HELP US Understand People's Fascination With Vintage 4x4's And Pickups? Have You Ever DRIVEN OR Lived With One As A Daily?

As we live in the age of societal emasculation and tolerate it, one of the FEW things MEN have left to latch onto are vintage 4x4's and SUV's.

Take a ride through Hollywood or other bastions of the glitterati and you'll see then littered everywhere.

Now don't get me wrong, I've owned a number of them back in the day and I LOVE looking at them and reminiscing about those days.

But good LORD, I would NEVER want two own one if I HAD to drive it regularly. An old Chevy pickup next to my shed with beautiful flowers around it near my BBQ to admire? HELL YEAH! But other than driving it once or twice to remember how backwards vehicles were compared to the stuff made today are or a quick Home Depot run. Sure.

And BTW, THANK YOU to all the men who slave over restorations so we can all gawk at them at the 4th of July parade. We SALUTE you!

Is this you? WOW, that FJ40 Land Cruiser is the BOMB! And as you walk away think to yourself OMG, can you imagine having to put up with that all the time?

So educate us Spies, WHAT is the fascination of actually wanting to buy and own one? Describe THAT buyer to us and what drove them to it? They've always wanted to experience what 9MPG feels like? The new products are drafty enough in the cabin? The old AM radios in them are the best of breed?

Also, if you're good enough to name the EXACT color name of the pickup truck from the Canadian TV Series Heartland shown in the cover pic to this story, you'll get extra bragging points...

valhallakey - 4/15/2020 11:29:54 PM

+2 Boost

Yes a 1973 Dodge Power Wagon. Drove it all the time for 3yrs while racing motorcycles.

ricks0me - 4/16/2020 6:04:09 AM

0 Boost

Some people like "old school".
I would take that broken down Chevy in the picture over a brand new 4 CYL Silverado.
I would take a 1955 Mercedes Gullwing over a new "C" or "E" or "S" Class.

PUGPROUD - 4/16/2020 9:16:20 AM

+2 Boost

1980 Toyota Land Cruiser...simple, strong, utilitarian, reliable, carry everything and anything, go anywhere, park it anywhere, go in any weather, carry eight people, nothing on it you don't need or could go wrong, wash whenever or never, scratches added character, an honest no hassle vehicle.

dtmwtch - 4/16/2020 12:05:07 PM

+3 Boost

same, 81 fj40, love her.

MDarringer - 4/16/2020 9:50:02 AM

+1 Boost

Someone's a Pinterest, soy boy: "An old Chevy pickup next to my shed with beautiful flowers around it near my BBQ to admire?"

To say that all old trucks get 9 mpg is not a universal truth, but neither are modern pickups paragons of high mpg. The real-world mpg of modern pickups is likely to be in the low to mid teens with maybe high teens on the highway.

As for driving an old vehicle, they are incredibly fun. I occasionally drive a Jeep Wagoneer (not mine) and I find it satisfying in the way that putting some 35mm film in a K1000 and doing some photography is a joy.

But I happen to enjoy old vehicles and feel a sense of disdain for the sneering, nose-uppity people who are judgmental about anyone NOT automatically rejecting the old vehicles for new ones.

Agent001 - 4/16/2020 1:06:44 PM

0 Boost

My F-150 Eco-Boost SuperCrew 4x4's all have gotten 18.5-19 city and 22-23 Hwy.

My friend's sons have a Frontier and a Tacoma and they can't get 16 city, 18 hwy.

001

Agent001 - 4/16/2020 1:09:21 PM

0 Boost

And don't get me wrong, I love all the old stuff. To LOOK at.

But they handle and drive like sh_t.

And there's nothing that gets the appetite going better than the gas fume smells in the cabin while you're idling and driving.

001

MDarringer - 4/16/2020 3:07:28 PM

0 Boost

Assuming your numbers are not as inflated as your blustering, your "city" driving isn't truly "city" driving. The old Wagoneer will hit 18-19 steady state on the highway and will routinely get 12-15 in "city" driving.

xjug1987a - 4/16/2020 11:07:14 AM

+1 Boost

Lets face it unrestored or modified "old" vehicles might be less comfortable but they have so much more style and character than most new vehicles. Old Chevy Pickups with 2 tone paint, etc.. old Power Wagons, I personally love the Willy's Pickup and wish I'd bought the one I looked at in 1994. It was all solid steel, didn't get very good mileage but it had so much character... It would be nice if designers today could manage a little more style and character...

MDarringer - 4/16/2020 11:30:54 AM

0 Boost

Can you imaging a Ram Power Wagon off the Jeep Gladiator that was styled to look like the real Power Wagon?

xjug1987a - 4/16/2020 12:25:01 PM

+1 Boost

that would be insane... love it!

xjug1987a - 4/16/2020 12:26:01 PM

0 Boost

https://www.legacyclassictrucks.com/i-24487215-legacy-power-wagon-extended-conversion-build-your-own.html

skytop - 4/16/2020 12:27:58 PM

0 Boost

My C10 Chevy PU is used frequently. I find the carburetor the most unreliable, problem plagued part of the truck.

MDarringer - 4/16/2020 3:03:57 PM

-1 Boost

You do know you can convert it it fuel injection in a snap, right?

qwertyfla1 - 4/16/2020 2:23:49 PM

0 Boost

I know a big contractor who has over $260K so far into a 1956 Chevy pickup long box build. It was a rust free southern sled that he has been deliberately denting up and fading the paint as the original was almost perfect that he overpaid for at a Baret auction. Custom made tubular frame chrome plated and a 1100HP supercharged motor with all modernized electronics and custom stupidity everything else. He had digital screens hidden into the original gauges to keep everything looking factory. When all done he'd be lucky to get $100K back on resale but he doesn't care and this is 1 of 10 Frankenstein toys he has in his barn. Redneck with money and good for him!

MDarringer - 4/16/2020 8:03:40 PM

0 Boost

My Iso Grifo project wasn't that expensive, but the inexperience of my early 20s compelled me to fly to Georgia where I bought a barn find that was complete, and looked good but dirty. The mechanical renovation of the car was twice the purchase price, so at that point I put in the amount of the purchase price again to outfit the interior to top-end status. I love the car and if you could find a pristine Grifo it would cost as much as I have in mine, but because mine so isn't original, I'd be lucky to get half out of it. Lesson learned, but I love tooling around in it.

Section_31_JTK - 4/16/2020 8:05:38 PM

0 Boost

For the most part old cars and trucks drive like crap. Pretty to look at, but I'd take a new vehicle as a DD any day over some old car or truck.

MDarringer - 4/16/2020 11:15:07 PM

0 Boost

I had the Interceptor with me in Newport Beach for this week's meeting. AMG this AMG that...but what got attention? The interceptor.