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The Reason Why Are Trucks Getting Bigger

(toddofmischief.blogspot.com)
173 points yasp | 7 comments | 11 Aug 22 13:06 UTC | HN request time: 0.718s | source | bottom
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bambax ◴[11 Aug 22 13:49 UTC] No.32425510[source]▶
An idea for a regulation would be to measure the ratio of maximum weight of living things that a vehicle can transport / weight of vehicle when empty, and make this ratio grow progressively bigger.

The ratio is probably around 0.1 today on average (just an intuition, I don't have the actual numbers), and ideally it should be close to 1, or maybe over 1.

For an ebike for example, it's around 3.

Moving 2-5 tons of metal to transport just one human being is positively insane.

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1. robin_reala ◴[11 Aug 22 13:52 UTC] No.32425562[source]▶
My car can happily seat 4 adults (so let’s say 250kg) and weighs a touch over 1000kg, so the ratio is 0.25. 0.1 would mean that a car that seats just 4 adults weighs 2.5 tonnes, which seems extreme?
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2. routeroff ◴[11 Aug 22 14:01 UTC] No.32425709[source]▶
A 2021 Chevrolet Silverado weight 5190 lbs [0], which is 2.35 tonnes, which is extreme but in the range of the article.

[0] https://www.edmunds.com/chevrolet/silverado-1500/2021/featur...

3. jeffbee ◴[11 Aug 22 14:02 UTC] No.32425725[source]▶
Have you heard of Rivian?
4. bambax ◴[11 Aug 22 14:06 UTC] No.32425801[source]▶
Yeah you're right, maybe closer to .15 or .2; the F-150 weights between 2 and 2.5 metric tons depending on configuration, and seats only 5.

The Yukon SUV that Arnold Schwarzenegger drives weights over 2.7 metric tons (6k pounds).

The Tesla truck is announced to pass the 8,500 pounds mark, or around 3.8 metric tons (!!)

5. mayniac ◴[11 Aug 22 14:07 UTC] No.32425807[source]▶
The average weight of a mid-sized sedan is about 1,500kg, and the average weight of all American cars is closer to 1,900kg. A 4-seater close to 1,000kg is exceptionally light by modern standards. The Mazda MX-5 is a 2-seater which is famous for being lightweight, and it also weighs a few kg above a ton.

Also going off maximum human capacity isn't great in context, as the average car journey has <1.5 occupants. Not to mention if this was codified, car manufacturers would simply put folding seats in the trunk.

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6. robin_reala ◴[11 Aug 22 14:23 UTC] No.32426092[source]▶
My previous car was an MX-5, so maybe I’m predisposed to picking light vehicles (current is a Suzuki Swift Sport).
7. bambax ◴[11 Aug 22 14:26 UTC] No.32426138[source]▶
> car manufacturers would simply put folding seats in the trunk

Fair enough, but then we could decide the relevant ratio is one human / GVW.