[samarthr1]

This makes me feel that peak car was 2010 ish, when, when engines were powerful, cheap, and not too polluting, but also not overly complex.

Spare parts were small, cheap, and easily accessible too (atleast for my toyota)

I dread being forced to upgrade, not out of disdain for the environment, but the fact that I will spend more money, on a less reliable, less "mine" car, and more something big daddy government wants.

[gkanai]

I would argue peak car was a little earlier, maybe the 2000-2010 decade. Fewer screens to fail, analog buttons and dials. Airbags, and ABS for safety but without the additional computers/screens.

[eszed]

Entirely agree, although I think it varies by make / model. Roughly look for whenever a particular car got OBDII, which makes diagnostics way easier (and was kinda the perfect level of digitization, again in my opinion), through (as you say) whenever they started digitizing the cockpit and/or (which oddly - maybe? - coincide, in my experience) manufacturers stopped considering ease of maintenance in engineering decisions. In general late-1990s through 2005-2010. Cars since that decade (or so) are more sophisticated, at the expense of far, far shorter useful lifespans.

[threetonesun]

Mid 2008s saw a lot of cost cutting after the financial crisis, and then some very weird engineering decisions to deal with increased efficiency laws that made for much more complicated engines and transmissions even in smaller cars, if the smaller cars even continued to exist.

Early 2000s JDM coupes will always hold a soft spot in my heart, even though they've mostly rotted away at this point. I used to say I was into cars but these days there's nothing that inspires me at all, I'd be happy just to have a reliable electric box with 4 wheels.

[eszed]

Interesting. I kinda skipped that era of cars. Went from a mid-nineties Miata - which I still have, mostly maintain myself, and will never sell - to a 2015 CX-5, which I like, and seems well-made, but isn't exactly friendly to DIY. It's barely had any problems, though, through 150k miles, so that's not exactly a complaint.

No question, though, my next utility-car will be electric, and (though you'll have to pry it from my cold dead fingers) I expect my Miata to be the last ICE car I'll ever own.

[Scoundreller]

Depending on the make, rust-protection wasn’t quite there yet.

[soramimo]

Still got my E46!

[ethbr1]

4th gen 4Runner w/ a 2UZ-FE

[mannykannot]

I have never owned or wanted a pickup, but now I'm wondering about getting a basic one (if that's still an option.) It is annoying and depressing.

[toast0]

Nobody is currently selling new, small pickups. Maybe if the Slate materializes, that'll prove the market and we'll see them again.

In the meantime, 200x Ford Ranger or 200x Chevy S-10 are the last of the small pickups where you can get a 6 foot bed and a single row of seats. (Afaik)

I sold my small white pickup once, and ended up with a different small white pickup a few years later. I do enough (small) truck things that having a truck on hand just in case is worth it for me; but even with minimal miles per year there's certainly added expense from maintenance some of which ends up being time based, registration fees, and incremental costs for liability insurance on another vehicle. For quite a while, my family vehicles were a 4-door car/wagon and a small pickup, but that doesn't work for everyone; I feel better served with a minivan, a 4-door phev, and a pickup (and a silly old rear engined vw van with only the front seats, mostly for midlife crisis, but also handy for picking up large items that don't want to be inside for transport)

[eddieroger]

I've felt similarly recently, and I think those days are fleeting if not gone. Ford recently talked about replatforming their entire range, which would include basic trucks at more reasonable prices, but there's not really a market for work trucks in the way there used to be, and they're gone in favor of the luxury ones with small beds. It is annoying. There is an interesting startup that I can't remember the name of that touts an 8 foot bed (which is great) in the chassis footprint of a Mini Cooper. I don't think I saw pricing, but I would snatch one of those up.

[amluto]

> there's not really a market for work trucks in the way there used to be

I find this to be a strange assertion. I’ve only asked a small number of contractors, but every one I’ve asked wished they could buy a smaller, lower, practical work truck with decent capacity.

[toast0]

There's no market for new small work trucks because nobody is willing to sell them. Not because nobody is willing to buy them.

People who need work trucks end up getting f-150 or similar, work vans, or buying used. There was a used car lot in my old neighborhood that specialized in work trucks. It would be 75% white single cab trucks, 20% white panel vans, and then 5% work trucks and vans in colors.

[generic92034]

That must be the invisible hand of the free market at work. ;)

[toast0]

Well CAFE standards say don't bother making small vehicles. And manufacturers say oh darn, we have to make the vehicles with lots of profits? Well sorry small truck buyers, we're out.

[eddieroger]

If there was a market for those vehicles, they'd exist. The folks you asked either didn't buy them when they had the chance or don't make up enough of the market to justify the truck.

[labcomputer]

> I’ve only asked a small number of contractors, but every one I’ve asked wished they could buy a smaller, lower, practical work truck with decent capacity

And if you ask Reddit, everyone says they want to buy a brown NA station wagon with a manual... yet nobody actually buys those cars when dealers stock them. This is what economists call "stated" vs. "revealed" preference.

Nissan discontinued the last small long bed, small-cab compact pickup last year. Now you can only get it as a two row. They had a monopoly on this supposedly lucrative market segment that contractors claim to want... yet it was discontinued because nobody was actually purchasing that configuration.

Even for full-size pickups, GM revealed less than 10% of the product mix is single-row long bed.

It's not some conspiracy. People. Aren't. Buying. Them.

[ridgeguy]

You might consider acquiring a used model that meets your needs, then spend $ to zero-time the important stuff. In 2023, I decided not to buy a new car, but to re-engine (and other stuff) my 1999 4Runner. Really happy I did.

I would like a pickup (spouse -> serious gardener), have decided to get something simple & used, then put another $20K into it.

[ethbr1]

Slate?

[pickledish]

They're talking about this I'm pretty sure!

https://www.telotrucks.com/

[eddieroger]

Yes, those. Thank you!

[zdragnar]

CAFE standards have made that pretty hard. The trucks got bigger to hold more complex engine setups to boost mileage, coinciding with preferences shifting to super crew cabs because buying a new truck is basically the same price as buying a luxury vehicle.

I did own a 1994 Dodge ram up until a few years ago, but it needed new brake lines and there was so much rust coming off the frame I honestly wasn't sure I trusted it anymore, and the cost of the brake lines was probably more than it was worth at that point.

[eszed]

Frame damage apart, brake lines (in general, though I haven't worked specifically on a Dodge) are a reasonably straightforward DIY job. Not at all saying you made the wrong decision abandoning that particular car, just encouraging others reading this to evaluate the cost of a brake system replacement more, um... creatively, and least do some research. Basic car repair is an immanently nerdy pastime, and can save one an immense amount of money - especially on that particular era of automobiles, which are typically pretty satisfying to wrench on.

[CalRobert]

Maybe Slate? https://www.slate.auto/

A new 1980's mini truck would be awesome. If only...

[OptionOfT]

The sad part is that the plastics from around that time are starting to fail.

That E92 M3 LCI is now a 14 year old car.

[jesse__]

I've got a supercharged E92 M3. I'll own that thing till I die, funnest car ever.