Lamenting the decline of the car

[jamincan]

The drop-down sides on the Sambar are so handy too. Unfortunately, modern pickup trucks have ballooned to such an extent that the truck bed would be impractically high if you equipped it with that style of bed.

[OldDartmouthMark]

Originally Posted by jamincan

The drop-down sides on the Sambar are so handy too. Unfortunately, modern pickup trucks have ballooned to such an extent that the truck bed would be impractically high if you equipped it with that style of bed.

Yes, even older (mid 1990s and before) full size truck bed sides were low enough that you could lift something over the side and put it in the bed, even without fold-down sides.

It's a sad commentary that even fold down sides wouldn't be practical on these newer monstrosities...

[Nashe]

I know it's kind of a separate "problem" but... can a typical (read: borderline obese) North American even FIT in the Sambar?

[esquire]

Originally Posted by travis3000

I live in Barrie, the land of the pickup truck haha. Legit 1/3 men in this city own pickup trucks. There are more of them in this area than sedans. I have family, friends, and colleagues who drive them. I used to have one myself back in the day but found it too bulky, hard to drive, and expensive on gas.

From what people say, they love trucks for the convenience, the ability to move things easily. Toxic masculinity for sure plays a roll in it. Nobody will admit it, but its clear to see. Trucks are viewed as manly, aggressive, big/bulky, etc. Trying to compensate for something

Against my better judgment I signed up my son for spring hockey... the program is significantly more expensive than regular minor hockey (my fellow Winnipeg hockey dads will know what I'm talking about) so it stands to reason that most of the parents can afford to spend a few extra bucks on frills such as vehicles.

I got to the arena for the first tournament of the season and I was floored... the parking lot looked like a goddamn truck dealership. Rams, F150s and Silverados. All huge. They dominated the parking lot. Mixed among them were a handful of minivans and SUVs. I was one of the only people driving a sedan. I have never seen anything like it, at least inside the city.

A collection of accountants, engineers, sales executives and realtors driving their kids to hockey in enormous pickup trucks seems like a massive misallocation of resources to me, but what do I know. All I can say is that my friends who studied commerce in university and liked to make fun of the "soft" marketing students may have seriously underestimated the potency of that particular field.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by esquire

Against my better judgment I signed up my son for spring hockey... the program is significantly more expensive than regular minor hockey (my fellow Winnipeg hockey dads will know what I'm talking about) so it stands to reason that most of the parents can afford to spend a few extra bucks on frills such as vehicles.

I got to the arena for the first tournament of the season and I was floored... the parking lot looked like a goddamn truck dealership. Rams, F150s and Silverados. All huge. They dominated the parking lot. Mixed among them were a handful of minivans and SUVs. I was one of the only people driving a sedan. I have never seen anything like it, at least inside the city.

A collection of accountants, engineers, sales executives and realtors driving their kids to hockey in enormous pickup trucks seems like a massive misallocation of resources to me, but what do I know. All I can say is that my friends who studied commerce in university and liked to make fun of the "soft" marketing students may have seriously underestimated the potency of that particular field.

The federal gov't should slap a huge tax on them on top of the gas guzzler tax but won't because of what's left of Canada's auto industry.

[harls]

Originally Posted by whatnext

The federal gov't should slap a huge tax on them on top of the gas guzzler tax but won't because of what's left of Canada's auto industry.

I'm sure everyone who is a farmer would love that.

[Truenorth00]

Originally Posted by whatnext

The federal gov't should slap a huge tax on them on top of the gas guzzler tax but won't because of what's left of Canada's auto industry.

They won't do that because it's a potent culture war argument. Just a week ago, the CPC and UCP were fearmongering about Trudeau implementing a "truck tax".

[Truenorth00]

Originally Posted by harls

I'm sure everyone who is a farmer would love that.

Business exemptions exist for a reason.

[whatnext]

Originally Posted by harls

I'm sure everyone who is a farmer would love that.

Yeah and the suburbs are full of farmers.

[harls]

Originally Posted by Truenorth00

Business exemptions exist for a reason.

Vehicles registered for farm use should be and are exempt, yes.

I wonder what the insurance difference is between a middle aged karen with personalized plates for her laramie long-horn and a legit farmer that actually uses his truck box to haul something other than hockey equipment.

[thewave46]

Originally Posted by esquire

Against my better judgment I signed up my son for spring hockey... the program is significantly more expensive than regular minor hockey (my fellow Winnipeg hockey dads will know what I'm talking about) so it stands to reason that most of the parents can afford to spend a few extra bucks on frills such as vehicles.

I got to the arena for the first tournament of the season and I was floored... the parking lot looked like a goddamn truck dealership. Rams, F150s and Silverados. All huge. They dominated the parking lot. Mixed among them were a handful of minivans and SUVs. I was one of the only people driving a sedan. I have never seen anything like it, at least inside the city.

A collection of accountants, engineers, sales executives and realtors driving their kids to hockey in enormous pickup trucks seems like a massive misallocation of resources to me, but what do I know. All I can say is that my friends who studied commerce in university and liked to make fun of the "soft" marketing students may have seriously underestimated the potency of that particular field.

It is the 24+ US gal (110L+) fuel tank that must sting every time one pulls up to the pumps. At close to $2/L, a full tank can run ~$200+.

I don’t like filling a Mazda3 tank (50L) once a month, much less that. Good Lord.

[MolsonExport]

All I can say is that my friends who studied commerce in university and liked to make fun of the "soft" marketing students may have seriously underestimated the potency of that particular field.

Very astute and so, so true.

[ssiguy]

It will be very interesting to see what happens to cars themselves in the next 20 years.

The reason cars have shrunk over the last 40 years is not due to people all of a sudden wanting to travel in a sardine can but rather due to stricter emissions and mileage requirements. By 2035 there will be no more ice vehicles for sale in Canada and hence the need for lighter and smaller cars completely disappears. Due to this maybe we will see the return of the monster cars of the post-war to 1970s period.

With the potential of far larger cars we could see a decline in the SUV segment and a resurgence of the good old car as the space advantage of SUVs begins to disappear. For those who think the SUV will live forever, that's what everyone said about the min-van craze of the 80s & 90s. Styles come and go and cars are no different. It makes you wonder what the traditional "Big 3" are going to do now that they have effectively withdrawn from the car market and abdicated the entire sector over to the imports.

[thurmas]

GM is said to be very interested in re-entering the European market as an all electric option to European consumers after it sold off its Opel European division 5 years ago.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Heh heh...the engine died this weekend. It's had a ticking noise for several months that was ominous, but it got really loud the past few days. It was a camshaft bearing that failed.

I'm getting a used engine with just 80,000 km put in it for $6,000 with tax and labour. The financials make it a no brainer, what with the crazy used market these days. Everything on this 2006 Lexus IS350 is in beautiful shape (no rust). An equivalent replacement with 230,000 km would be $13,500, and a newer 2015 model with 100,000 km would be $30,000.

It's an easy choice.

I've had the new (to me) engine in the car for a couple of weeks now, and damn, it drives nicely.

I was getting about 10 L/100 km with the old engine, but with the new one I'm getting 8.4 L/100 km. And I've had it as low as 6.8 L/100 km per tank when cruising on the highway at 120 km/h.

Though it's hard to be too gleeful about this considering gas prices these days.

[SpongeG]

have Land Rovers and Porsche become very common in other places across the country?

Out in Surrey and Langley, they are a dime a dozen, you see Land Rovers and Porsche SUVs everywhere now. They used to be reserved for "rich" people now they are very common and the sweat suit-wearing set with their LV bags are everywhere.

[Architype]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

have Land Rovers and Porsche become very common in other places across the country?

Out in Surrey and Langley, they are a dime a dozen, you see Land Rovers and Porsche SUVs everywhere now. They used to be reserved for "rich" people now they are very common and the sweat suit-wearing set with their LV bags are everywhere.

All German brands are numerous here in Vancouver (Land Rover is not German I think, but fits well into that category), but remember North America only gets the nicer models. When I go back East (NL) I really notice the absence of German cars (although VW may be somewhat popular). One thing the Europeans do well is station wagons, they are also common here, much nicer to look at & drive than SUVs. The only American brand that seems popular here (except for trucks) is Tesla.

[thewave46]

Originally Posted by ssiguy

It will be very interesting to see what happens to cars themselves in the next 20 years.

The reason cars have shrunk over the last 40 years is not due to people all of a sudden wanting to travel in a sardine can but rather due to stricter emissions and mileage requirements. By 2035 there will be no more ice vehicles for sale in Canada and hence the need for lighter and smaller cars completely disappears. Due to this maybe we will see the return of the monster cars of the post-war to 1970s period.

With the potential of far larger cars we could see a decline in the SUV segment and a resurgence of the good old car as the space advantage of SUVs begins to disappear. For those who think the SUV will live forever, that's what everyone said about the min-van craze of the 80s & 90s. Styles come and go and cars are no different. It makes you wonder what the traditional "Big 3" are going to do now that they have effectively withdrawn from the car market and abdicated the entire sector over to the imports.

Cars are larger than ever. The nadir for car size might have been the early 1980s - about 40 years ago. I recall cruising along in my Mazda3 next to late '80s Chevrolet Caprice recently and was shocked to see how close in size my 'compact' was to a 'full-size' of that era.

Sure, my little 2.0L engine probably made as much horsepower as that Chevrolet 305 small-block V8, but the point remains. I saw a Chevette recently for sale. There's a small car. I don't think anything for sale today other than a Mitsubishi Mirage comes even close to being that small.

I suspect the small-midsize SUV style will remain popular. Why? Partly due to battery placement. A higher-riding vehicle allows more room for battery placement relative to a low sedan. Second, the 'lower, wider, longer' thing was a '50s-'70s anomaly. People prefer to drive a vehicle like they sit in a dining room chair. No squatting down to get in, no hiking upwards to get out. Just slide sideways. Finally, with crash standards requiring thick pillars, a higher riding vehicle has increased visibility, except for right in front of it.

Do I think the monster truck thing will end? Yeah, probably. There's a reason the new Ford Ranger/Chevrolet Colorado (akin to the full-size trucks of yore) have taken off in popularity.

[thewave46]

Originally Posted by rousseau

I've had the new (to me) engine in the car for a couple of weeks now, and damn, it drives nicely.

I was getting about 10 L/100 km with the old engine, but with the new one I'm getting 8.4 L/100 km. And I've had it as low as 6.8 L/100 km per tank when cruising on the highway at 120 km/h.

Though it's hard to be too gleeful about this considering gas prices these days.

Glad to hear the IS is on the road again! Love that V6 wail.

Alas, I also do find myself being more mindful of my cruising speed in the era of $2.20/L gasoline. Not going to lie, I'm starting to come around to the hybrid/electric car concept at this juncture.

Side note: I happened to follow a Chevy Monza in traffic recently, and got some good whiffs of its pre-catalyzed exhaust fumes. Good Lord, have we come a long way, and I find it hard to remember cities filled with these things. It is similar to how much cleaner things feel now that nobody smokes inside regularly.

[thewave46]

Originally Posted by SpongeG

have Land Rovers and Porsche become very common in other places across the country?

Out in Surrey and Langley, they are a dime a dozen, you see Land Rovers and Porsche SUVs everywhere now. They used to be reserved for "rich" people now they are very common and the sweat suit-wearing set with their LV bags are everywhere.

Many of those SUVs are now in their second and third owner stage.

Which is to say, they are now affordable enough to end up in the, er, 'less classy' neighbourhoods. I live in one of those neighbourhoods and have noticed a Porsche Cayenne parked in front of a townhouse that - before the current stupid times - probably sold for nearly the same price the SUV did originally.

The second and third owners will probably not be able to stomach the continued high operating costs for long periods of time. There's nothing more expensive than a cheap luxury car, the adage goes.