Home » Why The Internet Is Going Crazy Over A Photo Of A Longbed Pickup Truck At A Dealership
- ByDavid Tracy
- April 11, 2024
- 5:16 pm
- 119 Comments
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The internet is buzzing over a totally innocuous photo that Tony Divino Toyota out of Riverdale, Utah posted to Facebook. The picture shows a customer named Jarett simply standing in front of his new 2024 Toyota Tundra longbed. It’s a doublecab (short rear doors) with an eight-foot box behind it, and the proportions have internetters losing their minds in absolutely hilarious ways. Here, let’s read through some of this comedic gold.
We all know that pickup trucks are more carlike than ever, to the point where the regular cab has pretty much died off. Not completely, of course, but volume-wise, regular cab trucks represent a tiny fraction of U.S. pickup truck sales. Everyone wants four doors, and usually four doors means “short bed,” since adding two doors and the standard longbed length — eight feet — tends to make for an overly big-ass truck. Still, some automakers have offered extended cabs with eight-foot beds for folks who need the space in the bed, but also want to carry folks around every now and then (or who want more lockable storage).
The trucks look a bit odd, but they’re a sign of the times: People want their cake, and they want to eat it, too, which means both four doors and a big bed for work stuff. Here’s a Ram:
And here’s a Ford:
But even though such trucks have existed for a while, Tony Divino Toyota’s April 1 Facebook post showing a longbed Toyota Tundra had folks absolutely losing it, with some convinced it was an April Fools joke. Heck, I wasn’t even sure the truck hadn’t been photoshopped to be abit longer than usual, and I own an eight-foot bed regular-cap 1985 Jeep J10:
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The comments are absolute gold. This one from Brent Davis has over 6,000 likes:
Jarret pulls into the driveway at 1:15, his back bumper 1:37
Ariengell Rodriguez wrote:
They took this picture in panorama mode
With April 15 approaching, Michael Lee Slavych has taxes on his mind, writing this clever comment:
Gotta pay taxes in three counties to cover that bad boy
Here’s one from Brent Blakeney:
It’s 5 o’clock somewhere, probably the back of his truck.
Ron Corning has a drug-store joke for us:
Finally, something longer than a CVS receipt.
Cody Scott wrote a comment that I didn’t understand until I read the replies, which made it clear that this was a phallic reference:
At least we know the truck isn’t cold.
This is a good one from Aaron Andrew Murray:
U – Turn takes 3-5 business days
These just keep getting better. Here’s one from Adrian Tovar:
He gets red light tickets everytime
Israel Mills: Take it away:
Dude go around too sharp of a curve he may rear-end himself
I strongly recommend you check out the comments here, as they are — as I said before — gold.
Some people think it’s sad how much attention this photo is getting, since it indicates just how uncommon a once-standard bed size has become. In fact, my original headline sort of communicated these sentiments with “Toyota Dealership Posts Picture Of Longbed Pickup Truck, People Assume It’s An April Fools Joke Because Nobody Buys Real Trucks Anymore,” even though I don’t really believe in the concept of a “real truck,” and like I said, I myself had to double-check to make sure the photo hadn’t been tweaked. The proportions do look bizarre.
Why exactly is it getting so much attention, with almost 19,000 comments? It’s clear to me that folks think the truck looks absurd, with some thinking it’s not real, but rather an April Fools joke (since it was posted on the first of this month). But no, it’s a real truck: It’s just got four doors and a long bed:
I spoke with Cha Thao from Tony Divino Toyota, and he made it clear that this was no gag. “I have no idea, it was just a post,” he told me over the phone. “We take a picture of [buyers] with their vehicle… we have a company that will put their picture on the calendar and we’ll send it to [the buyer].”
“Maybe they’re commenting on how long the bed looks [in the photo],” he told me. “It’s an eight-foot bed, but it looks like it’s 12 feet long,” he joked, telling me that over 6 million people had seen the post.
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“It’s not an April Fools joke,” he told me outright, though he admitted that these longbed Tundras are rare. “That’s the first actual eight-foot longbed I’ve seen probably in a year in a half in the dealership…There’s only three available within a 500-mile radius of my dealership.”
I, for one, love the idea of an eight-foot bed (technically 8.1 feet) and four doors. It’s big, and clearly it looks odd, but it means you can use your work truck for family things, and that’s the dream, isn’t it?
By the way, the Tundra Double Cab Longbed is 252 inches long, or 21 feet. That, as reader Ranwhenparked points out, that’s essentially the same length as what most consider the longest car ever made, the 1976 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 nine passenger sedan! Look at this boat:
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- car dealerships, dealerships, pickup trucks, Trucks
Rust-loving Jeep man, cofounder and EIC of The Autopian, Jason's friend.Email: david@autopian.com
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119 Comments
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Knowonelse
3 days ago
And I have a ’92 F350 longbed dually full crewcab in my driveway. This one looks fine to me.
TJ Heiser
3 days ago
8 foot pickup bed, or full flatbed. That’s my rule for trucks.
Cargo is King.
Boxing Pistons
3 days ago
Toyota Tundras are just awkward in general. Like WTF is going on with the rear wheel wells? I want to see an article where Adrian “fixes” the current ten Tundra with some visual tweaks.
Last edited 3 days ago by Boxing Pistons
3
Bassracerx
3 days ago
Reply to Boxing Pistons
it just wants to be a dually so bad
1
IDM3
2 days ago
Reply to Bassracerx
Toyota did produce a Dually concept in 2010, complete with a diesel engine. Customer interest was there, but Toyota got cold feet and chose not to build it.
Myk El
3 days ago
In my curated social media environment, this kind of merged into the greater truck discourse I’d been seeing with a lot of Cybertruck stuff. I live in what was exurbs but is being brought into the suburbs. We’re also on the edge of ranchland and horse property. So we have a mix of folks with work trucks used for real work and they are easy to spot among the folks who just adopted the aesthetic. The big Tundra drivers have a much higher chance of being folks using the trucks for work. Other brands are more prone to being just the folks who like the look.
You get one guess which set drives like jerks and the ones that don’t.
Professor Chorls
3 days ago
That actually puts it at the same length as my Centurion vantruck – it trades nose volume for more cab (crew cab equivalent or slightly more), but is otherwise the same dimensions as a ECLB full size truck (8 foot bed). Crew cabs are longer.
Last edited 3 days ago by Professor Chorls
1
Rapgomi
3 days ago
The CEO where I work has a Ram 4 door with a full length bed – its HUGE!!
I like to park my Kei truck next to it 🙂
Last edited 3 days ago by Rapgomi
5
K559
3 days ago
I didn’t know Toyota even made long beds. My family members generally go for full size trucks with long boxes, and it has been this way for 30 years. I remember the first time I saw one of those really short beds with a 4 door truck, like the F150 or GM full size circa 2005, and I thought those were really odd looking. How quickly we forget, because now the long bed is the outlier.
Lockleaf
3 days ago
I think its the dudes position against the truck that really creates the optical illusion of hugeness. He visually truncates the cab because he is directly lined up with the front of the bed. So even though its cab then bed, it kind of looks like its cab space bed, so it throws off all perspective of size.
7
WR250R
3 days ago
I want so bad for my next truck to be an extended cab long bed. We have a daughter so some sort of rear seats are a must. And at least once a month I’m cursing my 6-1/2′ bed for not being long enough. I’m not sure if such a thing can be had from the USA manufactures in a half ton anymore?
WR250R
3 days ago
Reply to WR250R
I should add I’d need 4×4 as well. Snowmobile trips in Wisconsin and all….
Bucko
3 days ago
Reply to WR250R
F-150
2
Ecsta C3PO
3 days ago
Reply to WR250R
Are there any 6′ beds with a mid-gate? Rear seats when you need them, or 8′ of length when you don’t. Assuming it’s not too often you’re hauling lumber and kids at the same time.
Normally a mid-gate is to compensate for a shorter bed but it seems like it could be a useful option for regular size trucks.
Spartanjohn113
3 days ago
Reply to WR250R
If you don’t mind me asking, what are you using it for that you need that extra space?
WR250R
3 days ago
Reply to Spartanjohn113
We are redoing our home ourselves bit-by-bit. The standard sized bed I have works yes but there are sooo many times I would be able to close the tailgate or not have to worry about a flag if I had a longer bed. I also work on small engine / powersports stuff as a side gig and wouldn’t have to hook up to a trailer nearly as often if I had alittle more length. Last thing is I sometimes haul metal and other materials for work and if I could close the tailgate it would obviously be much safer going down the road
3
Frank Wrench
3 days ago
I have a single cab 8 ft bed truck I only use for hauling stuff. Not always practical with wife and 3 kids but I’m usually by myself or just with the dog on the hauling trips, which aren’t that often.
If the truck ever dies (it’s got a 300-6 and 4 speed manual, so probably never) I’m going for an extended cab 8 ft bed next time and maybe I’ll be an internet sensation like this guy.
2
Boxing Pistons
3 days ago
Reply to Frank Wrench
I have a very similar truck – ‘94 reg cab, long bed, 300 inline 6 but with an auto. Damn-near indestructible. Her official name is “Tallahassee” since she originally hails from Florida, but I often refer to her as my “big wheel barrow” I would love to get an extended cab to haul kids when needed so I could go a little nuts with a fun daily driver, but I just can’t see myself letting the old girl go!
Frank Wrench
3 days ago
Reply to Boxing Pistons
Mine is a 92 2WD light-duty F-250, kinda oddball configuration, only 6,600 GVWR. I like having a 3/4 ton because I have a 16 ft. flat bed trailer. The old 6 doesn’t pull that loaded trailer very fast but it always gets me there.
Jason Smith
3 days ago
In all fairness, I’ve always found something odd about the appearance of all generations of long bed Tundras. Something about the shape of the cab and longbed make me think of a tadpole or a giant Kei truck.
I used to occasionally drive a crew cab, long bed first gen SuperDuty for work that also had a snowlow 6 months every year. I can honestly say that I would absolutely not daily one of those unless I NEEDED every inch of that ocean freighter. It’s not as if I wasn’t used to driving a full-sized truck at the time, I actually DD’d an extended cab shortbed first gen SuperDuty and the work truck felt about twice as the size.
Last edited 3 days ago by Jason Smith
2
Rusty S Trusty
3 days ago
This is an optical illusion that’s a product of the Tundra’s hideous styling. An entire truck worth of design elements is crammed into the front and rear few feet with none in between so they don’t have to redesign every body/bed variant they offer. To compete in the modern American pickup truck market it’s got to be busy with fake vents, at least 7 body lines per panel and fake gun ports….but only in the front 3 feet and on the tailgate. Clearly they were gunning for the Silverado.
Last edited 3 days ago by Rusty S Trusty
6
Scott McAfee
3 days ago
The puss*fication of America marches on. Anything remotely masculine really twists the panties of the semi-male cubicle queens that grow in numbers every year.
1
JTilla
3 days ago
Reply to Scott McAfee
Your outdated qualifiers of masculinity are a joke and were never real. It’s like saying a color can be gay and quite frankly pathetic and sad.
16
Vee
3 days ago
Reply to JTilla
Colours can absolutely be gay as f*ck because they gain that connotation by association. For some common examples, black is associated with morbidity and gothic stylings. Pastel purple is like the banner colour of trans people and they absolutely rock it. Green is associated with nature conscious actions and increasingly fake corporate environmentalism. Orange and yellow are caution or danger. The mechanics of it are neutral. But said gay as f*ck colours being seen as errant or corrupting to society is not a good thing because that association was made within the harmful context of hom*ogeneous heteronormativity. In the end the goal should be to continually overwrite the negative connotations with positive ones because true contextual neutrality is impossible and the connotations and associations will naturally shift over time as society changes.
2
Martin English
2 days ago
Reply to Vee
Came here to say this
Taargus Taargus
3 days ago
Reply to Scott McAfee
You may be confused Scott. This isn’t Instagram, but rather a fun automotive enthusiast site called The Autopian. It’s pretty rad. We can run a little hot and cold from time to time, but for the most part people are pretty respectful, and when we get a little spicy most of us at least make an attempt at backing up our rationale.
There’s a lot of low-hanging fruit comebacks for your statement above, but I’d recommend those here (and myself) not to gobble up the bait.
15
Rusty S Trusty
3 days ago
Reply to Taargus Taargus
I wish I’d read your comment before posting a reply because this is the correct take.
5
M0L0TOV
3 days ago
Reply to Taargus Taargus
Maybe he forgot the “/s”?
3
Rusty S Trusty
3 days ago
Reply to Scott McAfee
Until it was so aptly demonstrated by this comment, I thought the idea that a big truck is a substitute for a penis was philosophical drivel.
3
The Artist Formerly Known as the Uncouth Sloth
3 days ago
Reply to Scott McAfee
I recall from a previous article that you live or work on a ranch. And I was with you on sentence one. But you might want to keep your thoughts about semi-males back on the ranch, podner.
Last edited 3 days ago by The Artist Formerly Known as the Uncouth Sloth
5
William Domer
3 days ago
Truck. Yuck. I want that caddy though. Bigger than an apartment in manhatten
The NSX Was Only in Development for 4 Years
3 days ago
The normies obviously may not know this is a thing, but even for those of us who do, this sh*t is absolutely ridiculous-looking, let’s be honest. Long bed crew cabs are just comical in person.
3
Hondaimpbmw 12
10 hours ago
Reply to The NSX Was Only in Development for 4 Years
My neighbor had a Chevy 4 door, long bed, dually that he used to haul his race car, along w/ wife and kids. That thing was rear wheel drive and pretty low to the ground (approach, break over and departure angles were really poor). It looked like a dachshund.
Dingus
3 days ago
I don’t see the point of any pickup with a six-foot bed or less. Now, this thing is a wee bit long, but if you’re doing actual work with your truck (yes, some still do that), and you need to take people with, this is what a truck is SUPPOSED to be.
We’re just used to suburban clowns who commute to work in one with a bed full of air and a bed cover to keep it safe.
The 4-door, short-bed pickup truck has to be one of the most useless vehicles on the planet. Bed is too small for anything like lumber (typically sold in 8-foot lengths) or sheets of building material like plywood or drywall. Maybe you can stuff some crap in the cab, but that seems to defeat the purpose of a truck. You can’t tie stuff to the roof because the roof of the cab is too short to be useful, so no ladders for you (unless you install a box frame around the cab/bed). A dirt bike or mororcycle might fit if they’re tiny. They can haul five people, but so can just about any sedan. So these are good for what? The occasional mulch pickup? Most landscapers just call the supplier and have them bring the dump truck and pour it on a tarp else they’re doing three or four trips to get it.
I don’t care for giant SUVs, but you’d be a lot better off with a Suburban or Expedition than a short-bed pickup. You can tow just as well, you can fit even more people inside if you need, you can fold the seats down and fit long items inside, if something is still too long, you can tie it to the roof rails.
The truck noted here may be silly, but at least it’s actually useful.
Last edited 3 days ago by Dingus
4
Hangover Grenade
3 days ago
Reply to Dingus
I don’t own a truck, but I use the sheet of plywood as my standard for what a good truck can haul.
488Magnum
3 days ago
Reply to Dingus
Crew cab short bed owner. I have yet to be inconvenienced by the 5’7″ bed on my Ram. I haul kayaks, lumber, plywood, dirt bikes, mulch, gravel, engines blocks, etc in mine. All with the tailgate up. Just actually have to strap stuff in and cant just toss it in like an 8′ bed. 12′ decking boards get a little sketchy but can still be safely hauled.
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The Artist Formerly Known as the Uncouth Sloth
3 days ago
Reply to Dingus
I drive a truck pretty much because a) I am a fat*ss, and b) I would never be caught dead in a van, and c) my wife said no to the Challenger. Those are my only options, and I have to have a short-bed to fit in the garage, so it is so.
1
Hondaimpbmw 12
10 hours ago
Reply to Dingus
I have a short bed, double cab f150. I use it to tow my 24’ travel trailer and haul my 500cc dual sport motorbike. I also toss in some firewood & a burn barrel, ezup chairs and other stuff. Only occasionally do I wish it were longer. I really wish it had rear wheel steering. It feels like docking the Queen Mary in the typical parking lot.
Jim Zavist
3 days ago
A lot of this is context. If you live in/near rural areas, especially in the Midwest or West, these are not unusual. If you live in denser urban areas, they’re much more rare, simply given the challenges parking and maneuvering them present.
2
Monster
3 days ago
(that cake song) I want a truck with a short step-up and a loooooooooooong bed.
4
The Artist Formerly Known as the Uncouth Sloth
3 days ago
Reply to Monster
do your fingernails shine like justice?
Mortalcombatant
3 days ago
This truck is a proof the Earth is flat
13
Hiram McDaniel
3 days ago
Reply to Mortalcombatant
Otherwise, this truck would high center just on the curvature of the earth.
12
Rafael
3 days ago
He just need a “we brake for nobody” sticker in the back and the Space balls homage is complete
5
Rust Buckets
3 days ago
People act like crew cab long beds aren’t a totally common thing lol. That one’s not even a full crew cab, they get longer than this.
I don’t understand how any car enthusiast can totally miss the crew cab long beds that they almost certainly see every day.
3
VanGuy
3 days ago
Reply to Rust Buckets
Well, I think the important distinction is that crew cab long beds are always Super Duty/ 2500+ models. I don’t think any manufacturer lets you get crew cab + 8 foot bed for the “half-ton” (or whatever is lowest capacity) model (F-150, Silverado 1500, Ram 1500, etc.). And the same applies to the Tundra.
1
Rust Buckets
3 days ago
Reply to VanGuy
Right, Toyota just lets you get the same extended cab long bed on the half ton that the other big three sell too. They’re not very common though, I’ll admit that.
1
Frankencamry
2 days ago
Reply to VanGuy
They did back when I was last truck shopping, but that was 16 years ago.
Hopefully someone has already pointed out that for a couple decades Ford and Chevy would only sell a crew cab with the 8′ bed. Short beds were for toys, and other disparaging remarks.
Thatmiataguy
3 days ago
My great-grandfather had a 2002 Chevy 2500 with the extended cab (small rear suicide doors), the 8 foot bed, and the 8.1 liter V8. It was loooong, but it was great for hauling stuff and he used to pull a trailer with it back when he was still traveling the country. We all loved that truck.
It’s one of the vehicles he most regretted selling.
1
OrigamiSensei
3 days ago
Reminds me of the day I was at our local Scout ranch doing maintenance and a buddy and I were debating which of our vehicles to take off road to get to a work site. My Suburban got chosen because it was significantly smaller and easier to get to the work site than my buddy’s F-250 with a full crew cab and 8-foot bed. All due credit to my friend, though – he USES that truck to its full capabilities; no compensating there. Hauling bricks, cinder blocks, lumber, and hay bales, towing, literal stump pulling, etc.
I grew up in an era where a regular cab with an 8-foot bed was the norm, and I still regard that as my canonical pickup.
1
BigThingsComin
3 days ago
As someone with manufacturing economy training, it’s gotta be expensive to tool up a chassis just for those rare birds who order this. One percent of your output? Can’t be a money maker.
1
Subarado
3 days ago
Reply to BigThingsComin
I’d imagine a good chunk of these end up in fleets. It’s not your typical high-volume seller, but the margins on fleet sales are good and it meets a need that keeps your fleet customers coming back.
2
Phuzz
3 days ago
Reply to BigThingsComin
I’m just guessing, but I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of the components are re-used. eg the same bed is used with a 2-door cab for the shorter model, and the 4-door cab is usually paired with a shorter bed.
The only unique components would be the chassis, and the driveshaft. Oh, and all the brake lines and wiring. And maybe fuel lines too? The exhaust. Ok, that is quite a lot.
1
Mthew_M
3 days ago
Reply to Phuzz
Chassis/frame is very likely the same as on the crew cab with the regular bed. They usually only come in 2-3 different wheelbase lengths, for those exact reasons.
BigThingsComin
2 days ago
Reply to Phuzz
I suspect you’d have to do all the compliance testing over as well. That ain’t cheap.
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