Turncoat II: The Blue Oval Betrayal?

[coolcaddy]

Okay, go ahead and slap me.

Last year, after a great deal of shopping around and discussion on this site, I ended up acquiring a Volkswagen Jetta over a Chevrolet Impala, and after very nearly deciding on a Ford Five Hundred.

Now I'm at it again. During the moving process to our new house in the Dallas area, we rented a Ford F150 Super Cab while waiting for our vehicles to arrive from California. I absolutely fell in love with it.

So, last night, I casually drop by a Ford dealer to see what these things cost. After proposing a trade-in involving my extraneous Saturn (I no longer need a "commuter" car) and my 1985 Cadillac Eldorado (which costs me $150 a month for storage), the salesman came back with a monthly payment on a beautiful new F150 that was too good to be true, and on a short 2-year lease to boot. I didn't want to commit and I wasn't sure how it would fit in my garage, so he offered to let me take it home (similar to GM's 24-Hour Test Drive program).

There's just something about a shiny Ford pick-up truck in Texas that evokes a very strong emotional response in me. I'm really loving this truck and leaning towards buying it tonight.

One big caveat is that it barely fits in my garage. We bought a gi-normous house with a 3-car garage, but the garage is surprisingly feeble in terms of size, especially considering the fact that big trucks and SUVs are still very popular in this part of the country.

Getting in and out of the F150, and putting it in or removing it from the garage, will be a bit of a chore every time we want to use it. Also, it's hardly practical considering we already have an SUV; although for you energy conservation minded folks, we will be tooling around in our fuel-efficient Volkswagen Jetta more than either of the larger vehicles. I'm not completely without a conscience in that sense.

Another caveat is that my wife is equivocal. She wants me to have it, but being the smart one, she also has trouble making sense out of the idea of two big vehicles crammed into our garage, and the effort that will ensue whenever she wants to drive her SUV.

My son also had something to say. I've often refused to let him buy something with his own money if I felt it was an impulse buy, i.e. we walk into Target to get some household goods and he suddenly has to have that stunt plane toy. I try to discourage such purchases, even if he wants to use his own money, so that he learns to manage his money wisely. Anyway, he threw that one back in my face last night when I came home with the truck, insisting I was being hypocritical. Dang kids.

Doing the car math, the result of such a purchase would bring me down to two GM vehicles ('04 Escalade and '64 Coupe de Ville), a VW, and a Ford--the first Ford I will have ever purchased, (although my first car was a hand-me-down Ford Granada).

But wait, it gets worse: while at the Ford dealer, I couldn't help but notice that I was quickly becoming a Ford fan. I was already sold on the F150 and the Five Hundred; but being surrounded by gorgeous Mustangs, handsome Fusions, and a number of other fairly attractive models gave me the impression that Ford has gotten some of its mojo back.

Either that, or it's this Texas air that makes you want to drive Ford pick-ups, speak with a drawl, and walk with a swagger.

So, at the moment, the actual betrayal has not occurred, but it's looking fairly likely, so talk me out of it!

Otherwise, any last words before y'all write me out your will?

[kool_zx3]

Come to the darkside Luke...... Come to the darkside

Also what f150 were you looking at?

[Strapping.Young.Lad]

Fords are not the Darkside. Toyotas are the Darkside.
What I say: In Texas, You have to get a Ford Truck. Its like mandatory there!
Man, You have a Jetta, and Mabye an F150.
I had an F150 and Traded it for a Jetta!
LoL!
Buy it man. F150s you cant beat. My dads just had over 100,000 miles and only had regular oil changes and got the brakes fixed once. They last forever.

[coolcaddy]

Originally Posted by kool_zx3

Also what f150 were you looking at?

It's an extended cab "Texas Oklahoma" edition with two-tone paint, chrome running boards, etc. It's real purrty.

The super cab would be preferable, but we tried to fit one in to the garage when we had the rental and it wouldn't make it without the bumper touching the wall. It's just too darn long.

[coolcaddy]

Originally Posted by FordRules

My dads just had over 100,000 miles and only had regular oil changes and got the brakes fixed once. They last forever.

That's cool, but I'd only have it for the two-year lease.

[Strapping.Young.Lad]

The Extended cab is the Super Cab.
The Crew cab is called the Super Crew.


I would of got Black on Black leather. FX4 Off Road....ooh yeah!

[Ming]

Well the good thing about the F-150 is with those ridiculously tall bed box sides you can load the Jetta in the back and hide your Import brand luvin' tendencies completely from view when not needed!

[56 Starchief]

the F-150 is a handsome truck with a wuss of an engine. Why not wait for the new Silverado coming in less than 6 months?

Ford needs some better engines. Why they killed the 5.0 I have no idea. They should bring it back. My Escape is a handsome crossover as well but it has that wuss 3.0 Duratec too (though better than the 3.4 Chinatec in the Equinox).

[dindak]

Ford pickups are fine, I'd get an 07 Avalanche but that's just more my taste.

[Ming]

BTW, I "fell in love" with, of all things, the Ford Ranger we rented in Hawaii a few 3-4 years back, and it got me looking at Fords. I then went to check out an S-10, and was very disappointed with the horrible Fisher-Price cheapness of the interior. It was like sitting in a gray room of rubber and ill-fitting squeaky, hollow and brittle plastics. I don't know what trim level that Ranger was, but it looked and felt much better inside than you'd guess from its ancient platform and had pleasing color contrasts and good seat fabric. About a year ago I was seriously looking at a new Ford Focus ZXW (wagon) in black, as I had rented a Focus on one of the other islands in Hawaii and had enjoyed that, too.

[Co27sskid]

Y not wait and see how good the new Silverado will be?

[56 socal. chevy]

Originally Posted by FordRules

Fords are not the Darkside. Toyotas are the Darkside.
What I say: In Texas, You have to get a Ford Truck. Its like mandatory there!
Man, You have a Jetta, and Mabye an F150.
I had an F150 and Traded it for a Jetta!
LoL!
Buy it man. F150s you cant beat. My dads just had over 100,000 miles and only had regular oil changes and got the brakes fixed once. They last forever.

My grand-dads 85' S10 with the 4.3L V6 has 415000 miles on it. With the original engine (unrebuilt) and origninal tranny(never replaced or rebuilt). None of the problems on that truck have costed him more than 500 dollars. I wish they still made the 4.3L and the S10, the are indestructable.

[SobeSVT]

Welcome to the light. Your description of the Ford dealership, among other things, is what has prompted the positive tendencies in Fords car figures and the minimum decrease in their total figures last month.

[eaton53]

If you have a place to put it just park it outside.

I'm getting a '99 Tahoe that has no hope of fitting in my garage, so I'm going to stick a remote start on it and it'll sit out. Fortunately I had the foresight to put a slab off to the side so it won't block access to the garage stalls.

I've had a few Fords.... got no complaints. I could get tempted by a Fusion SVT.

[red_xtreme95]

Originally Posted by FordRules

Fords are not the Darkside. Toyotas are the Darkside.
What I say: In Texas, You have to get a Ford Truck. Its like mandatory there!
Man, You have a Jetta, and Mabye an F150.
I had an F150 and Traded it for a Jetta!
LoL!
Buy it man. F150s you cant beat. My dads just had over 100,000 miles and only had regular oil changes and got the brakes fixed once. They last forever.

100.000 thats it my 95 Chevy V6 had 265000 when i traded it and it still didnt smoke...