patrick.net

I think for low end consumer stuff they are OKish. For high end consumer stuff, they seldom even cover it, they are into selling widgets. In today's climate, I would be surprised if they are not captured like everything else.

I sure would not buy a car based on their recommendation alone.

I remember reading consumer reports, my father subscribed to it.

Ford Maverick isn't actually a truck.

Toyota cars and trucks are superior; pay less and get what you pay for.

"Ford Maverick isn't actually a truck" is correct, a truck isn't powered by a 2L engine and option lists are circuit board luxury's.

Consumer reports are very biased with Japanese brands.

beershrine says

Consumer reports are very biased with Japanese brands.

But so are auto mechanics. They favor Honda and Toyota.

clambo says

Ford Maverick isn't actually a truck.

It is best described, along with the Honda Ridgeline, as the perfect truck for people who don't need a truck.

Robert Sproul says

clambo says

Ford Maverick isn't actually a truck.

It is best described, along with the Honda Ridgeline, as the perfect truck for people who don't need a truck.

No one needs a truck either way in 99% of cases. You're better off with a large SUV on the same chassis as a truck and getting a trailer. Especially if you have kids. Talking personal use, not business/construction. Trucks have their place, but not as a daily driver regardless of how big the interior is. They're not practical for how little people use the bed to transport stuff.

Also if you buy a "truck" like the Maverick or Ridgeline, what's the point? It can't tow most campers and even a basic flatbed trailer fully loaded safely. Has a truck bed made for babies. I've towed a Bobcat skid steer with my 2012 Armada with no issues and my entire family could have been in there.

Beside work trucks, they're the dumbest vehicles for regular dudes to drive. Even without kids I'd rather have the big SUV 10 out of 10 times. I can tow the same. Have a roof rack for kayaks and other toys. Attach a trailer and have the same payload as a pickup. They don't make sense in my world. Not the topic, but Consumer Report is not in a good position to review any of it. Pickup truck are not practical or useful for 99% that buy them as a daily driver. Maybe 1-2 times a year.

WookieMan says

Pickup truck are not practical or useful for 99% that buy them as a daily driver. Maybe 1-2 times a year.

You are right, SUV's are a solid choice for most regular folks, as daily drivers, since their back seats can be laid flat to create storage space when necessary. Yet, I hear that many people prefer pickup trucks in Texas. Here in Ohio, people drive their trucks like maniacs on snowed roads, looks like they have a death wish.

I'll be happy when $90K luxury pickup trucks goes the way of the mini van.
Perhaps they'll make affordable pickup trucks for the working folks that needs them then, without a $1200 car note.

gabbar says

You are right, SUV's are a solid choice for most regular folks, as daily drivers, since their back seats can be laid flat to create storage space when necessary.

Minivans are actually better. The Chrysler/Doge minivans can fold the seats down to have a flat floor all the way to the front seats. Minivans went mostly out of style for the same reason pickups became popular - people want the "coolness" factor.

Pickup's are very useful for households in the suburbs and ex-urbs where there is no trash pickup service or the household frequently has yard work and/or furniture coming and going. Households like that typically have two or more vehicles anyway due to the number of drivers/commute destinations; beside the pickup, the other vehicle can be a fuel efficient vehicle and/or road-trip vehicle (the two aspects that pickup's are not good at). Minivans are great for road trips and moving large clean items, but don't have the ground clearance on days when the town ploughs up a snow bank right in front of your driveway while you are at work. Large SUV's have the ground clearance, but still can not carry dirty stuff inside without messy clean up, and don't have the tongue-weight rating for towing sizable boat or trailer. A pickup is a great primary or secondary vehicle in a 2+ vehicle household, especially now that Tundra (with powered rear window and large sunroof) and Gladiator are practically convertibles, and much safer convertibles than low-riding traditional convertibles on public roads where 2/3 vehicles riding higher than what used to be usual. Having a pickup doing the local heavy duty stuff allows the other vehicle in the household to be something like the new Toyota Crown (and the new Farrari Purosangue), what Europeans call "Grandturismo" type vehicle, essentially a slightly raised wagon with sloped back (usually a sportback hatch, unlike the US-market Crown with a trunk lid), resulting in a vehicle that is fun to drive, delivers better gas mileage than traditional wagons and minivans on high speed road trips, along with quieter interior noise level and also safer in case of involuntary interaction with 18-wheelers on highways (H-point higher than wagons, and much more nimble than minivans).

Reality says

Large SUV's have the ground clearance, but still can not carry dirty stuff inside without messy clean up, and don't have the tongue-weight rating for towing sizable boat or trailer.

I can tow up to 9k with my Armada and have. They have the same chassis as their truck counterparts. Nissan Titan is the same car with a truck bed as the Armada. Sequoia and Tundra the same. Let me know when 90% plus of the population needs to tow more than 10k 3+ times a year, but needs to put 5-8 people in a car 20-30 times a year. I'll take the space for people 10 out of 10 time AND the ability to tow what the truck does.

As others have said, through my interpretation, trucks are for small wang men. My SUV is a truck and can tow as much as it's counterpart with a small ass bed that fits nothing. If you need to tow more than 10k than it's a work truck, not a daily driver. If you got a 5th wheel that weighs in at 15k or something you're a common moron. You could have just drove a sedan and stayed in nicer hotels. Not worried about dumping, keeping it clean, parking, etc.

Then mentioning the boat crowd. They're as dumb. You NEVER buy a boat. I've probably dropped $10-15k lifetime on boat rentals. Didn't have to tow them. No maintenance. I can drive them or hire a captain and have multiple times. So if you're worried about towing a boat that's a sign of your intelligence level. I could own a basic pontoon boat and be $50k deep at this point in my life. Fuck that. Trucks are small penis syndrome 100%. You can get the exact same care with more passenger capacity and just own a flatbed trailer if you need to get shit for Home Depot or Lowes. That's what most people use their pickup for 3 times a year.

WookieMan says

Nissan Titan is the same car with a truck bed

That's what I drive. I paid $36k for a used one with 14k miles on it. Tell me, how many 2x8x12's can you haul in that Armada and how much did you pay for it?

And I couldn't back up a trailer to save my life.

stfu says

And I couldn't back up a trailer to save my life.

Also, trailers have to be licensed and stored.

WookieMan says

Trucks are small penis syndrome 100%.

Guys who bought one of these must then be swinging a pair of raisins:



That is a Navistar with a factory pickup body. 20 ton towing capacity. Navistar expected to sell about 100 for corporate novelties such as pulling floats but ended up selling thousands.

WookieMan says

Let me know when 90% plus of the population needs to tow more than 10k 3+ times a year, but needs to put 5-8 people in a car 20-30 times a year. I'll take the space for people 10 out of 10 time AND the ability to tow what the truck does.

This is a good way to analyze vehicle type need.

WookieMan says

I can tow up to 9k with my Armada and have. They have the same chassis as their truck counterparts. Nissan Titan is the same car with a truck bed as the Armada. Sequoia and Tundra the same. Let me know when 90% plus of the population needs to tow more than 10k 3+ times a year, but needs to put 5-8 people in a car 20-30 times a year. I'll take the space for people 10 out of 10 time AND the ability to tow what the truck does.

Like I said, pickup trucks are great for households that have 2 or more vehicles. I have an Acura MDX for occasions when more than 5 seats are needed, and it handles far better than either Titan or Sequoia, and get 27mpg on highway road trips instead of 15mpg. Taking trash to the dump is a weekly endeavor for people who live in places that don't have curbside trash pickup (because there is no curb or even sidewalk near their houses; residential plots are too big for a commercial trash truck to work profitably); more than a decade ago, before I had a truck, I used a convertible with folding back seat to take the trash cannister to the dump . . . it looked hilarious every time I showed up, and wasn't practical when the weather got cold. Lifting a 30gallon trashcan full of trash over the sides of the convertible into the folded down back seats area wasn't a big deal for me, when my big balls didn't get in the way (sarcasm).

Notice I mentioned tongue weight. The big SUV's have much lower tongue weight limit than pickup's due to the SUV's already have their heavy body sitting on the rear axle. I carried nearly 800lbs of concrete bags in my SUV once on the folded back seats area in order to distribute weight properly between the front axle and the rear axle; an emergency braking caused the 80lb each concrete bags to fly forward against the front seats and center console rear AC outlet, breaking some of the bags and dumping dry concrete powder all over the interior of a fairly new luxury SUV. After that, when it was time to replace the convertible, I picked up a convertible pickup.

WookieMan says

Trucks are small penis syndrome 100%

WookieMan says

Trucks are small penis syndrome 100%.

what is this thing you call a penis?

I like midsize suv. Better gas mileage. Can fit 7-8. Better towing then minivan. Cheaper than full size. Better handling then truck / full size.

truck is work tool, you need to haul, tow? if not, you don’t need it then. i have to haul a lot and tow occasionally. i never understood people who bought trucks and didn’t use it as a truck.

pudil says

I like midsize suv.

Honda put a 1.5L turbo engine in their newest CRV. Mechanics note that this is not good because of potential oil dilution.

I like carcomplaints.com if I need to check on any issues before buying.