The Japanese-made trucks have gained a cultlike following, attracting small-business owners seeking affordable alternatives to traditional pickup trucks.
I’d honestly love one of these, depending in if it’s powerful enough to haul a decently heavy load up a hill.
I woodwork as a hobby, and have been wanting an old truck for a while, but the used truck market is pretty insane right now. All I want is an old beater with a reliable engine and a standard sized bed that’s capable of hauling sheet goods (4ft wide) without hassle.
This would check those marks. If the price was right, I’d happily drive this little guy around.
Instead, the market is full of ridiculously sized pickups with tiny truck beds because either the cab is huge, or they waste so much space making the truck look “tough” that the beds shrink narrower than 4ft.
As long as I can get a small truck in a V6 so that I don’t stall out hauling something heavy like cement bags, I’m in.
Look into Telo trucks. Modern, electric, safe, small. I know they haven’t launched yet, but i have high hopes they get everyone rethinking their pickup choices.
Yeah, I’ve considered that too. Neither of us have a car with a hitch, and we don’t have a good place to store a trailer for extended periods of time, but it’s an option I’m considering for sure.
Essentially what I’ve been doing. HD rental truck. But truck availability and requiring multiple round trips to return and pick up my car means I put it off until I’m blocked, and then needlessly stock up on sheet goods that I might need in the future, but ultimately sit around for a year or two before I use them.
But yeah, this is what I’m doing while I bide my time for truck prices to drop. And I’ve push back a bunch of projects that rely on ply because I just don’t want to deal with the hassle.
To your point, I bet the trailers are probably more readily available. The trucks themselves are very hit or miss in my experience. But there always seems to be trailers in the lot.
If you are in the US, look into minivans, or cargo vans. They are not popular here, so you’re not paying the pretty tax on them, and most vans with the rear seats removed can easily fit 4x8 plywood in the back. A beater van with a strong engine should be a lot cheaper than a beater pickup truck.
Yeah, I used to borrow my parents van on occasion, but they got a newer model of the same van (Odyssey) that could no longer fit sheet goods.
Also was pretty awkward tying the trunk door on the occasions where I needed longer material, which I would be doing more of nowadays. And TBH, despite my best efforts to pad things and load materials gently, I did scrap up the interior a bit, which wouldn’t be a factor with a truck.
A work van might do, though. Those seem pretty huge.
I’d honestly love one of these, depending in if it’s powerful enough to haul a decently heavy load up a hill.
I woodwork as a hobby, and have been wanting an old truck for a while, but the used truck market is pretty insane right now. All I want is an old beater with a reliable engine and a standard sized bed that’s capable of hauling sheet goods (4ft wide) without hassle.
This would check those marks. If the price was right, I’d happily drive this little guy around.
Instead, the market is full of ridiculously sized pickups with tiny truck beds because either the cab is huge, or they waste so much space making the truck look “tough” that the beds shrink narrower than 4ft.
As long as I can get a small truck in a V6 so that I don’t stall out hauling something heavy like cement bags, I’m in.
Look into Telo trucks. Modern, electric, safe, small. I know they haven’t launched yet, but i have high hopes they get everyone rethinking their pickup choices.
People around here usually have trailers behind their normal cars for that. Works fine.
Yeah, I’ve considered that too. Neither of us have a car with a hitch, and we don’t have a good place to store a trailer for extended periods of time, but it’s an option I’m considering for sure.
U-Haul trailer when you need it?
Essentially what I’ve been doing. HD rental truck. But truck availability and requiring multiple round trips to return and pick up my car means I put it off until I’m blocked, and then needlessly stock up on sheet goods that I might need in the future, but ultimately sit around for a year or two before I use them.
But yeah, this is what I’m doing while I bide my time for truck prices to drop. And I’ve push back a bunch of projects that rely on ply because I just don’t want to deal with the hassle.
To your point, I bet the trailers are probably more readily available. The trucks themselves are very hit or miss in my experience. But there always seems to be trailers in the lot.
At that point, you might as well just rent a pickup.
If you are in the US, look into minivans, or cargo vans. They are not popular here, so you’re not paying the pretty tax on them, and most vans with the rear seats removed can easily fit 4x8 plywood in the back. A beater van with a strong engine should be a lot cheaper than a beater pickup truck.
Yeah, I used to borrow my parents van on occasion, but they got a newer model of the same van (Odyssey) that could no longer fit sheet goods.
Also was pretty awkward tying the trunk door on the occasions where I needed longer material, which I would be doing more of nowadays. And TBH, despite my best efforts to pad things and load materials gently, I did scrap up the interior a bit, which wouldn’t be a factor with a truck.
A work van might do, though. Those seem pretty huge.
Most kei trucks have 3 cylinders. A few have 4. Here’s a starting point.. Here’s another.
A guy in a common group as me owns https://luckysminitrucks.com