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Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

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Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#121

Post by rascul »

kevin_thibedeau wrote: post #68
EricE wrote: post #31

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Both the Hyundai Santa Cruz and Ford Ranger have tail gates that will partially lower to the same level as the tops of the wheel wells, providing a perfect platform for 4x8 sheets of plywood. I have a friend with a Ranger and we have hauled plywood and other larger objects with no issues. Would I want to do it routinely? Probably not - but for casual hauling they work well enough. I would expect the Scout to be desig…

The other problem with the short beds is that they are "compensated" for by raising the belt line to make the bed deeper. This compromises rear visibility. Then the long beds suffer because they also get a deep bed to integrate with the cab. On old Rangers you used to be able to walk up and just reach into the bed to get stuff. That isn't possible on any current midsize and up pickups.

> That isn't possible on any current midsize and up pickups.

Yes it is. Or maybe I'm just tall enough? I do it all the time. I can't reach the middle of full size trucks with both feet on the ground, but I never could with older full size trucks, either.

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#122

Post by [deleted] »

toast0 wrote: post #26
zactato wrote: post #6

I hope this ends up being smaller than the F150. I get the popularity of that form factor, but I simply don't believe that many people are hauling yards of soil or towing boats. 2 Seats + 6 Foot bed seems like a winning combination in practicality, but is quite rare in the US.

Well, an old Scout is a two-door, two row SUV, with a bit of storage in the back and a hatch-back + tail gate. Not a compact pickup (but actually a pretty short length; it qualifies for a small car rate on the Washington State ferries!). International Harvester did make pickup trucks into the mid 70s and they share some bodywork and design elements with Scouts such that you might call it a Scout pickup, but that's no…

[deleted]

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#123

Post by rascul »

yardie wrote: post #43
mulmen wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> hauling yards of soil or towing boats I'm not defending the number of pickups on the road in America but this is an out of touch comment. Some common uses of pickup beds include: * Hauling motorcycles and ATVs including snowmobiles. * Carrying campers. * Carrying home improvement projects such as bags of soil, plants, and raw material such as 8'x2"x4" lumber or 4'x8' plywood. At least in the 2000s a 4x8 sheet of pl…

> At least in the 2000s a 4x8 sheet of plywood will not fit in a compact pickup but lays flat in a fullsize. I hate to break it to you but the F150 XLT Crew Cab tops out at 6.5ft. Your 4x8 plywood won't fit with the gate up. And if you have to put the gate down for standard sizes do you really need a fullsize pickup to do it?

If I'm only hauling a few sheets than I leave the tailgate gate up and lean the board on it. Straps can't hold just a few sheets very well laying flat unless the attachment points are significantly lower. I learned this the hard way when I had to pick up a couple sheets of plywood off the highway. The other option is to lay a few 2x4s under it to raise the sheets and give the straps a better capability to hold.

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#124

Post by rascul »

alistairSH wrote: post #34
corrral wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A two seat pickup is a niche vehicle, about as useful for carrying a family around as a two seat sports car. Not to country folk—kids ride in the bed. Or crammed in the middle if there aren't too many of them and they're still fairly small and you're lucky enough to still have a bench seat.

Not legally (in many states).

Lay down in the bed and nobody will see.

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#125

Post by rascul »

freemint wrote: post #115
jaredhallen wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What if you need to haul things while simultaneously carrying a family around? I don't find them to be a terrible tradeoff at all, and I expect that the reason the entire automotive industry has gone all in on them is because I'm not an outlier in that regard.

> What if you need to haul things while simultaneously carrying a family around? Have one partner drive a sedan/wagon with the kids and another partner haul. A lot more economical too.

How is it more economical to drive the truck and car instead of just the truck?

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#126

Post by quickthrowman »

bluGill wrote: post #41
corrral wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> There's a subset of contexts where they make sense although I think for _most_ people they're infrequent enough that it's way more sensible to use a cargo van or a sedan and then just rent a truck during the minority of times when you actually need one. Even a minivan can tow a small trailer for occasional lumber store runs or towing a jet ski or two. Or just use the roof rack and some tie-downs. Or take the seats…

If you need a truck even 5% of the time it is overall cheapest to just own a truck. Insurance, car payments, and other fixed costs are too high to make a second car worth it, and renting a car is not cheap, not to mention rental rules often mean you can't use the truck as a truck. (I've been looking for a place to rent a truck so I can replace mine, a couple times a year I do something that no rental truck will let m…

> I've been looking for a place to rent a truck so I can replace mine, a couple times a year I do something that no rental truck will let me do

Off the top of my head: Home Depot, Lowe’s, Menards, U-Haul, Penske, United Rentals, Sunbelt Rentals.

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#127

Post by throwaway6734 »

EricE wrote: post #99
throwaway6734 wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

agree. The small pickups of the late 80s/early 90s were perfect. Just make one electric and id buy it in a heartbeat

Start lobbying your congress critter(s) to repeal the chicken tax. Otherwise it will never happen :(

Chicken tax?

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#128

Post by waiseristy »

EricE wrote: post #98
waiseristy wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You know that is never coming back right? Safety standards do not allow vehicles of that size and profile. There are multiple references to the 1st gen Tacomas in this thread and I'm having a hard time understanding why it keeps being brought up. It's a 20-25 year old vehicle

It keeps being brought up because there is a pent up demand for them. Safety standards are BS. If Mazda can and does keep the Miata complaint with safety standards while preserving the bulk of the original Miata soul, then these other manufacturers could do the same with mini trucks. The real problem is they don't have to. Bigger vehicles have better profit margins, and the chicken tax limits competition. Repeal the…

I think you overestimate this pent up demand. The Santa Cruz sells like shit. The Ridgeline is right there by it

New players don’t come into the US truck market with mini-trucks because they simply don’t sell

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#129

Post by mulmen »

quickthrowman wrote: post #126
bluGill wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you need a truck even 5% of the time it is overall cheapest to just own a truck. Insurance, car payments, and other fixed costs are too high to make a second car worth it, and renting a car is not cheap, not to mention rental rules often mean you can't use the truck as a truck. (I've been looking for a place to rent a truck so I can replace mine, a couple times a year I do something that no rental truck will let m…

> I've been looking for a place to rent a truck so I can replace mine, a couple times a year I do something that no rental truck will let me do Off the top of my head: Home Depot, Lowe’s, Menards, U-Haul, Penske, United Rentals, Sunbelt Rentals.

Will those places let you tow a heavy utility trailer with trailer brakes?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32158302

Re: Volkswagen bringing back Scout brand truck as electric vehicle made in America

#130

Post by mulmen »

rascul wrote: post #124
alistairSH wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not legally (in many states).

Lay down in the bed and nobody will see.

Have you ever been in the back of a pickup? This would be incredibly uncomfortable at best and is likely to cause a concussion or worse.
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