucks are more efficient than old trucks. What isn't? Just imagine how efficient they'd be with lower hoodlines.

Seems like it's some kind of crazy fashion statement. And from a visibility standpoint, a dangerous fashion statement. People in cars can't see over the hood of the truck next to them at intersections. It's just crazy, in my opinion. I've heard enough jokes about the reason I drive a trans am. I don't know why I don't hear similar jokes about men in tall pick up trucks.

[mhealy1]

Need/want doesn’t just apply to the automotive world. I NEED what I carry at work so I have one. Others WANT one for varied reasons but there are those out in the political world who oppose that WANT.
We need to be careful where we stand on all need/want topics, not just in the automotive realm.
Not meant politically, just an observation of a potentially slippery slope.

[Swamibob]

Hey Jack:

I only just saw this pic a couple days ago. I don't have any sort of presence on Social Media, so I didn't know there was a controversy. I just saw an interesting picture and thought something like "looks like older and younger siblings". I chuckled inside. Then I read your column. Very informative, interesting and a few good yucks: Like the Emo Phillips routine. "Die Heretic!" Way too funny. 🙂
I think the problem with 'truth' is too many people like to twist, modify, stretch or just outright change the meaning of words. Obfuscation is another word that comes to mind. Some, (lawyers and politicians come to mind) seem to enjoy parsing and obfuscation the meaning of words to suit their own aims.
I also think there is a larger difficulty with some people who just can't get past being in the busy-body phase of their youth and think everyone has to do what they want. Perhaps that is a form of Autism? They don't care about you, your wants your needs, your desires, your Liberty, all that matters is whatever doctrine they hold dear at this time. Global Climate Change comes to mind (formerly Climate Change, previously Global Warming and or Human caused Global Warming, formerly Global cooling and even the inevitable coming Ice Age) where these lost souls seem to believe the entire world will "change" in 12... No now 10, Oops, ( I read an older article again), so I guess it's about 6 years now, if we don't do what they believe is necessary immediately.

It is a bit funny that in the time of Covid19 I don't hear much from the crowd that thinks everyone should be herded into living in cities, so we can't continue to destroy the planet. Shades of Isaac Asimov's 'Cities' in the Robot series where all of mankind was confined to enormous steel and concrete structures called Cities (with a capital 'C') because they were so large and fully enclosed without windows.
I have a hard time even talking to people with that sort of myopic view on any subject. Not only are those people adult children busy bodies, they are bullies. I didn't have time for bullies when I was young and I don't have time for that now.
When I was in school we were taught a lot of History and a lot about different forms of government.
It helped all of us be able to see from other peoples point of view. I don't think much of that happens anymore. Unfortunately, lots of these busy body, arrested development types haven't had any sort of introduction into reason or critical thinking. Mores the pity there. Not sure if this is part of the Social Media world we live in or was it like that before, but the explosive growth of Social Media's ability to stay relatively anonymous just feeds that inner child bully need?

Getting back more specifically to your column; I'm more of a muscle car guy, but I do like Porches. I'm not so sure I can be as tolerant as you with the water cooled crowd. It's just not right. it's like calling a 924/944/928 a Porsche. Or calling a Dino a Ferrari. It's just not right. :0
On the other hand, I do like a big tent and I think if we were neighbors, sooner or later we'd have to build a Miata with a seriously powerful Windsor Ford in it and see just how many weak spots we could find in the first couple track dates...

[Gary_Bechtold]

"The crummy thing about automotive enthusiasm is that it has acquired a tumor of sorts during the current Extremely Online era. This tumor, for lack of a better word, consists of people who don’t really like cars but who have joined the automotive enthusiast community for various other reasons. Sometimes these people are anti-car activists who want to push their viewpoint on the rest of us. Sometimes they’re people who simply enjoy the thrill of control, so they delight in tormenting us with their opinions about upcoming restrictions on human-driven cars, gasoline powerplants, or copper-infused brake pads. Last but not least you have the folks for whom Everything Is Political and they have chosen cars seemingly at random as a place from which to lash out."

This literally describes most of the problems I see in modern car "culture". I feel like some of these "writers" either feel guilty or hate for all things fun and automotive and feel that you need to feel guilty too because then they might feel better. They don't do much of any research, spout opinions with little substance and can't stand it when those pesky facts get in the way. The other problem is Facebook/Twitter/Instagram. Most car forums have died or severely lost traffic due to these platforms. Good luck finding any knowledge on those platforms, it's hard. Want to learn to do anything about your car, find a car forum. You will have better luck there getting what you are looking for.

[MWL]

On the one hand, I wish the car companies would design the larger pickups with headlights that don't blind oncoming traffic, which was mentioned by another commenter. On the other hand, when I was excited about buying my first Miata, people would make a face and say, "Why would you want to buy one of those things?" Finally, on the day I was leaving work a little early to pick it up, a coworker asked me what I was getting. I told him, and he said, "Ok. I asked him why he didn't say the same thing everyone else had said, and his reply was, "Because it's your car, your money, and your life." Right after I bought it, someone asked what I bought, and gave me the "Why would you?" question, and I responded with "Because it's my car, my money, and my life." That stopped him cold in his tracks. That was in 1996, and I've never lost that sentiment about anyone's car choice.

[Jetfire]

I just want a small pickup that those early Toyotas.

[Tazelaar]

With this type of thinking on every level in society, the world would be a much better place.