[cromka]

> Without the stiff competition of the smaller, lighter, easier-to-drive, and more fuel efficient import pickups and vans, Detroit automakers were no longer required to keep pace with innovation of foreign brands.

One has to wonder how much this innocent-looking levy contributed to the overall global warming situation, by never having the US automakers to be incentivized to manufacture more efficient commercial fleet, and, as such, inbreeding the culture of buying the overly big pick ups and SUVs with massive engines for private use, too.

[yeetaccount4]

I’ve heard that pickups got so big in the past decade or so because of Obama-era emission regulation. A bigger truck was classified differently and not subject to such strict guidelines, so when the old 3/4 and 1-ton trucks couldn’t possibly meet the new rules they got bigger to get around them.

[illirik]

To this day, super-duty pickups do not have to report fuel economy figures. I technically own a 1984 Ford F350, with a 460 cubic-inch (7.5 L) V8, that is rotting in a family member's yard in North Carolina, which (when operative) got 8-9 miles per gallon. It's about the size and length of a brand-new Honda Odyssey; the real split is between vehicles classed as commercial, and those that were not. Even today, you can buy an F250 with no EPA ratings due to the GWVR

[yeetaccount4]

Funny thing is a new superduty can match or exceed the highway mileage of a new 4Runner. As long as you aren’t cruising around town or catching red lights you’re not doing all that bad. ~20MPG in eco mode.