Meaning of Utility category in game?

[dolphusraymond]

I am somewhat confused as to the meaning of the "utility" category in the game. Likely due to My American upbringing, I tend to first think of pickup trucks as the most utilitarian vehicles in production. However, I recognize that there is a lot of ambiguity in that term, so I am curious as to what the developers think of when they reference the utility category.

Some vehicles that may also (in my opinion) be classified as utility:

Sedans (police cars, taxis)
Any pickup truck
Vans (either passenger or cargo)
Offroad Vehicles (jeeps, etc)

This ambiguity can be confusing. Often, I will design a small pickup truck (small engine, leaf springs, steel bodywork) with the intention of filling out the light utility category, and it will end up being classified as a mediocre pony car.

Also, I'd just like to state that this isn't meant as a criticism of the developers in any way, I'm just confused as to the definition of "utility vehicle", and each of the subcategories on the market screen.

[thecarlover]

As far as the stats go, utility is mostly based on cargo volume, load capacity, and towing capacity. For the utility category, it seems to be more for light trucks. Something more along the lines of the Ford Ranger than the Super Duty, especially since fuel economy is an important factor for it. It does seem to be defined more from a European point of view than an American one.

[dolphusraymond]

As far as the stats go, utility is mostly based on cargo volume, load capacity, and towing capacity. For the utility category, it seems to be more for light trucks. Something more along the lines of the Ford Ranger than the Super Duty, especially since fuel economy is an important factor for it. It does seem to be defined more from a European point of view than an American one.

I understand that it's more about light trucks, however, I still find it confusing that a small, efficient pickup is considered less of a utility vehicle than a small van. Personally, I feel that these vehicles compete in different categories; I wouldn't haul manure, gravel, or other bulk/dirty cargoes in a van, but I do that pretty often in my pickup. Likewise, I wouldn't try and move 15 people in a truck, but a van would be perfect for that job. I'm not saying that these vehicles don't both qualify as utility vehicles, but instead that their subcategories are completely different.

[thecarlover]

I figure that's probably with the cargo volume being more heavily weighted. The cargo volume for pickup trucks seems to be measured only to the top of the bed, rather than considering a lot of space above the bed can be used for large objects. Based on that, the tall cargo space of a van is much larger, hence the higher utility value.

[TrackpadUser]

There was a discussion a while ago in the beta team on that exact topic (vans being better at utility than pickups), and IIRC they ended up raising the cargo box of all trucks up to the top of the roof.

If you find a truck that's not like that, I'd make a post with pictures.

[thecarlover]

Hmm, sounds like I need to update my Ram model to expand the cargo box, as it only goes about halfway between the top of the bed and the roof.

[Killrob]

Yes, pickups should have the same or more cargo space than the van equivalent to balance them out.
I can see why you want them to be different categories, but which other category would you get rid of to accommodate for the split?