Quote:
Originally Posted by bestclimb
I fell for this line of thought before the 2wd rig I have is less than useless for half the year, the other half it is very limited. A 2wd truck works for you and that's great for most people though if they are going to use it off road 2wd is a severe penalty.
If you are going off road bring some recovery gear, jack shovel, hand winch and a snatch strap at least. With 2wd you get stuck in a spot that a 4wd will just walk through. Getting stuck has less to do with the vehicle and more to do with the driver misreading the vehicle's capabilities.
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I think we should distinguish what is meant by "off road". I daily run quite a few miles on "unpaved" oil lease roads. 4WD is not an advantage long term. Higher up front costs,
far higher maintenance costs, and the FE penalty (not to mention on-road safety penalty due to poorer braking and greater rollover propensity). The Forest Service roads in the Lower 48 have some similarities, but
it would be the grades (up & down) that are the big difference that would make 4WD a more likely choice.
If the OP has some business reason (income-generating or offsetting) to run unpaved roads in and out of the hills or mountains I'd imagine he'd say so. And I'd agree that those "roads" and places where roads don't exist are the province of 4WD. In which case truck spec rules out 30-mpg (short of some world-truck Japanese diesel which are not sold here) for on-road economy.
Fuel economy means trade-offs. The lack of "convenience" means being slower.
It comes down to the payload. What are all the costs involved in the "convenience" of a pickup truck? It
may be possible to have a small pickup that comes close to averaging 30-mpg . . but it sure won't be easy, either. Not on a small budget. Trailers have the advantage, thus far (until the OP more clearly defines needs over wants).
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