I love(d) my pickup truck

I love my pickup truck
Melvyn D. Magree
Originally published in the
Northland Reader
now the
Reader Weekly
September 14, 2000

Several writers in various publications complain about the number of SUVs and pickup trucks; their major complaint is that these vehicles have much worse gas mileage than sedans.  Other complaints include that these vehicles do not meet the same safety standards, that they cost a small fortune, and that they block the view of drivers behind them.  As a former SUV owner and a current pickup truck owner I agree with most of these points.

I do wish my truck had better gas mileage.  Because trucks and SUVs were viewed as tools for many workers Congress exempted them from the fuel economy mandates.  Don’t ask me the reasoning behind the exemption.  Maybe Congress thought the increased cost of achieving the better fuel economy would not offset the reduced fuel costs, or it thought the vehicles would not be powerful enough.

I haven’t followed all the safety standards but one I really appreciated not being in my pre-air bag SUV: automatic seat belts.  I prefer to fasten my seat belt myself, thank you; not be nearly strangled by a seat belt with a mind of its own.

Boy, do they cost a small fortune!  The price for the used SUV was the most that I had ever paid for a vehicle up to that time.  I have less than one year to go on the payments for the pickup, and those payments exceed my tiny pension check from Unisys (my own fault it is tiny).

I disagree strongly about SUVs and pickup trucks blocking the view of drivers behind them.  It is the following drivers’ own fault; they are driving too close.  Remember that sign on semis: If you can’t see my mirrors, I can’t see you.  And there is some fool in a tiny car one car length behind that sign.  The same goes for following an SUV or a pickup truck.  I’ve had people so close behind me that not only can’t I see them in my side mirrors but I can barely see their car roof over my tail gate.

So, if I don’t like the fuel economy and I don’t like the cost, why did I buy these larger vehicles?  Simply, they are tools for me.  I use them to carry things.  I have carried a half-ton in my half-ton pickup many times.

Since we sold the eight-year-old 1952 DeSoto my father-in-law had given us, the largest vehicle we had owned was a Volvo 245 station wagon.  We had gone on vacations with two kids in a Fiat 850 (smaller than a VW Beetle) and Ford Falcons.  We later owned a Fiat 124 sport coupe, two Escorts, a Dodge Colt, and three Volvos (not all at the same time).

But this all changed when we bought property in the Superior National Forest.  Our first contact with the property nearly broke my teeth.  The Oldsmobile a friend was maneuvering down the driveway came to an abrupt halt when the steering assembly hung up on a big rock.  Between that rock and the probability that we would have to drive an unplowed drive and road, we decided we needed a four-wheel, high clearance vehicle.  Our choice was a used Jeep Cherokee Sport.  “Sport” meant among other things that it had a skid plate on the bottom.  And we did clear that rock and we did get into an unplowed drive.

We kept the Jeep for four years and 90,000 miles but its maintenance costs were getting out of line.  We also were often filling it to capacity for our trips to our cabin.  And I didn’t like all that stuff sitting right behind our heads.  We started looking at pickup trucks.

I thought a Ford F-150 would be great but my wife thought it was “overkill” in size.  When we found a dealer who give us a decent price for our Jeep, we took a Ranger for a test drive.  I couldn’t see the top of the speedometer and turned around before I even left the lot.  We wound up driving off as the proud owners of a 1997 F-150 XLT with more doodads than we ever dreamed of having.

The F-150 has been the most useful and reliable vehicle we have owned.  Four years and 60,000 miles later people think it is new.  I can count on one hand the number of unexpected repairs we have had and we were able to drive to the shop for all of those.  Yeah, I know most modern cars are just as reliable (aren’t we glad they don’t build them like they used to).  But most cars don’t carry as much.

I have carried 14-foot boards without worrying about dropping them on the road.  I have carried half-ton loads of an old wall to the dump and half-ton loads of blocks to rebuild the wall.  I have moved a good portion of our goods from our former house in Plymouth to our current house in Duluth.  I carry most of my tools from house to cabin and back, plus our food, clothing, books, and any needed building materials.  And I don’t worry about the load hitting me in the back of the head.

Last month I carried half-ton loads of cement for a sauna, the last 100 feet was over rocks.  Between the low-range of the four-wheel drive and the high clearance, I had no problem getting to where we would mix the cement.  I would not have been very happy carrying 80-pound bags that distance, even in a cart.

As a bonus, I have pulled vehicles out of ditches and mud, including another pickup truck.

However, the best thing about it is that I can get into it without folding myself in half and I can wear a hat without the bill bumping the top of the windshield (and I’m of average height).

Nevertheless, I drive my wife’s Dodge Stratus on errands around town or on long trips because of the better gas mileage.  My pickup truck is a godsend for sixty pieces of lumber, but it is definitely “overkill” for six bags of groceries.

P.S. August 19, 2007, my F-150 now has 112,000 miles, is a bit slower, and people still think it is new.  However, I just spent $800 to have hidden rusty areas on the doors and back panels repaired.  That cost beats making payments for a new vehicle.  I drive it much less now because I carry big loads less often.  We now drive my wife's 70,000 mile 2002 Prius whenever we don't take a bus.  In fact I drive my truck so little that I have to get the oil changed at three months well before I've driven it another 3,000 miles.

©2000, 2007 Melvyn D. Magree

Well, the truck is long gone.  I traded it in for a used 2008 Trailblazer.  I bought the Trailblazer at a Chevy dealer from the same salesman (Dean Melbostad, now retired) who sold my the F-150 at a Ford dealer which had since gone out of business.  I did see the buyer at the Post Office and he was pleased.

And now the Trailblazer is gone.  I traded it in for a leased Toyota RAV4.  The RAV4 has more gizmos than I ever dreamed of for the Trailblazer.  The only fault I find with it is that the dial speedometer is hard to read with the headlights on, a practice I have had since I lived in Sweden.  "Headlights on for safety."