Test-driving four pickup trucks reminded me of our trip to Europe several years ago.
After leaving some of the cities, our daughters would say, "If we ever move, let's move there."After we had driven the pickups - each for one week - my wife would say, "Let's keep this one."
Unfortunately, at week's end we had to surrender the keys.
The four vehicles tested were a Chevrolet S-1O maxi cab fleetside, a Ford Ranger Supercab XLT, a Dodge Dakota Club Cab 4x4 and a Ford Ranger 4x4 Splash.
All were very comfortable and had all the amenities of an automobile, such as air conditioning, cruise control, power windows and door locks and, in some cases, a sliding rear window.
I had ample legroom and headroom for my 6-foot-1-inch frame, although I felt a little cramped in the Splash.
The visibility was excellent, in part because you are seated slightly higher than in a passenger car.
"Wow, you can't tell you're in a pickup," my neighbor observed, sitting in the cab to check out the view - and the ambience. He was right. Unless you glance into the rearview mirror, you can easily forget you are driving a pickup.
All except the Splash had extended cabs, meaning there was space behind the seats for groceries or luggage.
All but the Splash also had jump seats - fold-down seats mounted behind the front seat - although I certainly wouldn't want to ride in them for any great distance. To call the space cramped is an understatement.
But unless you are buying a pickup only for day-to-day use around town, I highly recommend the additional cost of an extended cab. If nothing else, it provides more security for valuables while on a trip and will add about 25 cubic feet to the interior.
Remember, it is a truck - as carlike as they feel these days - and there is no trunk. So if you don't have that extra cab space, your only storage choice for things that don't fit in the glove compartment is the cab or the open truck bed.
The vehicle that drew the most attention during the weeklong tests was the Ford Splash, partly due, I'm certain, to its bright red color.
Splash was an appropriate name since it was raining hard the first time I drove it. And it handled like a charm.
The waitresses at a neighborhood restaurant were wide-eyed with admiration when they saw us drive into the parking lot. Ford calls the Splash its "youth truck." The brochure says it is designed to "appeal to younger buyers, women and other nontraditional pickup truck buyers who are crossing over from the car market."
The Splash was a big hit with the waitresses.
The Splash we drove was equipped with a 4.O-liter V6 engine and carried a price tag of $2O,696.
The Chevy S-1O was equipped with a 4.3-liter V6 power plant and the Ranger XLT had a 4.O V6 engine. Each was rated at about 17 mpg city and 22 mpg highway.
Including destination charges, and before discounts, the list price for the S-1O was $15,771 and the Ranger $18,382.
The Dodge Dakota was the most expensive of the four vehicles tested. However, it must be noted it was a 4x4 and came with a 5.2-liter V8 powerplant. The list price on the Dakota was $22,98O before discounts.
All four had plenty of pep and handled well.
The decision on whether or not to buy a pickup is a personal one. It could serve as a second car, unless the second vehicle is needed to ferry children to and from school, ballgames, dance classes or the like.
If you are a homeowner, how many times have you wished you had a pickup to haul lumber or that sheet of plywood instead of having to tie it to the top of your car?
Then again, you may be like a friend of mine who needed to replace his family's second car. I suggested a pickup.
"No," he said. "I don't want a pickup. But I wish my neighbor had one so I could borrow it!"