1978 Toyota Crew-Cab truck (kind of neat)

[zero]

I wonder what it had for the dually rear? I suspect it had "arm-strong" power-steering.

[darrel]

I bought one of them new in 1978. The rear dullies were welded together and never ran round. Complained to toyota and they sent me a set of wheeles that bolted together, still a 5 lug but was much better. Times got tough and had to sell it. The rear seat was impossible to get into except for a child. There is one sitting down the road from me. Darrel

[MontanaChinook]

That looks like the "custom cabs" I've seen that somebody built from the 84-88 models. Fiberglass cab extension, pretty shady frame extensions. Not dualies, though.

[linda s]

Toyota apparently did make some early trucks with 4 doors and crew cab. Galvanized Knight is currently looking for one for his next project. I have seen only one ever and it was pretty much junk sitting in a field.

Linda S

Just did some looking around and the earliest one I could find is 1982 for the full crew cab.

[MontanaChinook]

They're around, but overseas (or south america) For whatever reason, crew cabs and diesels were not something that made it into the US, from Toyota anyways.

[linda s]

Found one of those 1982 Crew cabs on Ebay.Pretty nice one too

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1982-Toyota-Hilux-Pickup-4X4-Double-Cab-Diesel-Manual-Transmission-RHD-/221240203370?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item3382f1986a

Linda S

It is an import though. Right hand drive

[zero]

They're around, but overseas (or south america) For whatever reason, crew cabs and diesels were not something that made it into the US, from Toyota anyways.

US consumers would of never tolerated the lack of power with that 2 liter diesel. it probably has the horsepower and torque of a 1.6 liter gas engine. People whined and complained about the mini-pickups with 2WD and 2.2 liter diesels as sold in the USA by Ford (Ranger, Bronco), Dodge (Ram 50), Chevy (S10, Blazer, LUV, Isuzu (PUP), etc. Even when Ford offered a turbo on the bigger 2.3 diesel in Ranger pickups and Bronco IIs they got flooded with complaints about lack of power.

Seems the vast majority of people in the USA are spoiled by power. My neighbor ordered a brand new diesel Chevy pickup in 1982. He traded in his 1979 Chevy pickup with a 350 gas engine. The new one came with a 379 c.i. diesel. He kept it ONE day and return it for what he called a "severe" lack of power. Even though he was a heavy equipment operator - he could not get it into his head that diesels always make less power then equal sized and aspirated gas engines.

[Maineah]

The local Toyota dealer when I lived in MD gave me a new Toyota diesel pickup to drive one weekend fun little truck no power but I drove it all weekend on less then 3 gallons of diesel! I can't remember how long they imported them I'm thinking 2 years was not a big seller. The modern DI turbo diesels are light years ahead of the old ones and the full size trucks have a pretty good nitch but it's going to be a hard sell people still remember the early GM diesels.

[MontanaChinook]

Yeah, I could see that. Too bad. I've nothing but slow vehicles.

[zero]

The local Toyota dealer when I lived in MD gave me a new Toyota diesel pickup to drive one weekend fun little truck no power but I drove it all weekend on less then 3 gallons of diesel! I can't remember how long they imported them I'm thinking 2 years was not a big seller. The modern DI turbo diesels are light years ahead of the old ones and the full size trucks have a pretty good nitch but it's going to be a hard sell people still remember the early GM diesels.

I've still got a 1985 2.2 diesel Isuzu 4WD mini-truck and used to have a Toyota. They both averaged around 30-32 MPG in overall-driving.

GM or more specifically Oldsmobile certainly contributed to giving diesels a bad rap in the US in the late 70s. But to be fair - diesel has never been popular in this county. Jeep offered Perkins diesels as an option in the 1960s and few were sold. Checker motors did the same and few of them were sold. International Harvester offered a turbo-diesel (Nissan) in Scouts and Isuzu offered turbo-diesels in Troopers and trucks - and still few were sold.

In 1982 -GM offered for the first time a ground-up diesel designed by Detroit Diesel. That was the 379 c.i. (6.2 liter) and was intended as a fuel-efficient direct power replacement for the 305 c.i. (5 liter) gas engine. For that job it was well suited and designed. It didn't sell well due to lack of power. It's hard to convince many people that diesels have less inherent power then gas engines.

I don't agree that modern DI turbo diesels are "light-years" ahead when used as commuter vehicles and not as "tractor-trailers.". Not when it comes to real-world fuel mileage. A 1982 3/4 ton 4WD Chevy diesel pickup could get 18-21 MPG. That's with mechanical injection and no turbo. A new Chevy Duramax DI turbo (Isuzu) diesel gets around the same fuel mileage when driven empty. The HUGE difference is when it's worked and its trailer towing capability. The newest high tech diesel cars don't get any better fuel mileage then the ones sold in the USA in the 70s and 80s. They DO have much more power.

[WME]

I put 400k mi on MBZ 180d, 42hp in 5 passanger sedan, 0-60 in 30 sec. I got it in HS, the shame of it all. But it made me a much better driver than the kids with the new GTOs, you had to look down the road and think about something instead of just powering your way around.

I paid $1600 sold it 18 years later for $12,000, so there is justic in the world

[MontanaChinook]

We're total anarchist anti-consumers around here!

Not really...but I do a pretty good job of buying and keeping old, quality stuff.

[zero]

The USA auto industry has historically and still is preventing us from having fuel efficient diesels that are now being sold in other countries. They don't want us to have fuel efficient cars as there is not enough profit to be made either in the car industry or in the oil industry. They want people to have cars that are worn out or are out of style in 5 years.

I don't believe that. I see NO evidence. US auto makers would flood the market with small diesels if they felt there was a sustainable demand for them. Same for fuel efficient cars and trucks with gas engines. What the real history tells us in the USA it that the average USA consumer is clueless about diesels, intolerant to their quirks, and demands cars and trucks with power. Same goes for the vast majority of repair shops who don't know how to work on them - other then removing components and sending out to elsewhere to be fixed.

GM was the only US auto-maker to make their own diesel engine and offer it in 1/2 ton trucks (or lighter) and SUVs. They did it from 1982 up to the early 90s. Big flop except with the US military that still uses them. Considering that in 1982 - a gas powered Chevy truck got around 10-14 MPG, and the diesels got 18-21 MPG - you'd think they'd sold better. Nope.

In 1982, GM made 24,000 4WD Blazers and out of that, 9400 diesels were sold.

In 1984 - GM sold 23,000 diesel Blazers but that is because the US military bought them.

In 1991 - the last year of the 6.2 diesel Blazer - only 92 were sold the entire year!

Jeep has tried many times. They offered a 3.1 liter diesel in 1968, a 2.1 liter turbo diesel in 1981 and a common-rail turbo diesel in 2007. All huge flops when it came to sales.

There were many, many attempts to sell good fuel efficient diesels in the USA since the early 1960s and none sold well. Maybe the most successful was VW.

There were VW Rabbits, Golfs, Jettas, etc. Isuzu Imarks, Troopers and pickups. Many versions of Mercedes. Jeeps trucks, CJs,and Cherokees . Dodge 1/2 ton full size trucks (1978), small mini Ram 50s, and then the many Cummins full size trucks. GM made 1/2 ton trucks with Oldsmobile diesels in the 70s, 1/2 ton trucks, SUVs, and heavier trucks with Detroit Diesel 6.2s and 6.5s. GM also sold LUVs, S10 trucks and Blazers, and Chevettes with Isuzu diesels. Toyota had their diesel truck for a short run. Checker offered diesel cars in the 1960s (Perkins diesels). Ford sold diesel Escorts, Continentals, Bronco IIs, Rangers etc. with Japanese diesels. Ford also sold full size trucks with International Harvester diesels and now sell trucks with their own diesel engines. In 1980, Mazda offered the B2200 truck with a 2.2 liter Perkins-clone diesel. IH offered Scouts with Nissan diesels. Datsun sold mini-trucks with diesels. I'm sure I'm forgetting a few but my point is - there have been many. Some were excellent, reliable and fuel efficient even by today's standards. My 1981 Chevette diesel gets 48 MPG.

Even fuel efficient gas cars historically have a dismal sales record except during times of fuel shortages and/or escalated fuel prices.

In Europe - overall . . .people tend to be a bit a more frugal, utilitarian, and with diesels - much better adapted.

One other factor. In the 80s - you could order a truck with the diesel option for an extra $1300. No more. Now - a diesel 4WD pickup can cost $50-$70,000 whereas the gas version is only half of that. That is a HUGE investment in my book.

The idea that European vehicles are "super" efficient as compared to ours is also a myth. Many published reports do so with different drive-cycles and MPGs are based on large Imperial gallons. Not our smaller US "wine": gallons.

There is NO magic from this side of the ocean to the other.

You can join diesel owner forums in Europe and read the many first-hand accounts of what those vehicles are really like.

[85Diesel]

I don't believe that. I see NO evidence. US auto makers would flood the market with small diesels if they felt there was a sustainable demand for them. Same for fuel efficient cars and trucks with gas engines. What the real history tells us in the USA it that the average USA consumer is clueless about diesels, intolerant to their quirks, and demands cars and trucks with power. Same goes for the vast majority of repair shops who don't know how to work on them - other then removing components and sending out to elsewhere to be fixed.

GM was the only US auto-maker to make their own diesel engine and offer it in 1/2 ton trucks (or lighter) and SUVs. They did it from 1982 up to the early 90s. Big flop except with the US military that still uses them. Considering that in 1982 - a gas powered Chevy truck got around 10-14 MPG, and the diesels got 18-21 MPG - you'd think they'd sold better. Nope.

In 1982, GM made 24,000 4WD Blazers and out of that, 9400 diesels were sold.

In 1984 - GM sold 23,000 diesel Blazers but that is because the US military bought them.

In 1991 - the last year of the 6.2 diesel Blazer - only 92 were sold the entire year!

Jeep has tried many times. They offered a 3.1 liter diesel in 1968, a 2.1 liter turbo diesel in 1981 and a common-rail turbo diesel in 2007. All huge flops when it came to sales.

There were many, many attempts to sell good fuel efficient diesels in the USA since the early 1960s and none sold well. Maybe the most successful was VW.

There were VW Rabbits, Golfs, Jettas, etc. Isuzu Imarks, Troopers and pickups. Many versions of Mercedes. Jeeps trucks, CJs,and Cherokees . Dodge 1/2 ton full size trucks (1978), small mini Ram 50s, and then the many Cummins full size trucks. GM made 1/2 ton trucks with Oldsmobile diesels in the 70s, 1/2 ton trucks, SUVs, and heavier trucks with Detroit Diesel 6.2s and 6.5s. GM also sold LUVs, S10 trucks and Blazers, and Chevettes with Isuzu diesels. Toyota had their diesel truck for a short run. Checker offered diesel cars in the 1960s (Perkins diesels). Ford sold diesel Escorts, Continentals, Bronco IIs, Rangers etc. with Japanese diesels. Ford also sold full size trucks with International Harvester diesels and now sell trucks with their own diesel engines. In 1980, Mazda offered the B2200 truck with a 2.2 liter Perkins-clone diesel. IH offered Scouts with Nissan diesels. Datsun sold mini-trucks with diesels. I'm sure I'm forgetting a few but my point is - there have been many. Some were excellent, reliable and fuel efficient even by today's standards. My 1981 Chevette diesel gets 48 MPG.

Even fuel efficient gas cars historically have a dismal sales record except during times of fuel shortages and/or escalated fuel prices.

In Europe - overall . . .people tend to be a bit a more frugal, utilitarian, and with diesels - much better adapted.

One other factor. In the 80s - you could order a truck with the diesel option for an extra $1300. No more. Now - a diesel 4WD pickup can cost $50-$70,000 whereas the gas version is only half of that. That is a HUGE investment in my book.

The idea that European vehicles are "super" efficient as compared to ours is also a myth. Many published reports do so with different drive-cycles and MPGs are based on large Imperial gallons. Not our smaller US "wine": gallons.

There is NO magic from this side of the ocean to the other.

You can join diesel owner forums in Europe and read the many first-hand accounts of what those vehicles are really like.

Well said. Nice, concise history of the US diesel market.