The Reason Why Are Trucks Getting Bigger

The author makes a correct observation (trucks are getting bigger to circumvent emissions guidelines, not solely out of ego), but fails to address the underlying market demand: as trucks have gotten bigger, they've also gotten "meaner"[1]. Emissions requirements don't require a truck to look like it's going to beat you up.

In other words: consumer ego (wanting to drive a big, mean looking truck) is an underlying pressure in the market, even if the sufficient mover for the current size explosion is emissions dodging.

[1]: https://jalopnik.com/we-need-to-talk-about-truck-design-righ...

> as trucks have gotten bigger, they've also gotten "meaner"[1].

Or to be more precise: a current trend in automotive fashion is a larger grille, and some blogger framed that tendentiously for clicks.

And why is it the current trend in automotive (specifically, truck) fashion?

This is a weird indirection to introduce: of course it’s fashionable. The observation is that it’s fashionable because aggression is itself fashionable, at least to the target market.

I used Jalopnik as a source, since they’re a well known car website. I’ll try to find additional sources; I seem to recall an interview with a Ford or Chrysler exec a handful of years ago where they said, point blank, that aggressive front designs are a key selling point to their customer base.

> And why is it the current trend in automotive (specifically, truck) fashion?

It isn't just trucks. Someone posted a picture of a BMW sedan with a really big grille in this very thread. The Toyota Camrys* even has a similar design: https://www.cars.com/articles/how-the-2018-toyota-camrys-tri....

> The observation is that it’s fashionable because aggression is itself fashionable, at least to the target market.

It's just a big grille. I think the "aggression" aspect is more in the eye of the beholder (or the trolling concept).

> I seem to recall an interview with a Ford or Chrysler exec a handful of years ago where they said, point blank, that aggressive front designs are a key selling point to their customer base.

Assuming that's true, are you interpreting the word "aggressive" correctly? It has many senses besides "hostility", e.g.:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/aggressive:

> 3 : strong or emphatic in effect or intent

> aggressive colors

> aggressive flavors

Whoever responded about a BMW sedan isn’t me. I’m talking about US pickup trucks, since that’s what the original post is about.

The “aggressive” in the exec’s comment is my paraphrase, because I’m still looking for the original. It might have been “angry” or “violent,” for all I remember. Either way, the implication was clear: the trucks are meant to project hostility, not flamboyance.

> Whoever responded about a BMW sedan isn’t me. I’m talking about US pickup trucks, since that’s what the original post is about.

The point is it seems to be a general trend not exclusive to pickup trucks, which some blogger tendentiously latched onto get clicks by stirring up controversy and exploiting pickup truck hate.

Sure: there's a general trend towards cars projecting hostility. But again, this feels like a distraction at the best: pickup trucks, especially American ones, are exceptional in adopting the trend. The fact that we can pick out another kind of car that also does it doesn't disrupt the pattern.

It sounds like you're taking personal umbrage at the fact that people don't like these pickup trucks. I think it's worth taking a step back: I don't mind pickup trucks; I'd even go as far so say that I appreciate them for their place in the US's culture and history. But that doesn't mean I can't observe a trend, one that dovetails with latent anti-environmentalism, general disdain or disregard for pedestrians and other road traffic, &c.

> Sure: there's a general trend towards cars projecting hostility. But again, this feels like a distraction at the best: pickup trucks, especially American ones, are exceptional in adopting the trend. The fact that we can pick out another kind of car that also does it doesn't disrupt the pattern.

I don't know why you're so invested in salvaging that blogger's clickbait, against pretty compelling evidence. If it's a general trend, it makes no sense to read it as especially significant when applied to pickup trucks.

> It sounds like you're taking personal umbrage at the fact that people don't like these pickup trucks.

No, I just don't think it's a good idea to take clickbait or some random hot take as showing some kind of essential truth, especially in an area where there are biases to profitably exploit.

What compelling evidence? Is there something more than a BMW model that I'm missing?

The Jalopnik article is indeed a random hot take. But that doesn't mean the underlying claim ("pickup trucks are designed to be visually aggressive, and are marketed to their target customer base on that basis") is factually incorrect. I'm not aware of any bias that that's exploiting, other than the general aesthetic displeasure I see at a car that looks like it hates everything outside of it.