death of regular cab pickups

[BravoXray]

I bought a new 2006 F150 XLT standard cab, 4.6L V8, RWD, 8 foot box. That was one of the last years you could find a standard cab PU i=on a dealer lot. By 2009, it seemed like every truck from every maker was 4 door/super cab, 4WD, V6, 5 or 6 foot bed. I though about replacing my '06 with a newer model, maybe a '15-'18, but there are none, zero, in this country, as several dealers have told me. There are a few XL or work trucks with standard cabs, but that's not what I want, and they are usually high mileage, beat up trucks.
I needed an 8 foot for some of the things I hauled around for my trucking business when I bought my truck, and I would never buy a truck with a shorter bed. And if I need to haul more than one other person around, well, I have a Town Car for that.
So far, it's been a great truck, with only a few maintenance problems other than what is normal, like a radiator, fuel pump controller, midship bearing and intake manifold gaskets, not bad for 252K so far.

 

[mikester]

Thank God they can do that!
Last thing we want is someone heeling our freedoms, forcing us to drive whatever THEY want you to drive!

Ha! When I first read this I thought I saw "hauling our freedoms" - 4 foot boxes of air!

 

[fidowanttobe]

And it is difficult and costly to get a CDL now nationwide. You must take the EDLT course to get a class a.

Good or bad is for another discussion but it came at a time of a CDL driver shortage. I've been hearing that companies are becoming very desperate now and the wages are showing it. Along with the consumer prices of course.

 

[Tomtint]

White with a black grill.

Probably 5 of them there

 

[BadDecisions]

Near as I can tell, it's still possible at least here in Arizona, to get a CDL with zero schooling. It's treated the same as a regular driver's license - take a written test, get the permit, then take the on road and get the license. Obviously the testing is different, and geared towards large truck operations, with the one caveat that you must provide the type of vehicle that correlates to the type of license and endorsement you're testing for. So I can't just show up with something like a F550 with juice brakes if I intend to get a class A with air brake brake endorsement.

 

[stumblinhorse]

Near as I can tell, it's still possible at least here in Arizona, to get a CDL with zero schooling. It's treated the same as a regular driver's license - take a written test, get the permit, then take the on road and get the license. Obviously the testing is different, and geared towards large truck operations, with the one caveat that you must provide the type of vehicle that correlates to the type of license and endorsement you're testing for. So I can't just show up with something like a F550 with juice brakes if I intend to get a class A with air brake brake endorsement.

It is a federal requirement to take the ELDT. If you are just looking at websites, most are not updated to reflect that requirement and some organizations don’t even know. But when you go to take your test you must supply proof of completing the ELDT. It became a federal requirement on Feb 22, 2022.

 

[ning]

I will say that not only parking my long bed F350 4 door is a PITA but it takes a football field to turn it around too. Just shy of 20 feet long, bumper to bumper.

When you see "compact" in the parking lot, consider it to be a verb, not an adjective.

I love my F350 LB CC, but yes parking can be a real pain if the lot is full. I'm usually good with parking way over there and walking, but that doesn't work in really crowded lots, but I rarely go anywhere like that. Otherwise, I find that backing into a space is easier that going in forwards, something about the steering geometry works better. Just be careful if there's a car beyond your space, particularly if there's a ball in the receiver

U-turns are really easy as long as there's a lot of snow on the ground (start the turn and hit the pedal, rear end just swings right around, very popular maneuver with the wife. not.). Otherwise, I'm lucky if I can avoid going up on the opposite curb even if there's three lanes on the other side. 2 lanes? Don't try it at all.

 

[tradosaurus]

Never understood the single cab pickup. Why?

I want the flexibility of taking more people on a trip if necessary while being able to pull. My F250 6.7L Lariat Diesel has been perfect for me.

 

[Snobdds]

yup, in that thread I say I am going to get a 3/4 ton pickup and overload it and never worry. Since that is less likely to get a DOT citation…

It sounds like you found the answer you were looking for and did not question the logic.

 

[GeneV]

I really miss my little S10 with the jump seats in the back. That way you could be selective about extra passengers...sorry it's only a 2-seater or, oh yeh there's a seat back there.