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In the past, trucks used to be confined to the work site. These workhorses were engineered and optimized to haul, tow and traverse whatever material and terrain you threw at them. And when you’d get home from work, you’d park the truck in the driveway, hang up the truck’s keys and grab the set of hatchback keys to take the kids out for ice cream. The work vehicle and the family vehicle existed separately.
But that’s not the case anymore. For a number of reasons explained below, the pickup truck is becoming (if it hasn’t already become) the new family vehicle. How did this workhorse break out of the typecast role it had to become the most versatile vehicle in the modern driveway? Let’s find out.
Hitting Two Birds with One Stone
A key reason that pickup trucks are becoming the new family car is that they hit two birds with one stone. If a single vehicle can perform in a work context, and still be safe enough, comfortable enough and roomy enough to accommodate the whole family, buyers will take note.
Consolidating your family and work needs in a single pickup truck is more economical, but it’s also less limiting. You can pack camping gear and mountain bikes in the cab; you can tow a boat; and you can load all the hockey gear, groceries and gardening supplies without having to make multiple trips. There’s a reason your local Ford dealership is selling so many F-150s.
Pickups Are Safer than Ever
Families looking for a vehicle have a number of priorities – but at the top of the list is safety. It makes sense, then, that parents are increasingly looking to pickup trucks to safely transport their precious cargo. The size and weight of a pickup truck has always been a selling point in terms of its work capabilities, but that mass also makes it a safer choice. As Edmunds points out, a bigger vehicle is safer than a smaller vehicle: it’s an undeniable matter of physics.
Add to that the fact that modern pickup trucks are safer than ever, with popular pickups like the Ford F-150 scoring ace safety ratings from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
The Comfort Factor
Pickup trucks have also come a long way in the comfort department. A far cry from the relatively bare-bones interiors of olden day pickup trucks, modern vehicles like the aforementioned Ford F-150 are spacious, comfortably upholstered and easy to access. They’re as ideal for road trips as they are for trips to the hardware store.
A Natural Evolution
Finally, to understand the rise of pickup trucks as a family vehicle, you have to look at family vehicles of the past. The minivan, once the go-to choice for families, has slowly been replaced in the past 30 years by the brawnier, more truck-like SUV. It’s natural that, from there, the evolution of the family vehicle would head in the direction of the more versatile pickup truck.
With safety, comfort and versatility on its side, it’s easy to see why pickup trucks like the Ford F-150 have become so popular with families.
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This content is sponsored by Mike John.
Photo: Shutterstock