The least expensive four cylinder BMW is over a foot longer and weighs 700 pounds more than my 1995 Club Sport. Sure, it's quicker but you it's FWD (or FWD based AWD) and you can't get one with three pedals. An excellent example of how Munich transitioned from building the Ultimate Driving Machine to building the Ultimate Wearing Machine.
What a difference 30 years makes
- Thread starter K-Man
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AZjeff
$50 Site Donor 2023
If the new Silverado is a 6.6 gas engine it has 400 hp and 464 lb/ft of torque. That much power makes lots of heat and needs lots of radiator to lose it. The current GM 5.3 makes 335 hp and 383 lb/ft in the 1500 and can tow 11,300. They aren't the same truck.
The size rant can be made for any model car or truck that has lasted from the 90s to now.
The size rant can be made for any model car or truck that has lasted from the 90s to now.
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- Sigmund Freud, probably
They are bigger for sure, but much more capable as well. Love those OBS though. I've owned 3 of them!
Traded a Mustang for this Long Bed, check out that gray Corsica I had at the time...
Shorty, I ended up giving this a 5/7 drop & stepside bed but no pics.
Traded a Mustang for this Long Bed, check out that gray Corsica I had at the time...
Shorty, I ended up giving this a 5/7 drop & stepside bed but no pics.
Radiator size is not the reason trucks are getting so big. Just make the radiator dual row (thicker) if you need more heat transfer.
V12 dual turbo 1000hp super cars produce a lot of heat. They don’t need to be giant because of radiators.
I think it’s more due to safety. Larger crumple zones, more iron between occupants and impact zones. More airbags, less glass, e.g.
The new ones grill is hideous.
Cooling is why the front is so big. CAFE is part of the reason the rest is so big.
That pic is deceiving. For sure the new one is bigger but not as much as they make it look in that picture probably due to the angle and maybe it’s not even 1:1 scale?
Anyways, what’s the point here? They are bigger? Ok, they make small trucks too, maverick, ranger, ridgeline, etc
That pic is deceiving. For sure the new one is bigger but not as much as they make it look in that picture probably due to the angle and maybe it’s not even 1:1 scale?
Anyways, what’s the point here? They are bigger? Ok, they make small trucks too, maverick, ranger, ridgeline, etc
1000hp supper cars don’t pull 30,000 lbs up a grade, they go fast when they are paling power meaning more air flow= more cooling.
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
No - But they are great for dinner dates …
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I hate them honestly - the new ones, that is. And I like pickups. They've just gotten so big and overly luxurized and complicated they've lost what made trucks cool, imo - relatively inexpensive to buy and own, reliable, fun to drive, attractive. The behemoths now being sold as work trucks or everyday drivers are completely unappealing to me. So few choices now, too.
4wd
$50 site donor 2026
Get the Martin Bros to build you one …
Ok, then show me how the newer truck radiators have grown tremendously in size.
Here’s a 2020 f-150 radiator.
Here’s a 1995.
Not much size difference. Gain of 3 inches in width. Radiators are not the reason trucks have huge front ends. I’ve never seen a single article state that the reason for growing trucks is due to radiators. It’s always other reasons.
I don't see why this matters. These newer trucks tow more, handle more weight and get better fuel mileage, especially when not towing. And have better safety in a crash. They are more comfortable.
This is a good thing for those who love large(er) vehicles.
I remember, my father loved a large car. In the later 70s-early 80s when cars were getting smaller, he had complained about their smaller size. Dad also had a customer who always owned Cadillac's. The BIG ones. At that same time, this customer had the same complaint about the smaller size of the Cadillac that he alway purchased, becoming smaller. This customer said, "I want a Cadillac, not a Chevrolet"!
Today as I understand it, the size of the vehicles determines how the manufacture reports its fuel economy to the EPA. Which I'm sure is only one reason why vehicles are getting larger. Otherwise, they would have to get higher EPA fuel economy score.
Another reason that there are no more little trucks such as the size of the original S10 for example. Or another example:
The '22 Civic(non Turbo) in my signature is larger that some of the older Accords that I've owned. Nicer too! Smaller displacement but more powerful engine, quieter, better riding and better fuel economy.
I remember, my father loved a large car. In the later 70s-early 80s when cars were getting smaller, he had complained about their smaller size. Dad also had a customer who always owned Cadillac's. The BIG ones. At that same time, this customer had the same complaint about the smaller size of the Cadillac that he alway purchased, becoming smaller. This customer said, "I want a Cadillac, not a Chevrolet"!
Today as I understand it, the size of the vehicles determines how the manufacture reports its fuel economy to the EPA. Which I'm sure is only one reason why vehicles are getting larger. Otherwise, they would have to get higher EPA fuel economy score.
Another reason that there are no more little trucks such as the size of the original S10 for example. Or another example:
The '22 Civic(non Turbo) in my signature is larger that some of the older Accords that I've owned. Nicer too! Smaller displacement but more powerful engine, quieter, better riding and better fuel economy.
I do not agree with the towing capacity portion of your statement.....realistically. All others yes 100%.
The reason is somewhat simple. Regularly towed trailers are not heavier than they were 30 years ago, with the exception of some of the huge RVs out there, and Hotshot type trucking.
The vast majority of folks who tow trailer on a daily basis, tow equipment on a daily basis. Generally in the 5000 to 15000 lbs range. There are these GM 90s trucks and early 2000s trucks out on the road today, still doing this work with over 200K on the clock of hard miles.
Tow "ratings" are for sales purposes.
The new L8T is a tow beast, for sure.......but as some have said, will they be around in 20 years, likely not.
I have a 1990 Ford Ranger XLT and a 2007 Ram Laramie. The ride is much smoother and very quiet on the Ram , but when I go out the door and get in a truck I usually choose the Ranger. You can just fall in to it as apposed to climbing into the Ram. Parking the Ranger is easy and you can reach over the side of it to grab your whatever.
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All the new models are getting taller bodies but not more ground clearance. I noticed it a while back when a new model Ram pulled up next to my old one in the parking lot. Mine is lifted five inches and the new ram is the same height as mine. Yet you can see under mine while the new one is lower to the ground.
The old truck has 8 lug wheels. It’s a 3/4 ton. 1/2 ton 4WD’s have 6 lugs.
Your old truck hp numbers are wrong too. Nobody is saying tech hasn’t advanced over 30 years.
2024 Silverado HD radiator: https://www.radiatorexpress.com/product/radiator/chevrolet/2024/silverado 2500 hd/base/66l-v8/241684/c510689
Core Dimensions: 34 1/2 x 30 5/8 (diesel) = 1056.6 sq in
Core Dimensions: 37 1/2 x 23 1/4 (gas) = 871.9 sq in
1997 C3500 radiator: https://www.radiatorexpress.com/product/radiator/chevrolet/1997/c3500/base/74l-v8/221391/1034626
Core Dimensions: 34 x 19 1/4 = 654.5 sq in
That's a size increase of 61% and 33%, respectively.
That's only half the story. The other half is airflow management through the CRFM. Looking at the size of the grill openings, you can pretty well see the new trucks have much larger areas for air to enter. That's obvious. Within that area, how much air entering the opening is actually flowing through the coolers? Arguing against that is arguing against 30 years of development in CFD.
Basically, the radiator in the old truck is larger than it needs to be because the design of the vehicle foundationally has less airflow and less cooling capacity. If only 50% of the air entering the grill actually makes it through the radiator, that radiator needs to be 100% larger for the same cooling (this math is for demonstration purposes, not reality).
If you'd actually like to learn a little about this, here's an pretty in-depth article about the solutioning neceessary for getting a better tow rating on the Jeep Gladiator. Hint: Cooling capacity was the limiting factor but the couldn't make the CRFM larger.
https://www.jalopnik.com/the-engineering-behind-the-jeep-gladiators-tow-rating-1833657453/
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