This guy has a mobil clutch replacement business in the UK. He keeps the camera rolling in between service destinations. I've been glued to the screen ever since I discovered his channel. Not one time have I ever seen a pickup truck. Mostly all those sporty service vans. Any of you guys every been to the UK? Have you ever seen a pickup truck over there?
No pickup trucks in the UK
- Thread starter Soft Cars
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They do exist in the UK, they're called "utes", but I don't think there's as many urban cowboys (and cowgirls) as there are in the USA to buy them there.
As far as the trades go, I watch a couple of HVAC channels on youtube and both of them had trouble with their service vans, and neither of them liked operating out of a pickup while their van was in the shop.
As far as the trades go, I watch a couple of HVAC channels on youtube and both of them had trouble with their service vans, and neither of them liked operating out of a pickup while their van was in the shop.
I watched a video of an automotive journalist attempting to drive a Ram TRX through the UK. While already a wildly impractical vehicle, it was made even more so against a UK backdrop and didn’t fit anywhere.
Seems like most countries place much more importance on efficiency than we do here in NA. Likely because of the high fuel prices and narrow streets.
Even the same models of vehicles are generally offered with smaller engine choices that would be considered “dangerously underpowered” by people on this side of the pond for some odd reason.
I was just telling a friend of mine that Virginia 2-lane roads are pretty bad (despite VDOT claiming otherwise), and I hit 3 potholes in 3 miles (it was at night) on a road known by the locals as Pothole Rd (it's really Poplar Rd). And these are the sort of potholes you'd rather hit in a pickup truck than a car. Seriously, one of those think tanks (maybe it was Cato) ranked Virginia roads among the best in the nation. Since nobody from Cato probably actually checked, I expect that they were using data supplied by the DOTs and I suspect that the data VDOT fed them is nothing more than bovine excrement. Baghdad Bob has nothing on your average Virginia government employee (or politician).
Not to mention there's probably a congestion tax that has to be paid in certain areas. I'm going to wager to say if people have trucks over there they're the old Toyota tacomas from the early 90s. One thing for certain I'm still willing to bet there's a very large number of cars that are still with a proper shifter lever in the middle console along with three pedals
And somehow they still get things done without a 6+ liter capable of towing 10k+ lbs, craziness!
Nick1994
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I think they mostly use work vans, and when transporting something large they will use a small trailer.
Pickup trucks definitely exist there but they're definitely not as common as they are here. You're not going to find F-150s, SuperDuty, Silverados, etc there though, at least not new models. The price of fuel (equivalent of $8 and higher per gallon is completely normal for them) prevents this.
I remember when I picked up my moms friends from Germany in my Yukon they asked about the fuel economy and when I told them 11 miles per gallon and we converted it to liters or whatever they were absolutely shocked!
Yes, pickup trucks are definitely used in the U.K. although not in the same fashion as they are in the U.S.
Vans are preferred by businesses because they offer more room, and taking into account weather conditions, they keep their equipment dry and out of the rain. They also have the added benefit of working inside the van for jobs like tire replacements, etc. where they can mount their equipment.
Vans are preferred by businesses because they offer more room, and taking into account weather conditions, they keep their equipment dry and out of the rain. They also have the added benefit of working inside the van for jobs like tire replacements, etc. where they can mount their equipment.
That's certainly a very European thing to ask about fuel economy before anything else. Obviously, the extremely high taxes on gas forces them to think this way, but it's apples to oranges comparing a full-size American SUV with a 5.7L V8 in the U.S. to a compact European hatchback with a 1.2L L4 in Germany.
UTs (utes - utilities) are an Australian/New Zeeland exclusive thing, nothing to do with the UK.
They are not real pickups, but are based on a sedan or cupe.
I'm in the UK about twice a year.
I don't consider my 2002 Explorer as a "huge American car", but - depending on where you are - it really can get very Hobbit-town there and really tight on some roads. So a F150 would not be the most practical vehicle - those small Land Rover pickups is what you see most of the time.
Also gas prices and taxes can be a deal breaker. I saw some US pickups though - mostly Dodge - but they are very rare.
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Not been to UK, but to Germany, France and Italy many times and there are not any pickups there either - at least not common. Roads in the city are much narrower and tighter, fuel is much more expensive. Small but high vans like Ford's transit connect are popular for city service people, etc - then to bigger vans like sprinters. Van bodies with a flatbed on them are somewhat popular as well, which fills the "pickup truck" need. I presume Britain is the same.
Sometimes I watch videos on YouTube of people just taking you on a walk through a small English village and one thing you notice is that over half the vehicles are hatchbacks. Lets be honest a hatchback would probably do the “truck duties” most pickups are used for over here. Getting groceries, picking up a new bike for the kids, maybe the odd bag of potting soil. Our pickups aren’t even utilitarian anymore. The beds are 7 feet off the ground and not rugged at all.
The Honda Accord is our family's pick-up. Last week we hauled $700 worth of groceries from Costco, a couple of shopping bags of bread and a box of wine bottles. With the back seat down we can haul a 6' Xmas tree (wrapped in 6 mil poly of course), or a bicycle. With the arm rest/ski pass through open we can haul a stack of 10' 2X4s or 1X6s. We haul bags of top soil and fertilizer. But we don't haul loose dirt or stones (not a lot at least) and of course sheets of plywood don't fit at all.
We have a trunk liner and by using a bit of care we haven't made a mark anywhere in the interior.
Large quantities (5 to 10 yards) of topsoil or mulch are delivered by a dump truck. But then most pick-up owners would do it that way too.
4WD
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That’s changed over time in Oz - (note Shannow posts) - or even top 10 Utes etc …
Origin is still utility - and pretty much slang anyway …
Just to add to all the above reasons, if a 1/2 pickup costs $50k in the US, could you imagine what the equivalent would cost in the UK?
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