Much of the hate is for modern trucks. Trucks from 40 years ago were much more practical than the modern truck -- 8 foot beds, sides you could reach over, et cetera. The massive height of current trucks just makes them more dangerous, less fuel efficient, less practical.

Massive height, less durable materials in the work areas (aluminum bed, I'm looking at you), more seats, and much smaller bed areas. All of those things contribute to the fall of practicality.

I tried to find a regular cab, regular bed F-150 about four months ago. To do that, I would've had to buy a fleet vehicle intended for a manufacturer or to be converted into like a plumbing truck. Everything else has 4 doors and a 5' bed. I don't want an SUV, I want a truck with a full sized bed.

The sales people were genuinely confused as to why I wouldn't want a quad-cab, and why I needed an 8' bed. They legitimately never had that conversation with anyone unless they were looking for a fleet truck.

What a world.

Yeah I don't think that Ford even makes a 2-seater anymore in anything other than their XL/fleet model. You can buy the "extended cab" in the XLT (the base trim sold to consumers), which is the 2 seater with a small bench in the back, but even those are really hard to find, you don't see them often.

But after you get above the base model, the only thing available is "crew cabs" which is the full 4-seat SUV size interior.

Really trucks have become 4 seat vehicles now. The super-crew (4 seat) cabs are essentially standard at dealerships. The only way to get a 2 seater truck is by buying one through a fleet program. And right now that would be essentially impossible. Trucks are hard to get right now and most dealerships won't sell a fleet vehicle to a consumer because the demand for fleet trucks is too high right now.

> But after you get above the base model, the only thing available is "crew cabs" which is the full 4-seat SUV size interior.

Looking at ford.com, I could order an F-150 with regular cab (2 door) and 8 ft bed for $30K.

Looking at Dodge, the 1500 doesn't seem to have an 8ft bed option, but I could order a 2500 with regular cab and 8ft bed for $36K.

To get a 1500 with an 8ft bed, you have to get the "1500 Classic" -- they're halfway through a refresh, splitting it across multiple model years and starting with the crew cab + small bed.

I see the practicality of a crew cab every day when I see one truck after another of landscaping crews. The crew cab is full, the bed has stuff in it, and many are towing trailers.

Same with sedans, actually: today's Corolla looks like it's twice as big as the 90s' Camry.

>today's Corolla looks like it's twice as big as the 90s' Camry.

With almost the same interior dimensions. Those tree-trunk pillars, thick doors and smooth sculpted aerodynamic shape all take up space formerly reserved for drive-train and passengers.

Safety and fuel economy are not free.

Yeah, people around there also seemed to prefer taller vehicles. Easier to see, generally had 4 wheel drive (better for rough roads and winter conditions), safer (for the people in the car anyway, especially for things like hitting a deer).

It is also a stark reminder of one’s socioeconomic class. I can afford to consume this much fuel and sit this high and be safer than you, who can only afford the smaller vehicle and be subject to more risks, including being constantly blinded by the LED lights of all the higher pickup and SUV in your rear view mirror.

When I was in college a friend of mine who did construction work drove a Ford Ranger from the mid 1980s. It had a larger bed than the typical truck I see on the road today, while also being far smaller.

I live in a wealthy town, and you can tell someone's political affiliation like this:

- Tesla -> Democrat

- Immaculate crew-cab pickup truck -> Republican

- Beatup truck with 8' bed -> rancher

Now that’s a clearly doubtful Venn diagram. Tesla owners I know in wealthy towns are Republicans. God forbid if you have a Nissan Leaf and an immaculate crew cab truck, what would they call you then?