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Comment by avastmick | Hacker News Reader

I couldn't get any location information from the page, but I wonder if these are mostly rural? I live in New Zealand and while the vehicles are not seen here the makeup would seem to align with my experience - trucks (Utes as we call them), cheap old cars, or flashy cars. The problem with living rurally is that there may be no options to socialise without your car.

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Pickup trucks are very popular in the US, even for people with no special need for one (vs a car). It's a cultural thing.

>It's a cultural thing

While true, based on extensive data analysis, 100% of all conversations that start with "hey, hold my beer," ends with somebody getting into a truck and doing something ill-advised.

I'm curious about this - do you have any sort of source for that data?

To expand on this, there are a huge number of huge trucks in the US that get used as either single-person cars (often with the bed almost entirely unused) or as awkward replacements for family SUVs or minivans, and a huge number of family SUVs that get used as oversized, fuel-inefficient minivans.

Fortunately, we've at least seen the latter reverse itself somewhat with the rise of "crossovers", which are basically just a popularization of the Subaru Outback-style slightly-lifted wagon/hatchback with AWD.

I'm from Western New Zealand (Tasmania ;) )

Drink driving, no excuse. Monique will think you're dumb.

Especially if you've got a Ute or van, sleep in a swag in the back, or stay at ya mates place.

Pickups do skew rural and to blue collar trades in the US too.

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