A new NYT analysis found that anyone shorter than 5-foot-6 — about half of American adults — would frequently be knocked to the ground in front of today's average vehicle.
And out of the people who do need them, vans are still a much better way to go for many of them. Vans which have at least a margainally better field of view with their short, sloped hoods.
I know someone who insists that a pickup truck is more practical and her example is “you can lift a bookshelf over the side of a pickup truck instead of having to put it in the back like a van”. Apparently it’s more practical to lift something like 4 feet off the ground to the side of a pickup truck bed instead of like 1 foot to the floor of a van
Similarly, I know people who bought F-150s for motorycles after going to the track only one time. We worked with actual consistent track-goers who each had vans. I used one of theirs to move my bike to the shop, and it was really funny watching them struggle with a small Ninja 250.
There’s still an issue there with pedestrian safety, but it’s definitely better than an F-150 for sure. And maybe putting the driver up front will make them less inclined to be douchebags, too.
And it’s not just the field of view, it’s how the impact occurs. On a lower, sloped hood you bounce over the bonnet instead of a head-on bang with a higher, vertical, one.
And out of the people who do need them, vans are still a much better way to go for many of them. Vans which have at least a margainally better field of view with their short, sloped hoods.
I know someone who insists that a pickup truck is more practical and her example is “you can lift a bookshelf over the side of a pickup truck instead of having to put it in the back like a van”. Apparently it’s more practical to lift something like 4 feet off the ground to the side of a pickup truck bed instead of like 1 foot to the floor of a van
Similarly, I know people who bought F-150s for motorycles after going to the track only one time. We worked with actual consistent track-goers who each had vans. I used one of theirs to move my bike to the shop, and it was really funny watching them struggle with a small Ninja 250.
People with truck brain are so fuckin’ stupid.
Vans are work trucks. Pickups are poser trucks.
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There’s still an issue there with pedestrian safety, but it’s definitely better than an F-150 for sure. And maybe putting the driver up front will make them less inclined to be douchebags, too.
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And it’s not just the field of view, it’s how the impact occurs. On a lower, sloped hood you bounce over the bonnet instead of a head-on bang with a higher, vertical, one.