Pickup mileage?

[GasSavers_jah]

pickup trucks never got good gas milage
best was a VW 2x drive diesel from the 80's

some hatchy cars can hold lots of stuff... whatever

[Javarod]

I will say that i don't necessarily need a pick up truck, my problem is actually fairly simple. As a courier the vast majority of my work is very like, prolly less than 20#, except for one customer where the orders can very from a few pounds to a few hundred, say 500 to 1000#. Also it can be fairly small, i broke a folding cart (175# rated) with part of a load, and those three boxes were 3' x 3' x 3" (no, that last one isn't a typo) each, and that was part of a dozen orders.

While its not over the weight limit of the car, it is high density, that back fit mostly in the trunk with a little bit on the back seat, weight balance is a real issue. Throw in the roughness of the job, particularly with some of the crap roads (and places like the mine i deliver to where there isn't a road), i need something better than a Kia Sephia, prolly some manner of light to medium truck. Best possibility is a S series or a Ranger, both are very available here, in fact Sierra Auctions had a fleet sale including a good half dozen or so Rangers, and the city also has auctioned some S series off. I'm wary about the Suzuki Sidekick, the engines don't seem to take well to short driving cycles, something to do with cooling i assume. The trick of course is to start with the most fuel efficient vehicle i can, and one that can provide me with enough room for temperature sensitive loads (3 or 4 small flower arrangements) to boxes of industrial parts.

[VetteOwner]

i still suggest the s-10, ive had 950 lbs of whiterock + 2 people in the truck. drove just fine

[Jay2TheRescue]

I vote for either an S10 or Ranger with a 5 speed manual tranny. You should get decent mileage, and good cargo capacity.

-Jay

[GasSavers_BEEF]

what about a van?

[Jay2TheRescue]

A minivan would work, but I think an S10 or Ranger with a 5 speed will offer better mileage.

-Jay

[GasSavers_BEEF]

I think this was discussed on another thread but what about a pontiac vibe/toyota matrix.

I have a friend with a vibe and he tows a boat with it. the boar only weighs about 6-800 lbs but he has a hitch on the back of the car and everything. gets about 33MPG (obviously not when towing though)

[VetteOwner]

ahh towing a boat... most cars can tow a hefty load. its stopping and being able to tow that load up a 10* or more boat ramp (sometimes wet boatramp) with a front wheel drive vehicle

[Jay2TheRescue]

Originally Posted by VetteOwner

ahh towing a boat... most cars can tow a hefty load. its stopping and being able to tow that load up a 10* or more boat ramp (sometimes wet boatramp) with a front wheel drive vehicle

An AWD Chrysler minivan?

[Javarod]

Well, i did the minivan thing already with a Chevy Venture. Setting aside the major reliability issues, the mileage i was getting in that was 22MPG which seems to be about average (best i've heard of a U boat doing was 24), so i'm a bit wary about that. Vibe might be a possibility, ditto for an XB, basically any wagon or pickup should work, its a matter of the weight capacity. What about an S-10 Blazer? A two door would be the right size, and eliminates the need to add a bed cover, but what about weight penalty? A Malibu Maxx is another possibility, but the price is an issue, the shear number of S10s and Rangers out here helps keep the price reasonable, something that's a problem with the Maxx. Plus i worry about the durability of a car, it should be enough, but i do like something of a safety margin.

Hmmm, maybe i should by an old Dodge Rampage (Charger/024 pickup), the 85 Charger was rated at 26/36/30, which is better than my Kia, assuming i could find one.