A new NYT analysis found that anyone shorter than 5-foot-6 — about half of American adults — would frequently be knocked to the ground in front of today's average vehicle.
And out of the people who do need them, vans are still a much better way to go for many of them. Vans which have at least a margainally better field of view with their short, sloped hoods.
I have a large family and we drive a Transit 350 van.
One day we needed to move a pair of beds and mattresses. We asked my father in law to help us since he has a F150. But it soon became apparent how much more we could fit in the van (with the two back seats removed) than we could fit in the truck, which couldn’t even fit one mattress in the truckbed without hanging out the back of the tailgate.
From what I’ve seen my van is far superior to a truck in almost every need I’ve had. It can carry more stuff and it can do so in the rain keeping the cargo dry.
The one thing a truck could do that my van can’t is pick up a scoop of mulch or gravel dumped from a loader.
My grandmother used to have a GMC Safari and yea, you’re absolutely right. If someone offered their truck for free to help me move I’d still pay for a U-Haul and I have less than zero money. They’re fucking worthless unless what you’re dragging around is a fifth-wheel so you literally need the special towing connection in the bed. Even the tow-trucks and stuff could be cab-over-engine but we don’t live in sanity land.
I know someone who insists that a pickup truck is more practical and her example is “you can lift a bookshelf over the side of a pickup truck instead of having to put it in the back like a van”. Apparently it’s more practical to lift something like 4 feet off the ground to the side of a pickup truck bed instead of like 1 foot to the floor of a van
Similarly, I know people who bought F-150s for motorycles after going to the track only one time. We worked with actual consistent track-goers who each had vans. I used one of theirs to move my bike to the shop, and it was really funny watching them struggle with a small Ninja 250.
And it’s not just the field of view, it’s how the impact occurs. On a lower, sloped hood you bounce over the bonnet instead of a head-on bang with a higher, vertical, one.
Or COE light trucks … I had a ride a while back in a Thaco Frontier -carries 1/2 ton, available in a crewcab, available in an off-road variant, and no visibility problems :-)
There’s still an issue there with pedestrian safety, but it’s definitely better than an F-150 for sure. And maybe putting the driver up front will make them less inclined to be douchebags, too.
And out of the people who do need them, vans are still a much better way to go for many of them. Vans which have at least a margainally better field of view with their short, sloped hoods.
I have a large family and we drive a Transit 350 van.
One day we needed to move a pair of beds and mattresses. We asked my father in law to help us since he has a F150. But it soon became apparent how much more we could fit in the van (with the two back seats removed) than we could fit in the truck, which couldn’t even fit one mattress in the truckbed without hanging out the back of the tailgate.
From what I’ve seen my van is far superior to a truck in almost every need I’ve had. It can carry more stuff and it can do so in the rain keeping the cargo dry.
The one thing a truck could do that my van can’t is pick up a scoop of mulch or gravel dumped from a loader.
My grandmother used to have a GMC Safari and yea, you’re absolutely right. If someone offered their truck for free to help me move I’d still pay for a U-Haul and I have less than zero money. They’re fucking worthless unless what you’re dragging around is a fifth-wheel so you literally need the special towing connection in the bed. Even the tow-trucks and stuff could be cab-over-engine but we don’t live in sanity land.
bro pulling up with the sprinter, how many bitches you fit in there?
It officially fits fifteen. . . passengers. But normally we have two seats removed for cargo space. So, 13
I know someone who insists that a pickup truck is more practical and her example is “you can lift a bookshelf over the side of a pickup truck instead of having to put it in the back like a van”. Apparently it’s more practical to lift something like 4 feet off the ground to the side of a pickup truck bed instead of like 1 foot to the floor of a van
Similarly, I know people who bought F-150s for motorycles after going to the track only one time. We worked with actual consistent track-goers who each had vans. I used one of theirs to move my bike to the shop, and it was really funny watching them struggle with a small Ninja 250.
People with truck brain are so fuckin’ stupid.
Vans are work trucks. Pickups are poser trucks.
And it’s not just the field of view, it’s how the impact occurs. On a lower, sloped hood you bounce over the bonnet instead of a head-on bang with a higher, vertical, one.
Or COE light trucks … I had a ride a while back in a Thaco Frontier -carries 1/2 ton, available in a crewcab, available in an off-road variant, and no visibility problems :-)
There’s still an issue there with pedestrian safety, but it’s definitely better than an F-150 for sure. And maybe putting the driver up front will make them less inclined to be douchebags, too.
Exactly, nobody wants to drive that sort of truck fast, lol