I watched a guy load bags of soil from the hardware store into the back seats of the crew cab while he had an empty bed. The bed would have been easier to load and could easily be hosed down if a bag leaked. I guess he forgot it was also a truck and not just a luxury commuter car.
Things are pretty fantastic when you use them for that they're made to do... Try safely carrying 20 4'x8' sheets of sheetrock in a small car... Or try carrying two bags of groceries in a sedan's trunk without anything holding them in place...
A van will have more cargo volume for the same wheelbase, be easier to load, and have the cargo be covered from the elements. Those are made for carrying stuff. Pick-ups are made only to show that the owner is compensating for something.
For home use I have seen most people buy dirt in bags. A sedan or even a compact would handle carrying those. The open sides can be a benefit for sure, but I don't know about putting cargo 'as high as you want to,' given that wind is a thing. And vans are pretty tall anyway!
I understand that they can have some utility on a farm or something, but the average person is not regularly transporting a 'couple loads of dirt' in suburbia.
And I never said the average person should own a truck but buying dirt in bulk (measured in yards) isn't unusual if your house has space for a garden and it's way cheaper than buying bags of it. Same for carrying lumber that would be too long for a van.
Also it's very funny that if you want to be able to do most of things a truck can do, the alternative to a truck should be a contractor's van which has worse visibility on the sides and at the back, is just as big or bigger than a truck and uses the same engine...
Aren’t there cargo nets and other accessories for that? I get it if you have perishable groceries that need to be kept frozen until you get home and it’s hot outside.
Indeed. Hell my old Ranger had a gap in the bed liner so I could slide a 2x4 (I think I actually used a 2x6) in place and have a perfect divider for groceries right at the tailgate. It was simple and worked perfect. When it was time to do truck shit the board just lifted up and got tossed in with the bricks or whatever.