Y’all like trucks, right? Sure you do. Everybody likes trucks. Okay, maybe not, but I bet if you need to move a refrigerator or something, you suddenly really like your friend who has a truck. But the question today is, how big does a truck need to be, really?
Yesterday we looked at two V8-powered coupes from different eras, and I had a feeling the Mercury Cougar was going to take the win. It’s the safe, sane choice of the two, the car you could actually use every day if you wanted to, with air conditioning and fuel injection and disc brakes and all the other advances provided by the twenty-year age gap between it and the Buick.
But there’s just something about those old bubbletop GM coupes that’s hard to resist, and I had forgotten how handsome Buick’s version is. Yeah, the interior is sketchy and the engine isn’t original (which I would have realized if I had done more than glance at the photo), but it’s a running, driving early ’60s classic for three grand.
The other day, I went to the local big-box chain hardware store, and as I was walking in, an early ’90s Toyota pickup rolled by. I was struck by just how small it really was, especially compared to the behemoth Rams and Fords and GMCs in the parking lot. And yet, it still can haul a half-ton of whatever will fit in its six-foot bed, with that old 22R-E happily chugging along. It’s as much truck as most people will ever need, unless you’re really hauling or towing heavy stuff.
But even that little Toyota is overkill for, say, puttering around a college campus and emptying trash cans. You can get by with something even smaller, like one of our trucks today. And even though it isn’t capable of highway speeds, that doesn’t matter; it probably fits in the bed of our other choice. Let’s take a look.
1967 Cushman Truckster – $3,000
Engine/drivetrain: Overhead valve flat 2 of unknown size, three-speed manual, RWD
Location: Boulder, CO
Odometer reading: Doesn’t have one, I don’t think
Operational status: Runs and drives great
All over the world, vehicles smaller than typical cars do all kinds of chores every day. We see them all the time, but rarely think about them. Cushman, founded in 1903 in Lincoln, Nebraska, made a business out of such vehicles, as well as motor scooters, golf carts, and agricultural engines. The Truckster, made in dozens of different forms over the years, has been used for mail delivery, groundskeeping, parking enforcement, and more. This one dates from 1967, and wears Harley-Davidson stickers, though I don’t know if it actually has any connection to Harley.
It’s a little hard to find specifications on these things, as you might imagine, but as far as I can tell, this Truckster is powered by an 18 horsepower air-cooled flat-twin, driving a conventional rear axle through a column-shifted three-speed manual. Top speed is about 30 miles an hour, plenty for running around in an enclosed environment. Obviously it’s not street-legal most places. It does run and drive well, the seller says, and I did find a few sources for tune-up and maintenance parts, so keeping it running in the future should be possible.
The engine is under the single seat, and although it’s a three-wheeler, it does have a conventional steering wheel instead of handlebars like the similar Piaggio Ape. It does not appear to have side curtains or doors, nor does it have a windshield wiper, so it’s strictly a fair-weather friend. The windshield has a crack, but I think it’s Plexiglas, and you’ll never find a replacement, so you may have to just live with it.
The cute little pickup bed is just the right size for a few yard tools and a bucket or two. I don’t know what the weight capacity of it is, but it’s probably more than you’d guess. The whole thing looks like it has been painted recently, and I get the feeling that it’s in rougher shape than it appears at first glance. But it’s a utility vehicle; you can’t expect it to have been coddled.
1994 Ford F-250 XL – $1,750
Engine/drivetrain: 460 cubic inch overhead valve V8, four-speed manual, RWD
Location: Vancouver, WA
Odometer reading: 180,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives great
Speaking of vehicles that aren’t meant to be coddled, here we have a good old Ford F-250, in the working-class XL trim. It’s a single cab with an eight-foot bed, the classic work-truck configuration. And if that didn’t cement its work credentials well enough, it has a ladder rack, and an air compressor mounted in the bed.
Under the hood of this beast of burden is Ford’s biggest gasoline engine, a 460 cubic inch V8, driving the rear axle through a four-speed manual. It’s probably overkill for most of the use this truck will see, but better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it – take it from someone who owns (and overworks) a six-cylinder truck. The tradeoff is fuel consumption; I’ve heard that trucks equipped with this engine average 10 MPG no matter what they’re doing. The seller says this one runs and drives well, and is ready to go to work.
You don’t expect work trucks to be luxurious inside, and some rips and tears are just par for the course. This one looks like it was mainly driven with just one person in the cab; the driver’s side of the big bench seat is beat to hell, but the passenger’s side looks fine. No word on whether or not it has air conditioning, but it certainly doesn’t have any other amenities.
It’s straight and rust-free, but the paint is toast. It still has the logo of the landscaping company that owned it on the doors; the next owner should probably take those off. And if you have no use for that gigantic air compressor in the bed, you could probably sell it and recoup quite a bit of the cost of the truck.
Yes, I know this is a silly comparison. But I saw that Cushman for sale and I just had to. So the question stands: How much truck do you need? Would a little three-wheeled glorified golf cart do you, or are you in need of a three-quarter ton monster with a gigantic V8?
The Cushman is adorable, but I can’t resist a brick-nose manual F-Series in the only acceptable color for a pickup. We’ll take the Ford.
I went into this expecting to pick the Cushman just because it’s kinda fun, but the F-250 is too good a deal. Plus it could legally leave my house.
I’m taking the Ford.
With that 460 under the hood, it would cost me another $950 in gasoline alone to get it home. The total would still be less than the useless Cushman, and the all-in cost still very much underpriced relative to other F-250s around here. And that’s not even counting the sale of the compressor and/or ladder rack, both of which are worth at least few hundred dollars each.
Had a worker at my middle school that was killed when the Cushman he was driving rolled over in a turn, threw him from the vehicle and trapped him underneath. Not sure how these are still legal or on the road still, but they are not cute if they are being used for anything other than a lawn ornament
This. When we were kids in the late 1960’s the country club used these for ball retrieval on the driving range, and grounds keeping. They were near new and never ran well even then.
And a hard left turn would eject any passenger out into the grass.
A hard NO today.
I voted for the Ford but I would have rather voted for the early 90s Toyota you saw at the big box store.
They aren’t that great on gas and when the timing chain cover gasket starts leaking oil and you have to tear half the motor apart to replace it you’ll realize they aren’t perfect either.
Oh I know, I had the head off my old Taco twice in the 327K miles I owned it, but I’d still rather one of those over either of these. The devil you know and all that.
The red truck wins by default
I’m only picking the Cushman today because it would be the perfect transportation around Lime Rock Park during their annual vintage festival. It has a lot more character than the rental golf carts or the lifted bro golf carts that infest the facility. Just replace the Harley-Davidson stickers with something more appropriate in age and demographic and you’ll win something. Heck, clean it up and you might not even go home with it.
Otherwise I have no interest in either.
If the prices were the same, I might go for the family truckster, but with that price? Heck no. I’ll take the ford.
I really want them both, but I have nowhere to drive the Cushman. I also have a soft spot for those old school aluminum full length running boards on the F-250. I wish they made them for my ’06 GMC Sierra. Those, combined with the 460/4-speed combo, I’ll take the Ferd.
Today’s choice is all about the value proposition. If the prices were reversed, maybe the Cushman? Maybe???
As things sit though, there’s just too much extra capability in the Ford to even think about a $3,000 ornament for the man cave garage.
Cushman, fuck yes! Pretty sure I can plate this in Illinois as a motorcycle, I’ve seen a few around.
A truck for me means being able to tow and haul. I could see using the Cushman for some landscaping around the house or something like that, but I’d probably rather go with a Kei truck or SxS for that purpose. The F-250 though feels just right. Being in the Midwest any rust free working truck at that price would be an absolute steal. With an interior and exterior that you wouldn’t mind adding any dents, scrapes, or tears it is ready for work.
Logically, I know the F250 offers more utility for less money. But look at that little Cushman!
But, yeah, if I were buying, I’d buy the Ford. Same price, I might choose differently.
Big Honkin Truck please.
OOOHHH The F-250 is new enough to have headrests.
I have owned old 2wd f-250. I am only picking this one because it may be profitable to part the thing out at that price.
I’ve worked on a few of those Cushman Truckster’s. They used different engines over the years (or people did random engine swaps?), but most from the late 60’s have 2-cylinder opposed engines made by OMC – Outboard Marine Corporation – Wikipedia. I highly recommend adding lead additives to your gas, because it’s easy to burn the valves on these.
30mph is generous and it depends on which rear end it has. The meter maid version had a higher speed diff that supposedly could get up to 45mph. Others were mostly utility vehicles with high gear ratios. If we assume the seller is being honest, this one has one of the middle ratios. That would mean it’s not the desirable high-speed meter maid version, and it’s also not the interesting utility vehicle that has a hi/lo secondary gearbox in front of the diff and a PTO on the transmission.
That windshield is made of glass and is unobtainium. You’re best off leaving it cracked.
All that said, $3k for this is crack pipe despite its excellent condition. Best thing to do with it is to swap in a high speed rear end from a trashed meter maid Truckster, consider an engine swap, and then go act silly in it.
[Edit: Depending on your state it’s pretty easy to register these as street-legal motorcycles. My state doesn’t even require turn signals unless it had them OEM.]
Now if you’d picked a proper 3 wheeled truck, like a Piaggio Ape, we’d have had a discussion here.
But today I’m picking the one I can legally drive on the road, since I live on a road with a 60km/h speed limit.
The last time I saw Cushmans rolling around here in PA, they were assigned to the parking authorities of both Allentown and Bethlehem, and that was in the 70’s/80’s. Fairly certain that they’re not street legal for normal folks like me. Having one might be fun for a bit, but the utility of that Ford is what I’m coming after today. I’d love to have something like this honest/earnest F-250 at my disposal.
That Cushman is way too expensive, I paid less for 2003 Civic, an actual car with doors and uncracked windows, capable of hauling my entire family. Plus the truck has a big block, which can likely be sold for close to the cost of the whole thing.
The best classic F150 work trucks are powered by the legendary and far thriftier 300 I6, full stop. So the gas-guzzler is right out.
The Cushman has an entire collector fan club out there, and little opposed twins are interesting small engines to tinker with. Since one of my retirement options to take in the next decade or so is possibly moving somewhere more rural with a long driveway, the Cushman would make a handy ride out to the mailbox or to haul the trash cans.
The Cushman would be more fun, but that Ford is too good a deal, especially with the 460!
In my state, you can register pretty much anything. Lots of people drive UTVs with tags, soI bet if I kept a straight face at the tag agency, I could probably get a plate for that Cushman. I voted for it, just for the lols.
The F250’s honest (and looks really straight for a 31 year old truck) while the Cushman looks to have been painted with a rattle can directly over the rust. I also like how the bed’s not too small and you can actually use it without having to deploy a staircase. Not only would I take it over the Cushman, I’d take it over a modern truck.
If I lived in a retirement community in Florida, I would take the Cushman and drive around all day in bib overalls with a plug of Mail Pouch in, spitting on all of the perfectly manicured lawns. But since I don’t, I have to go with the F-250, which I would also drive wearing bib overalls and a big plug of Mail Pouch, spitting on Teslas.
Today would be a heavy ‘neither’ for me as I already have 2 pickup trucks and no place to use the Cushman.
But if pushed, I’ll take the F250 as at least it would be useful. The Cushman not being road legal would just make it a marginally interesting (very marginally) garage ornament.