The best selling vehicle in America...

Well before the days of the extended,double,and crew cab trucks we had the land yachts the truck simply took over from them when they disappeared. Those were as long in lengths as the current pickups are.

In reply to Driven5 :

Your car meets your needs well. It does not meet the needs of most people well. 

Thats why the Honda Fit has not been the #1 selling vehicle in the US for the last 30 years. 

Lots have people have riding lawn mowers. And hunt deer. And tow boats and RV’s. 

And frankly, the vast majority of American drivers don’t give a E36 M3 about chassis dynamics. They’d rather drive a reclining sofa.

SVreX said:

In reply to Driven5 :

Your car meets your needs well. It does not meet the needs of most people well. 

Thats why the Honda Fit has not been the #1 selling vehicle in the US for the last 30 years. 

Lots have people have riding lawn mowers. And hunt deer. And tow boats and RV’s. 

And frankly, the vast majority of American drivers don’t give a E36 M3 about chassis dynamics. They’d rather drive a reclining sofa.

 

 

For a road trip nothing beats the reclining sofa 

In reply to SVreX :

And no, by 'alternatives' I don't actually mean a Honda Fit.

And while I agree that most Americans don't care about dynamic performance, are you saying they don't care about the comfort or ride quality of their so-called 'reclining sofa' either?

RyanGreener said:

Capability is what probably attracts most Americans. I know plenty of people who recently got married and bought crossover vehicles even though they don't have kids yet and aren't planning to for awhile

Yup.  This is a major factor for EVs and range anxiety as well.  People wont buy a leaf because it can only go 80 miles, because there might be that one day a year that they need to go farther than that and their other vehicle is in use and renting a car/getting a ride/rescheduling/etc. would be too inconvenient.

Driven5 said:

In reply to SVreX :

And no, by 'alternatives' I don't actually mean a Honda Fit.

And while I agree that most Americans don't care about dynamic performance, are you saying they don't care about the comfort or ride quality of their so-called 'reclining sofa' either?

I’m saying that I’ve driven a Honda Fit, and I think my truck is significantly more comfortable. I like the ride quality much better. 

Different strokes, man. Just cause you like it, doesn’t mean the rest of the world does. 

MotorsportsGordon said:

SVreX said:

In reply to Driven5 :

Your car meets your needs well. It does not meet the needs of most people well. 

Thats why the Honda Fit has not been the #1 selling vehicle in the US for the last 30 years. 

Lots have people have riding lawn mowers. And hunt deer. And tow boats and RV’s. 

And frankly, the vast majority of American drivers don’t give a E36 M3 about chassis dynamics. They’d rather drive a reclining sofa.

 

 

For a road trip nothing beats the reclining sofa 

truth. Ours has made several long trips and its always comfy. 

bobzilla said:

MotorsportsGordon said:

SVreX said:

In reply to Driven5 :

Your car meets your needs well. It does not meet the needs of most people well. 

Thats why the Honda Fit has not been the #1 selling vehicle in the US for the last 30 years. 

Lots have people have riding lawn mowers. And hunt deer. And tow boats and RV’s. 

And frankly, the vast majority of American drivers don’t give a E36 M3 about chassis dynamics. They’d rather drive a reclining sofa.

 

 

For a road trip nothing beats the reclining sofa 

truth. Ours has made several long trips and its always comfy. 

It's funny how I love cars with great driving dynamics, but as I got older I stopped caring about having an "engaging" daily driver and I just want a car that makes no noise and is super comfortable. I guess driving a car to the track with no A/C, P/S and interior and a containment seat really makes you reconsider what you want to drive every day.

RossD said:

Driven5 said:

Seriously?!? I haven't driven a full size truck in years, and keep hearing people say how much they have improved in the last two or three decades...Yeah, but apparently so has every other vehicle on the road too. While I fully understand why a limited percentage of people need to own one of these things, I simply cannot wrap my mind around why anyone who doesn't would actually want to...Let alone choose to.

It was pretty sweet that time I towed your Fiero home with my F150, wasn't it?

It sure was, thank you.  And that one of maybe five times in the last decade that I actually needed the capabilities of a truck over a non-truck is precisely why I simply enlist the services of friends who do have their reasons for owning a truck...Or rent one.

In reply to ebonyandivory :

I was unnecessarily argumentative and snarky in my response, and for that I apologize.

I do still think that half the reason we're drowning in Crossovers and SUVs and can't get a wagon/hatch/etc is exactly that arms race, but your particular decision to drive a truck is hardly the core of the problem.

In reply to SVreX :

Being more comfortable than a Honda Fit is not exactly a resounding endorsement. LOL.

In reply to Driven5 :

Very true!!

I find most people’s sofas uncomfortable, but I accept that there are many more people who like a soft squishy sofa, then people like me who like them firm. 

So the world is full of soft squishy sofas.  

I find the word sofa to be uncomfortable.

First off I will make this statement. 

Just because it is the best selling vehicle does not mean it is the best vehicle. I mean come on, using that logic would infer that McDonalds is the best restaurant or that the big bang theory is the best television show.

On a lamentable note:

I have recently been forcibly converted to using a 4X4 1/2 ton pickup (Chevy Avalanche) as a daily driver. I hate every minute of it. I don't understand how anyone puts up with it.

On the other hand I now have better insight as to why traffic moves the way it does and why people park as poorly as they do. After 3 months I still think I have pulled up so close to the car in front of me at a parking lot that I am about to crush it yet get out and find myself 5 feet back with my tailgate in the aisle. Sitting up so high you could swear that your wheels are touching the curb you just parallel parked by but again 3 feet of space when you climb down. I have always prided myself in knowing where the corners of my vehicle are but this thing is just so vague about everything.

Duke said:

ebonyandivory said:

I personally HATE sitting commuter-car-low in traffic.  Having a better view of my surroundings is reason enough for me to want a truck.

That works great until everybody drives a truck or SUV for the same reason.  Then everybody is back to Square One, except 18" farther away from the ground.

I already replied to that argument. Not everyone drives trucks. And like I already said, if I have to explain that the view from my Sierra 4x4 is vastly different than the view from my Protege5 then I give up.

_ said:

In reply to aircooled :

Lol. I came from miataturbo.net. That place is hell. Is this deeper hell?

Dude just don’t take anything said here to personal 

In reply to ebonyandivory :

Lets not pretend that the only options are modern full-frame 4x4 height and P5 height.

Jumper K Balls said:

First off I will make this statement. 

Just because it is the best selling vehicle does not mean it is the best vehicle. I mean come on, using that logic would infer that McDonalds is the best restaurant or that the big bang theory is the best television show.

On a lamentable note:

I have recently been forcibly converted to using a 4X4 1/2 ton pickup (Chevy Avalanche) as a daily driver. I hate every minute of it. I don't understand how anyone puts up with it.

On the other hand I now have better insight as to why traffic moves the way it does and why people park as poorly as they do. After 3 months I still think I have pulled up so close to the car in front of me at a parking lot that I am about to crush it yet get out and find myself 5 feet back with my tailgate in the aisle. Sitting up so high you could swear that your wheels are touching the curb you just parallel parked by but again 3 feet of space when you climb down. I have always prided myself in knowing where the corners of my vehicle are but this thing is just so vague about everything.

 

It makes it the best vehicle for those that buy them. Just because u say or think something else would be better for them doesn’t make that the case just like u buy what u want and like. If it’s what they like and want then it’s the best vehicle for them.

In reply to SVreX :

Firm is one thing...But if given the option, I prefer firm and smooth to firm and jittery. This thing shimmies and shakes like my dog when I ask hime if he wants to eat, over pavement irregularities that my Fit of all things is generally unfazed by.

There a nice chunk of me me that would probably take a modern version of these seats for most types of driving

In reply to MotorsportsGordon :

You think that 'most' people actually buy the vehicle that is 'best' for them? Most people haven't even thought (let alone researched) about the vehicle they're walking into the dealership to buy beyond the color they want, and maybe as far as 'truck' 'car' or 'suv'. And even then it's based almost entirely on what they think they want for some unknown (what I'm trying to understand) reason, and not on what's actually going to be the 'best' match to their situation. Most people don't do 'what car' threads on GRM, or even pose the question to their GRM-esque friends. Hell, a surprising number of them wander onto a dealership lot without even knowing what vehicles that manufacturer sells, and tells the salesman "I need to buy a new car. What do you have?"

Truck owners aside, we all agree the Harley owners of the local Leather Tassels Save Lives M.C. are the worst people ever, right?

Well, that and Corvette owners

Driven5 said:

In reply to ebonyandivory :

Lets not pretend that the only options are modern full-frame 4x4 height and P5 height.

What? I’m referring to MY opinion of the vehicles I’M familiar with. I MUCH prefer the current view I have from my truck than I did with my Mazda. Very simple concept here, let’s not make it difficult.

Little tykes cozy coupe.