My Ford is great. I use Chevys, Fords, and Dodges for my work in natural resources. The Dodges are a piece of...... Always have problems. They have not been easy to drive, handling wise, and they are rougher than sht. Fords have been underpowered/bad gearing and the Chevys have no ground clearance. The new Ford half tons are awesome to drive and are adequately powered.

I do know the company has been losing money. Do you think the german executives are taking a pay cut? How long will it be before they cut american jobs and build/design more over in Deutchland. If you folks did not buy their products, maybe they would sell their majority shares back to an American company if the pain was great enough.

 

100% agree. I drove Dodge cars and trucks with the Dept. of Fish and Game. Utter crap. Some of the Dodge vehicles were so poor I felt unsafe driving them.

 

I never had a major problem with my ford truck, and it has over a 106,000 on it, I put on the last 30,000 of them been in the shop once at 100,000 for a major tune-up, hoses, plugs oil, the normal stuff I usally do the oil myself though. just remember if your basing your expriance of fords on cars or misguide, ford cars suck, but their trucks are second to none

 

It's amazing how much folks can get get out of sorts over discussions about different truck comparisons. I think what we fail to remember is that each of us buys a truck for different reasons. Some prefer the looks, feel, and performance of a Dodge RAM (Hemi or not), the GM trucks, Toyota, Nissan, or whatever.

You can argue a little more horsepower here...little more torque there...0-60, etc.. But if it's turned into an emotional debate, it tends to loose it's luster. My automotive group has all three (GM, Chrysler and Ford). People buy what appeals to them and what they have a good ownership record with. We call that owner loyalty in the car business.

I would hope that since this website is a Ford Truck Enthusiasts website that those people that don't own a Ford truck or never would consider a Ford truck keep their comments constructive and informative versus being inflammatory or demeaning in nature. This website is for the promotion and fellowship of current and future Ford truck owners, not Ford bashers.

Just my humble two cents worth.

SRAces
USAF (ret)

2004 F-150 SuperCrew Lariat 4WD

 

Well said SRAces.

I was exaggerating the German thing to tease the heckler with the Hemi. The experiences we each have with the different manufacturers can end up guiding our perceptions and purchases (loyalty). I have had two Chevy pickups and a Chrysler 91 Wrangler before I just purchased my first Ford pickup. My 80 yr old grandpa has bought Fords forever. Brand loyalty.

 

Well, I got a little tired and bleary-eyed reading this whole thing. So, did I miss the end? Can we know the answer to this soap opera? What truck won this lovely thread. I understand just about everything that was said as I am also watching the new truck market closely. Still have a hard time understanding why the new Titan was left out of the competition based on numbers and once it was driven, we have no answer. Could it be the powerful engine and the lovely 5-speed automatic? This truck has some serious selling points and is a serious contender to the U.S. built/owned trucks. But, then that is hard to equate too. I have read in a few spots that the new Titan has more American-made components including engineering/design folks than the new Ford. I am like the original poster - looking hard, but being very careful. This is a very expensive decision to make and I mostly want reliability. The Japs usually have that one covered. In my mind, the U.S. companies will have to play catch-up. But, I do really want to like the new F-150 - it will have to prove itself first though.

 

Buy the Nissan, ck1404. You can not go wrong. Everyone knows that if you want reliability and durability, one should buy the Toyota or, now, the Nissan. It also sounds like Nissan made sure they had a powerful engine before they entered the full size market, which is very smart.

I bought the lesser truck, 04 F150, but I love it.

 

I personally have not been convinced Toyota builds a good truck. I think the Tacoma is pretty durable, but so is the Ranger and maybe even the S-10, but the Tundra is not what I consider a great truck. I have seen quite a few in the shop for various problems, but many pertaining to the rear axles. Don't think just because Toyota makes the vehicle, that it is good. How is that a good idea really?

 

I actually agree that the Japanese owned companies do not necessarily make the best trucks, but I did not want to argue with the guy. As mentioned above, these companies are just getting into the working truck market. They can learn alot of the do's and don'ts from what the big three have done to date, but not everything. Toyota is a few years ahead of Nissan. They got into this market because they wanted a piece of the yuppie demand for big SUV's and big Trucks that might pull a trailer once in a while. Arn't their options just glorified 1/2 tons that now come as crew or extended cabs?

I was reading the F150 review from USA Today. This guy complained about not having enough Dry Cleaning hooks, not enough room in the scab back for adults and it was harder to back up with the higher tailgate. Buy a sedan buddy. Use the side mirrors to back like everyone has for many decades with trucks. I like the deep cargo bed. I thought it was a selling point (unless one has a fifth wheel, but a half ton is not the truck for a fifth wheel).

 

I still want to know the end results of this original post. This guy did a lot of homework and I appreciate that. What did you decide upon as the best of the bunch? We deserve an answer after reading three pages here now. I don't publish my e-mail address for the world and don't want a direct response - still waiting for your end result though and the reasons for it. It doesn't take a Word document - just some brief conclusions.

 

Well then, you must be able to tell me about the Hemi dropping valves like flies?

In addition, the Nissan has not been out long enough to determine reliability and durability. But if its been like other foreign cars my family has had experience with, it won't take much for it to have problems. I just don't see the advantage in a 5spd auto for the Nissan other than speed and speed don't count in a truck.

 

Essentially, I have not decided which truck to get. They each have clear advantages and disadvantages, very big ones. Unlike cars which are more comparible. I am waiting till the Chevy gets here, should be about Feb 1st in quanitites. I really like the Chevy seats, but hate the way it drives (bucket of Jell-O with no driver feed back). I love the way the Ford rides and drives (like a sports sedan), but hate the seats (failure to contour). And I will not purchase the Nissan due to all the problems I listed in my review. And the Toyota does not have enough power or seats (specifically front passenger seat), power for the size boat I will be pulling. If I can get by with the small back seat of the Dodge I would get it, but that is really pushing it for me. I guess the whole point of my review is that no truck manufacture has come up and hit all the "major" bases yet, again unlike dozens of car manufactures have. Well that is the short version of the 13 pages. A few of the "moderators" have told me they would post it, but I have not seen it yet, so I don't know if they will are not?

 

HoustonPerson,

Man you have way too much time on your hands

You say you have owned 36 vehicles! Assuming you are 55 years old and started buying cars at 18 you have averaged a new vehicle every year! What do you do start all of this research for your next purchase on the day you take delivery?

It seems like after all of your calculating to find the perfect vehicle you could pick one you like enough to keep more than 1 year.

Here's an idea, drive all the new trucks and buy the one you like!
Later if you find something you don't like about it buy a different one next year

 

That is vehicles for me, wife, and kids. And that is exactly what i will do, If I don't like it I will trade again.

 

Posted by Torque:
Who the hell buys a pickup truck to race?!

Oh yea Lightning owners do!

I notice you were very careful to exclude them from your challenge (the 3-valve qualifier) But don't worry the new 3-valve Lightning will be out soon.