They actually didn't do anything wrong. Yesterday I got a letter from FMC outlining how I could get into a 2016 XLT truck with an MSRP of $44,800 for the same payment as I have now. Of course they want to soak me with a 4.9% rate and now I'm paying 1.9%, so obviously that will never happen as my credit is pretty damned strong. The one thing that they left out was the factory incentives and my fairly keen ability to negotiate OR to whip out an X-plan pin, which ever suits my needs the best.

So as you all may have suspected and with some deliberation with my bride, the new truck ain't happenin'. She's next and rightfully so.

I owe less than 5K on my truck, it has 66K on the clock and is basically spotless inside and out. I have the money to make a repair should that ever present itself.

Anyway, thought I'd share this as I think it's bloody brilliant marketing. Kudos to Ford!

 

Some people dont think about what you just said. some people never stop making a car payment.................. I know a few that dont.

 

A vehicle that is paid off is a foreign concept anymore. I received a lot of "deer in headlights" look when I told someone my 2006 F250 was paid off.

Even the dealer was surprised at that.



Josh

 

My 2012 F150 was paid off. The $10,250 off MSRP price allowed me to save up and buy a 2016 in cash because the old 2012 held its value so well. I got $23k trade-in on a truck I paid $29k over four years ago.

I love my new 2016 F150!

 

Shucks folks, we paid off our 2015 F-150 in 2015. Not bragging or anything, but making too many "payments" is like a slow bleed. We "financed" ours at the time (June 2015), to get the extra $1500 off the out-the-door price. So we made a total of 3 payments; June, July, and August.

 

That was how I did it in 2012, got the incentive and made a few payments. No such incentive existed in 2016 when I bought a new one but the strong resale value helped me buy it in cash. I love the resale value of the F150!

 

I'm happy with my interest rate, though I do wish I didn't have the payment. I made a mistake when I bought cheap and drove a Titan home. From day one the used 150k truck had issues. When I finally had it, I wanted something un-molested and FORD. I traded out the junk and got a nice shiny truck.

The Nissan came when I got tired of driving the lifted Jeep I paid off everyday. Now it rides on a trailer behind the F150, and though I'm sure it would have helped with the financing, I like having a toy around to play with. Helps keep Lucille shiny still.

Plus you can beat a jeep on the beach!

 

Sometimes Ford will give good incentive and a low interest rate, sometimes Ford credit will give you a rebate to take the loan from Ford, sometimes Ford will only give one or the other, I have always just taken the rebate money and financed off site, unless Ford threw incentive money, at which point I make a payment or two and refinance, my credit union told me to go ahead and that they would refinance the Ford loan at 1.25 for 72 months, was a no brainer.

 

For many folks an ongoing payment is actually not a bad thing at all. Leasing is a better option than buying and trading in if you keep your vehicle less than 6 years in probably 90% of cases. Of course, if you can keep the same car or truck for 10 years, than a purchase is better. A majority of people with trades have a payoff, those who own it outright tend to keep the vehicle for a member of the family or sell on their own. This is as much because by the time the vehicle is paid off it's not worth as much as it is the inability to take on the burden of two car payments. I always find it funny when people object to a trade value with "I could get more for it own my own!". Well of course you could. I wouldn't want it if I couldn't make money on the thing.

 

That's an excellent idea! I too took the rebate money, they gave me a friends and neighbors plan (i'm thinking it's the X-plan, but not sure), and somewhere around a 3 percent interest rate. Hadn't thought about re-financing it through the credit union. I'm going to check on that.

Thanks!

 

^^^ your welcome!

 

I would not lease a Ford F-150 since it holds value so well.

My 2012 F-150 Supercrew 4x4 cost me about $115 a month factoring in all the incentives. MSRP at 40,500, bought for $29,000, traded in for $23,000 a little over four years later.

I am sure my new 2016 F-150 also will have a great resale value considering the aluminum body. I made sure it had all the options that would not cause it to depreciate in value.. 302A and 6.5' bed. No sunroof and no leather.

According to KBB, the 2012 with 6.5' bed trade-in value was $2,000 more so I paid $1,150 more for the new 2016. Sure, it's harder to park, but at least the monthly payments I put in it is like making a deposit. I also got $9,000 off MSRP so that helps.

The Tundra has slightly better resale value (a thousand or two) but you're not getting $9,000 off MSRP at the dealership. And the gas mileage is horrible!