[digital-cygnet]

How do you feel about your impact on others on the roads? Driving such a vehicle through populated areas means you're putting pedestrians and cyclists at significantly higher risk due to lessened visibility and hood height[1], blocking other drivers' views, and exposing people nearby to toxic diesel fumes [2]. The majority of the problems with driving a large vehicle in a city are not borne by the owner thereof.

To be clear, my point isn't to try to make you feel bad about your choice, but to demonstrate why it's bad on a societal level to have this profusion of large vehicles. Societal problems need societal solutions.

[1] https://www.reuters.com/world/us/tall-trucks-suvs-are-45-dea...

[2] https://www.epa.gov/dera/learn-about-impacts-diesel-exhaust-...

[dog_boxer72]

Have you ever stopped to ponder how your very existence actually does such damage to everyone else around you, eating up food that could be for someone else, probably by killing an animal, taking up space for your house which could be public parklands, creating waste products and other likewise negative outcomes?

[ChainOfFools]

> Have you ever stopped to ponder how your very existence actually does such damage to everyone else around you

Yes, and you should go out of your way to minimize this as much as possible, as a high priority of life in a shared space with other people. Rather than make it worse, on purpose, because "f150ck you, I got mine" (which is at least honest), or failing that, whatever excuse serves to mask the juvenile selfishness of this attitude.

[cooper_ganglia]

Not to mention that every breath converts breathable oxygen into the deadly greenhouse gas, CO2! The mere act of existence means that you are, forever and always, contributing to climate change!

I’m so exhausted of the constant online morality policing over such inane, trivial things like this. Hell, it’s even electric rather than a gas-guzzler like the normal F-150, and people are still screeching because “iT’S tOo BiG!”. Yeah bro, because trucks aren’t made to be DoorDash vehicles in NYC, they’re made to haul RVs to the lake and lumber to the build site.

[digital-cygnet]

Like I mentioned in my comment, the goal wasn't to morality-police, but to point out how the externalities of truck ownership in a dense area fall on others.

And I disagree that it's inane or trivial. Motor vehicle crashes kill ~45k Americans per year, the leading preventable cause of death for everyone 4-21 years old and the second-leading cause for 22-67 year olds [1], and the numbers are climbing. As my comment pointed out, light trucks are ~50% deadlier in collisions with pedestrians (don't have the data on-hand for other vehicle inhabitants). Anecdotally, I have friends and family members who have been hit by cars and lucky enough to survive, but (knowing the details of the cases) likely would not have were they hit by a 5'-bonnet-height truck.

I agree trucks aren't made for tooling around cities, but for heavier duty activites. What's upsetting is that more and more vehicles like this _are_ being used for city and suburban daily driving where all of their externalities are at their worst and none of their utility is needed.

[1] https://injuryfacts.nsc.org/all-injuries/deaths-by-demograph...

[waveBidder]

Do you not consider the negative externalities when choosing what to do? Pretty sure that's normal behavior, and disregarding your impact is antisocial.

[iancmceachern]

It's modern diesel engine (2019). The exhaust that comes out is cleaner than many small 2 stroke motorcycle engines, lawn mower engines,etc. Also way cleaner than that old Mercedes diesel you are running your biodiesel in.

I live right where the interstate dumps into the city, we have soot on our windows. The problem is real, but the diesel trucks, big trucks, are 95% of the problem, not the 5k miles I drive a year in my truck.

[kstrauser]

> The exhaust that comes out is cleaner than many small 2 stroke motorcycle engines, lawn mower engines,etc.

While true, that's a pretty low bar. I wouldn't bring that up as an argument in defense of it, because it comes off kind of like "at least it's not burning bunker oil!"

The rest of your situation makes perfect sense, though. You need something with that power and size regularly enough to justify owning one, and rather than have 2 vehicles, you just use the one you already have for other things. That's completely reasonable.

[earthling8118]

Comparing it to lawn mower engines is not a big win for the diesel engine. Those small engines shouldn't be used in the first place.

[mildchalupa]

Lessened visibility is due completely to rollover protection regulations. Vehicles around the 2010's+ require stronger A,B,C...pillars etc. Automakers complied with the regulations by making pillers both larger and shorter. Shorter members are stronger as there is less bending moment. If you look at where the windows start on newer vehicles they are munch higher. Thus body lines to match this brings up the hood.

This is astoundingly obvious when you park an unmodified 80's-90's vehicle next to something new.

The question to me is what overall reduces mortality rates, improved roll-over and side impact protection or driver visibility?

Personally I think blind spots everywhere suck and would much prefer better visibility.

[iancmceachern]

You are making incorrect assumptions.

Just because they made a window bigger or a member longer doesn't mean it's weaker. They could have changed the material to something twice as strong, added hidden structures, etc.

The difference is mandated crash testing, and now simulated crash testing. They are required by law to build cars that are safe, and test to make sure they truly are.

[NotSuspicious]

Are you vegan?

[skyyler]

Caring about other people is the domain of vegans?

[runjake]

So he should have two vehicles? One for city driving and one for travel and pulling his RV?

[iancmceachern]

I do.

My car is the smallest available 4 seat car in the US.

I actually don't use either often to commute, I bike.

As I said, we use the truck for RV travel mostly.

[earthling8118]

Yes I would say it is proper to use the correct tool for the job at hand.

[briffle]

if its a modern diesel (after about 2010 or so) it uses DEF along with its EGR and SCR systems and does not put out the NOx and particulates that the older diesels do.

[ThrowawayTestr]

Sounds like a you problem not a me problem