Well I have been spending alot of time here on the web, to find out what truck could be best suited for the oilpatch, Ihave found nothing, I have gone into th sites but GM, and Damler Chyrsler only to find that yes indeed there is truck problems all over. One would think that at the price you have to pay for a truck these days that the manufacturer woulf show some interest but as long as the consumer base is still willing to spend the cash they will show no interest. If the consumer base would just pull their interests together in a group effort and say enough I am not speding the cash for this crap anymore and everyone held off for even 6 mths and didn't buy any new trucks from any of the big 3 you'd see some changes.

A vehicle should not cost more then ones home. I have decided to keep on with the 2000 that I have, by chance I did find a 1986 XLT lariat, that I plan to rebiuld and use for work, a friend of mine gave me a 460 SFI hich will pull my office from site to site and noot be any harder on furl then the V10. The cost fo the rebiuld will only be 25000.00 this is alot cheaper then going :-
X09 new. new. I will at least have a good vehicle that looks new runs better then new and have no payments.

 

I got my truck for 29K, and I would take that any day over a 25000.00 decade old rebuild.

 

Hi
I was speaking in terms of canadian dollars theres is quite a difference, 25000 cdn is only is only 18792.06 US dollars and if you spent 29000 that would be 37410 canadian, so what you are telling me is you'd rather spend or I assume finance 37410.00 as aposed to spending 25000 and owning the vehicle. In my world there is only one item a person should finance and that is your home or at least that is the way I was raised, if one has to finance a vehicle they would be investing in something that in 3 yrs is depeciated to zero for tax purposes, now if you are leaseing the vehicle then the lease payments are 100% tax deductible, you are then doing one of 2 things you have the option of not paying that money to the goverment but you are still paying it to ford as long as it is a nessessary requirement of your bisuness, in my bisuness it is written into the contract that I have a vehicle no older then 2 yrs unless it can be proven that said vehicle can be deemed reliable and in such a state that it can be identified as being new or near new. 10 yrs years ago the truck allowance was 60 per day and the rate has not changed but the price of vehicles have. So l have one leased vehicle under the company name all else is paid for under my own name and not in direct association with the company. Having said that my work location is 17hrs from home and 3 hrs into the bush north and est of FT Nelson, now if you have the money to waist on towing charges and the time to wast e getting a rental to use while the other is in the shop and the 1000 it takes everytime it goes to the shop and the time to sitch pc, and phone and 2way back and forth good for you. I however do not and would not be employed long trying to function in such a manner.

 

$18,792 seems like an outragous amount to put into an old truck. You could buy a brand new 5.4L super duty for only a couple thousand (USD) more.

Spending $22k on a new truck seems like a much better investment than pouring $19k into an 18-yr old truck.

I don't really understand your diatribe about financing. Surely, if you can afford $19k usd to rebuild your 1986, you could afford $22k usd for a brand new truck. Even if $19k is every dollar you've got - and I can't imagine you spending your last dollar on a rebuilt 1986 truck - you'd only have to finance $3k. That wouldn't be quite the catastrophy you describe.

 

In terms of reliability and maintenance costs, a new vehicle is the best option. Used vehicles can rack up maintenance fees very quickly. I understand your view point on financing, but if you have great credit, and are able to get a very good rate, why wouldn't you finance? In the end you're gonna do what you want, and I wish you the best, but in my view spending that amount of money on a vehicle of that age just isn't feasible. Good Luck to you.

--Juan

 

Hi all
I have resolved my issues with Ford and the lack of ability to support their product I have a new Dodge quad cab and went with the hemi 5.7. I still have all my old fords but wil never venture to even think of purchasing a new on. All the evedence is avaiable here in canada, just check out the blackbook listings on the vehicles and you will see that ford is now running 3rd in the 250 series und up. In conversation with Rob, from Mitchner Allen auctions , he stated that the market for superduty ford trucks has dropped to an amazng low. Dodge and GM are still holding their own. I have an unsuspecting consumer how is going to buy my 2000 superduty ford, yes I made him aware of the problems, but still has to have the vehicle. Oh well can't say I didn't warn him.
With respect to used vehicles, when i rebiuld a vehicle it is better then new, I strip the trucks to the frame and start there rebiulding the dif running new brakes lines and wireing, and so on. My 1978 F250 if you care to have a look i still like new runs and drives that way only 17000 since complete reconstruction.

 

Have fun ! Just never say we didn't warn you ! They all have their problems!
New or old !
its all in how much you like working on them!

Rich

 

I can't wait until mine breaks again gives me a chance to get close to her...small break Uknow what I mean, oil change etc...

 

Hope you have better luck with Dodge than I did.

 

It is to say the least a role of the dice, if the vehicle was just a daily driver sure i'd kep it but the unit has to work everyday leaving me stranded in the bush 12hrs from any major centre is not an acceptable option, still have all my old fords, but unless there is a drastic change in the reliabilty of the product i will role with a 2004 dodge for now.

 

After traveling through a lot of Canada in the last twenty years I can sympathize with getting freaked out about electrical gremlins. If you are 150 miles from any garage and maybe more to a "dealer" that is a sick feeling when the lights go out. Not to mention trying a cell phone call from nowhere, better bring your ham radio. Can't say I'd blame anybody for dropping Brand X vehicle for another if you've had a few pucker moments in the bush, at least with the old vehicles you got a chance of fixing an electrical problem, the newer systems are downright unfathomable, especially if dealers and mechanics can't read codes or troubleshoot to component. Try getting some little garage in Yukon or NW Terr to fix a newer broke electrical system. The local folks are friendly and try like heck to get you back on the road but when that computer goes dark prepare for a long wait. I'd rather take a punch in the gut than break down up north.

I also noticed a lot of Chevy trucks in Ontario and Quebec, sometimes it is all day till you see a Ford go by, is it something local to the east or Canada wide? Also see tons more trucks in general, folks got a lot of miles to go in bad weather, they seem to like having a truck.

Good luck on the new truck.

 

sounds like you have a grounding problem, wesash, id check all the major chassis grounds and make sure there aren't any short circuits anywhere before i'd buy a dodge, something wrong with the engine in my mom's station wagon (Magnum) being the same one available in 3/4 ton and one ton trucks.

 

I still have my 1976 F350 welding rig that i still run alot when I a, not in the consultant seat and i t never lets me down but when it does usually a plyers and a role of stovepipe wire and a set of panty hose will fix almost any problem that will ever pop up. I have owned this truck since 1979 only on its second engine and tranny and still running the original detroit locker for a dif. I have also put many a mile on in isolated areas in the oilfield, so there you have it the comparison that which the Ford name was biult on. I agree the computer crap is good for those in the big cities but for those of us who work in the real world and also do our hunting and fishing there as well the big three should biuld a vehicle that returns to the roots of dependability and I'm sure the market for these type of vehicles would be a strong one.

 

I would not leave the house without my trusty FORDS.Better not run that DOdGe to hard in the patch,she will come apart very quickly,lots of little stuff.I hardly ever see a dodge in the bush anymore.40% Ford, 30%GM ,10%Toyota ,20% old stuff.
I drive 3hrs each way everyday to where we are working right now.10%paved, 70%gravel, 20%make my own road behind the hydroaxes and porters.Communication is a must,i have VHF and Cell.
Good Luck,and you will be back,trust me.

 

Man thats gotta be rough on equip....