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what happened to small cheap pickup trucks?
Whatever happened to inexpensive pickup trucks? When I first started
dreaming about my first car and watching the classifieds carefully (around 1990), there were continually running ads for a Nissan Hardbody for $6995. Regular cab, 4 cyl., 5 speed, tiny tires, very basic interior (there might even have been some exposed metal on the door), AM radio, crank windows and manual locks. Not much vehicle but it was cheap, good on gas, probably ran forever, and had a pickup bed. Since then, the smallest pickups have slowly grown in size and advanced in basic options. So much so that that cheap basic transportation isn't available from any manufacturer. Now small pickups start around $14,000. That's a 100% increase in 15 years. Any opinions. Any idea if sky high gas prices might create demand and hence supply for tiny "econo trucks" again? With that said, anybody selling a used truck as described above? I am in central texas. The ONLY option that I would be looking for possibly would be an extra cab truck. This is not a necessity but I am tall and do have two small kids who might be hanging out with me. The truck is for me banging around on weekends moving tools and supplies for projects so I want something cheap and economical that I don't have to baby and that can move around a lawn mower or occasionally lumber or tool boxes. I would even take something that needs engine or transmission work. Please nothing that needs body work or electrical. I'm not looking for a nightmare or something that is completely ragged out, I just want basic. |
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On 13 Oct 2005 09:56:21 -0700, > said the
following in rec.autos.driving... > Whatever happened to inexpensive pickup trucks? The SUV fad. |
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Yeah, I remember that first round of mini-trucks, some of which I
really liked (the little Toyota and Mazda offerings, for instance). Manufacturers figured out that carlike amenities could greatly broaden the demographic appeal of such trucks. I recall this as a studied and intentional move that, if memory serves, started roughly 15 years ago. I wouldn't be surprised if adding such amenities also allowed them to increase the price disproportionately to the additional cost. There's often more money in that kind of market, even if there's more volume at the very low end. I'm surprised that one of the inexpensive, relatively new-to-the-US makes like Kia or Hyundai hasn't probed the market for a low-cost, bare-bones mini pickup. There may be a niche abandoned by the more-prestigious companies that's more or less theirs for the taking... --Joe |
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I believe you can still special order a stripped down truck. I doubt you'll
find one on the lot though. |
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>Just look for an old (60s-70s) Jeep or IH pickup.
That vintage of Jeep pickup was quite a vehicle in a lot of ways, and they're fine for big and tall people (though crewcabs and even extended cabs were not available). However, they have two disadvantages here. First, the original poster obliquely mentioned small trucks that were good on gas. These SJ chassis trucks and their Wagoneer/Cherokee stablemates got mileage typical of other USAmerican half- and three-quarter-tons of the era, i.e., ranging from bad to frightful, depending on engine and driveline. Second, as I learned when shopping for one a few years ago, coddled examples are surprisingly expensive; conversely, one that's been used as intended is likely to be pretty tired by now. That doesn't mean they should be ruled out, especially if you just mean to use it on weekends to take the old stuff to the dump and bring back the new stuff from the lumberyard; but it does mean you need to choose carefully. As the 70s turned into the 80s and first-generation smog plumbing reared its ugly head, you also have to watch out for what a friend of mine called the "heart-lung machine" school of engine controls. The recompense is that at some point in the early-mid 70s they grew front disk brakes, a better style of front hubs, and other modern equipment. In their defense, it is fairly hard to break them outright -- they were pretty honestly built. I don't know the Internationals as well, but would imagine that they have some similar issues. If I haven't scared you off yet, check out, respectively, http://www.ifsja.org and http://www.oldihc.org Cheers, --Joe PS. Remember that a small flatbed utility trailer (few hundred bucks used) greatly increases the versatility of a small pickup and also lets you carry messy or awkwardly shaped objects with an SUV style vehicle. |
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Ad absurdum per aspera wrote: > >Just look for an old (60s-70s) Jeep or IH pickup. > > That vintage of Jeep pickup was quite a vehicle in a lot of ways, and > they're fine for big and tall people (though crewcabs and even extended > cabs were not available). However, they have two disadvantages here. > > First, the original poster obliquely mentioned small trucks that were > good on gas. These SJ chassis trucks and their Wagoneer/Cherokee > stablemates got mileage typical of other USAmerican half- and > three-quarter-tons of the era, i.e., ranging from bad to frightful, > depending on engine and driveline. > > Second, as I learned when shopping for one a few years ago, coddled > examples are surprisingly expensive; conversely, one that's been used > as intended is likely to be pretty tired by now. That doesn't mean > they should be ruled out, especially if you just mean to use it on > weekends to take the old stuff to the dump and bring back the new stuff > from the lumberyard; but it does mean you need to choose carefully. > > As the 70s turned into the 80s and first-generation smog plumbing > reared its ugly head, you also have to watch out for what a friend of > mine called the "heart-lung machine" school of engine controls. The > recompense is that at some point in the early-mid 70s they grew front > disk brakes, a better style of front hubs, and other modern equipment. > > In their defense, it is fairly hard to break them outright -- they were > pretty honestly built. > > I don't know the Internationals as well, but would imagine that they > have some similar issues. > > If I haven't scared you off yet, check out, respectively, > http://www.ifsja.org > and > http://www.oldihc.org > > Cheers, > --Joe > > PS. Remember that a small flatbed utility trailer (few hundred bucks > used) greatly increases the versatility of a small pickup and also lets > you carry messy or awkwardly shaped objects with an SUV style vehicle. I guess I am just ignoring gas mileage, as at least from my cursory looks on eBay it appears that you can get fairly nice examples of a IHC truck for cheap enough that they can continue to get abysmal gas mileage (and they do) and you'll still come out ahead. I based my comment on my experiences with two specific vehicles, a '76 Scout II (belonging to my dad) and a late-60's Jeep full sized truck (my great-grandfather's) which both were rarely used but dependable vehicles that never failed to give instant reliable service when called upon. The Scout is still occasionally used today for dragging logs out of the woods (it's better than a tractor) but hasn't seen road duty in a decade or more due to the tinworms (Pennsylvania is not as friendly to sheetmetal as Texas...) I still kind of wish I was old enough to buy the Jeep when my grandfather decided it had to go... he himself had a newer Chevy pickup at the time and my great-grandfather had reached that age when annual hunting trips just weren't happening anymore... not sure why he picked the Chevy over the Jeep, if it was gas mileage or other considerations. Today I'd far rather have the Jeep but that's just me I guess. I am still trying to convice my dad that the Scout is worth a fiberglass tub... but in reality, it's probably not :/ nate |
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