Mazda mx3 as TRUCK

[Mooneggs]

what if we combined the mx-3 dually idea with that mx-3 pickup truck - would that make it more legit?? LOL

[Dragon1212]

what if we combined the mx-3 dually idea with that mx-3 pickup truck - would that make it more legit?? LOL

Change the suspension to an actual truck style then yes.

[Ryan]

Still no.

Sorry.

call it a Cruck if you must call it anything. Definitely puts the word truck to shame.

[Inodoro Pereyra]

Let me put it this way: If I need to get a KL for my next swap, an MX-3 "truck" would be perfect for the job. If I kept the hatch on it, I'd go crazy to fit the engine in the back. If I need to go to Home Depot to get 3 or 4 bags of concrete, or a few 2x4's or if I need to go to my favorite hardware store to get some tools, this truck would do the job beautifully. And then, when I DON'T need to haul any cargo, it's still a car, so I can still use it every day, without having to mortgage my underwear to fill the tank up.

In all those cases (and in most common scenarios, at least in MY life), using what the typical American would consider a "proper truck" would be like burning down a house to kill a fly. And for the cases when you do need the room, it's much easier (and cheaper) to go rent one for the day.

[Ryan]

Clearly you're a city person, so I'll just accept that you don't understand how it is out here. I accept that I don't understand the need for a Cruck, and its still a useless(and now ugly) truck variant. Laughable, honestly.


Note you can fit a full 4x8 sheet of 3/4 MDF plywood in a fully intact MX-3.

Let me hate on it some more:

Exposed strut mounts. A truck's nature is to be washed when it rains. Those suspension mounts will last a month.

No bedliner. not only will you scratch the crap out of the pretty paint job, it will dent and fold and ding and therfore rust with any use.

No structural box walls. You can't put anything heavy in it that has one dimension larger than the box.

No structural box bottom, you'll break through if you load it in the wrong place.

No drain holes that I can see. Durr.

No tailgate. You gotta lift the s--- just as high as with a hatch.

No means of fastening a load, aside from the wheel wells (non structural, and once again, nick-> rust issues)

Suspension is ridiculously inadequate. Not only will it handle dangerously, your headlights are now a hazard to oncoming drivers.

Insufficient HP and braking power with a heavy load. You're now a problem at stop lights and you have no ability to slow down in an emergency.

If you need a city person truck, go get a little mazda/toyota/ford/GM 4 banger truck.

[Inodoro Pereyra]

Nah.
You of all people, as a future engineer, should know that argument is not valid.
I've had that same discussion before (together with many other guys from several different countries)i another forum. I've read all the excuses.
Bottom line: the US is not the only country in the World with mountains, snow, dirt roads, long distances, ditches, you name it. Yet it IS the only country in the World where people need a 5+ liter engine to haul around a sheet of plywood twice a year.
Curiously enough, that same argument you're using against these "crucks", as you call them, is the argument the V8 crowd uses against Japanese cars in general, and particularly against our "chick's cars".
Google "Renault Express", "Fiat Fiorino" and "Volkswagen Saveiro". I've driven all 3 of them. I've hauled almost 1/2 ton on a Fiorino, with its tiny 1.4L engine, without incident. Yet here you need a dually to go to the supermarket.

[tehbrookzorz]

I watched a showdown today between two Megacab, long box Dodge Rams today, trying to navigate a corner in the parking lot from opposing sides.



If you need a truck, sure, use one. The majority of truck owners don't understand that they don't need a truck.

The majority of SUV owners never leave the pavement, and many SUVs are now made with that in mind. I personally don't see why minivans get such a bad rap. They are much more functional and comfortable.

But who am I to talk? I have an MX-3, a Celica, a Mazda6, an F150 and a CBR600RR...

[_-Night-Shade-_]

It's more of an El Camino wannabe. The exposed rear strut mounts are hilarious.

[Evo_Spec]

Let me hate on it some more:

Exposed strut mounts. A truck's nature is to be washed when it rains. Those suspension mounts will last a month.

No bedliner. not only will you scratch the crap out of the pretty paint job, it will dent and fold and ding and therfore rust with any use.

No structural box walls. You can't put anything heavy in it that has one dimension larger than the box.

No structural box bottom, you'll break through if you load it in the wrong place.

No drain holes that I can see. Durr.

No tailgate. You gotta lift the s--- just as high as with a hatch.

No means of fastening a load, aside from the wheel wells (non structural, and once again, nick-> rust issues)

Suspension is ridiculously inadequate. Not only will it handle dangerously, your headlights are now a hazard to oncoming drivers.

Insufficient HP and braking power with a heavy load. You're now a problem at stop lights and you have no ability to slow down in an emergency.

Now i'm not an engineer or anything but it seems that you are talking about THIS specific cruck while the others seem to be talking about the idea of a cruck in general.

Assuming the others are talking about the idea of a cruck, a lot of the points you made could be easily solved.

Exposed Strut mount - just make some kind of cover that you screw on or bolt down or something
Bedliner - apply some or even go the extra step of making a plastic liner like trucks have
Structural Box walls - not sure exactly what you mean but i assume you mean the size of the bed. IMO this would be enough space for most people i've only had an mx-3 and celica so obviously i don't move things large enough to need a truck.
In Japan their trucks are mainly like this VVVVVV and seem to work great for most people in Japan. That may not look small but they are

Structural box bottom - i'm sure you could reinforce it to be strong enough by welding beams or something (that mx-3 might even already have it)
Drain hole - drill holes XD
Fastening a load - maybe weld on some hooks or weld a square beam with square holes on the top sides of the bed like trucks have (obviously not in this specific mx-3)
HP and stop power - modify these to be adequate (obviously will cost money, but again, just talking about the idea of a mx-3 cruck)


So really all that really leaves is suspension and tailgate which i agree could be a problem
i agree with you on the tailgate, it would suck a** to have to lift whatever you want over and into the bed, but as long as nothing is overly heavy this wouldn't be a problem at all, same with the suspension, if you didn't fill it with bricks or gravel or something it would mostly be ok i think.
if you really wanted one you could make a tailgate but you'd have to lose the factory tail lights or cut them in half or something then make a tailgate that could swing open/closed but this along with my idea of maybe substituting the stock suspension with truck suspension would require major fabrication which i don't really see to be worth the effort.

[MrMazda92]

Still no.

Sorry.

call it a Cruck if you must call it anything. Definitely puts the word truck to shame.

So do jacked up POS wagons with dual 4" exhaust and an orange flag, especially with 2 month old mud the driver thinks adds to the look. Little does he know...

Those are what people call 'trucks' in my city. Almost as bad as the soccermoms who have never, and will never use the bed for anything but soccerballs. I mean s---, buy a suburban... Really -.- twice the utility, and she wouldn't look like a tool.

[MrMazda92]

Side note, I've had 8 passengers in my MX-3 before. 9 countin myself, and that's with my sub in. Wasn't fast, but it didn't drag either.

[MrMazda92]

I watched a showdown today between two Megacab, long box Dodge Rams today, trying to navigate a corner in the parking lot from opposing sides.



If you need a truck, sure, use one. The majority of truck owners don't understand that they don't need a truck.

The majority of SUV owners never leave the payment, and many SUVs are now made with that in mind. I personally don't see why minivans get such a bad rap. They are much more functional and comfortable.

But who am I to talk? I have an MX-3, a Celica, a Mazda6, an F150 and a CBR600RR...

Hands down the best explanation yet. Buy a truck, IF you need a truck!
All of the local wannabe 'rednecks' drive either 4 banger Nissan pickups, or old nasty ford/chevy rust buckets that drop more mufflers/hubcaps/bits of rusty idfk what, and more! I literally have yet to see them use the bed once. The same goes for buying your 16 year old daughter a brand new dodge ram, WTF is she gonna do with that? She lives in the south hills getting spray tans and manicures. Give the brat a miata so she can get a real tan -.-

[/rant]

[Ryan]

We actually use our trucks....

my brother and I run a tree trimming business in summer (winter sometimes too) and we load his box, and a 40' trailer to the NADS. We do lots more than that, too.

He also has a 97 civic to commute in.

My brother in law/sister own a dairy/ag farm, and they use their trucks daily for innumerable things. They actually don't commute anywhere that they don't need a truck. Only to the city to pick up stuff (equipment, feed, minerals, more equipment).

I agree with you, I hate on anyone with chrome rims and a 12" suspension lift (the point where you can't get a trailer on the hitch or a gooseneck in it, even)

Typical truck here:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak- ... 2805_n.jpg
Just add dents, mud, rust, and farm vehicle tags.

If you're a farmer, why would you buy a piece of equipement that won't meet all your needs? Sure, 80% of the time you only need a little 4 banger, but when you NEED the v8 to move a 20 head cattle trailer, you're a douchebag if you don't have the equipment for it, especially after 30 years of farming.

Same reason you buy a $400 000 combine that you use for maybe 100 hours / year.

[Inodoro Pereyra]

Typical truck here:

http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak- ... 2805_n.jpg
Just add dents, mud, rust, and farm vehicle tags.

If you're a farmer, why would you buy a piece of equipement that won't meet all your needs? Sure, 80% of the time you only need a little 4 banger, but when you NEED the v8 to move a 20 head cattle trailer, you're a douchebag if you don't have the equipment for it, especially after 30 years of farming.

Same reason you buy a $400 000 combine that you use for maybe 100 hours / year.

I agree, IF you need it. But, seriously, how many truck owners really need their trucks, and how many "need" them only to go to the mall?
But about needing a big displacement V8, no, sorry, that's BS.

In the '60s, Mercedes Benz Argentina (then Daimler-Benz), started producing this little puppy:




Uploaded with ImageShack.us

It is known as the "Mercedes Benz 1114", and comes equipped (as it's name implies) with a 140 bhp 4 cylinder Diesel engine. That truck has been transporting all kinds of cargo (yes, including cattle, grain, and even heavy machinery) for almost 50 years, and it's still going strong.
Mind you, in Argentina we not only have pretty nasty roads (in some parts), but we also have the highest peaks of the whole continent, some very nasty weather, and pretty much any and all "bad conditions" you can think of.
And then again, that's only one example, that I know of.
Finally, you get a combine, just like you said, to use it 100 hrs a year in the FIELD. You don't use it to go to the movie theater. And combines are pretty much the same all around the World, because they're PURPOSE BUILT. That's hardly the case with most trucks.

[tehbrookzorz]

we load his box to the NADS.

You gotta stop doing that.