13 thoughts on “Ford, now ya know… Leigh, you interested in a Ford Dealership?”
I’ve own Ford F150’s for the last 35 years, I’m on my third one. Short of me totaling my last one they have all been very reliable. My last purchase was a used 2019, pre covid production and I’m very please with it.
Plan on keeping and caring for it Bigus. The stories above and below apply mostly to the newer stuff.
I’ve been driving fords since 1976 or so No real problems to speak of other than abuse and neglect.
In a 2016 escape with 90k now and a 2012 e-350 motorhome with 40k.
This is what Auto CEO’s, actually CEO’s that employ manual labor, should REALLY be shitin’ themselves over:
Ever since I found out that Ford, GM, and Chrysler/Stellantis have sold out to the Chinese, I will NOT buy any new or nearly new cars. I will keep my ’03 Jeep, ’89 Taurus Sho, and my ’85 Beaver Motor Coach. They are paid for, and can be repaired without special equipment – when I can bend a wrench on them, that is. Having a bad back doesn’t help a bit even though I have beaucoup experience with cars, electronics, motors, controls (electric, mechanical, air logic).
Gonna get spicy when the economy crashes…
I drive a lot for work, and i drive on forestry trunk roads 50% of the time, so the mileage i put on is hard.
My 2001 f-150 maxed out with 390,000km
My 2014 f-150 is at 300k
The wife had a 2014 transit connect that was a hanger queen.
Now work has fleet trucks, all the post aluminum frame f-150’s have been replaced as the roads are too rough for them. The 2013 f-150’s are all dying with engine issues and electrical faults, but they have been used for day and night shift since 2013 constantly and most lasted till 2023 at least and most with under 250k put tens of thousands of hours.
The 2023 dodge 1500 rides like shit and dont like moist conditions when electric issues creep up
The 2022 chevy 1500’s have dashes that are sealed units, everyone has had at least 2 dash replacements that if not on warranty would be over 7k each to replace. All of those are scheduled to go away in 2026 before warranty expires.
I’ve been testing the a 2025 f-150 and while nice has already been a problem in a week of testing.
Lastly the 2022 trucks we have have to be driven once a month the 2 hours through the bush till they get cell reception. They have a hard drive, it records all details of how you drive, location data, fuel efficiency etc to report back to the manufacturer. If the hard drive fills and it has not had cell reception it bricks the truck till its able to upload the data. So we have to take each truck on a drive to a spot it can report what it spied on you about or its a paperweight.
Last Ford truck? ’93 f150. Gave it to a kids friend with 270K miles on it. Still runs. Current “new” truck? ’98 f150, 170K on it, paints starting to fade, runs like a champ, No plans to trade up in the foreseeable future. ZERO complaints, will buy another if it ever needs replaced. Keep in mind, these are work trucks, not mall crawlin’ blingy douche-wagons. They WORK.
The Snap-On & Mac Tools guys are laughing all the way to the bank because of these scanners and special tools.
I gave up working on cars for a living in ’92.
There is a reason I picked a 2014 Edge with a 3.5 over a 2018 Edge with a 2.0 Eco-crap, for the wife. The only issue with the 3.5 is the water pump. The 2.0 Turbo is junk from top to bottom.
Meanwhile, the ’03 Battle Taurus is just under 260k and still knocking down 24mpg – even the way I drive it.
I do have to replace the cab mount on my ’87 F-250; but it was like that when I bought it four years ago. No computer anywhere in that one. Holley carb and a C6 transmission; gotta love it! Plenty of room to work on it and only three bolts to change the thermostat. Sorry, Phil…..
Leigh
Whitehall, NY
Doesn’t surprise me, the dealers don’t want to pay the techs enough either. Long ago when I spent a few years with their biggest competitor the back end as it was called was the second biggest money maker at the dealers after F&I.
A commentor somewhere awhile back spoke of his son killin it at the dealership, could write his own ticket. Another sign to many dont want to work as well.
Unfortunately have to agree. My wife is big on leasing our vehicle (she’s an ex ford 33 year employee). But the last two have been shit. Not so much mechanically but fit, finish, shift profile and just general bullshit. To the point we are seriously looking at Subaru for the next vehicle
I have a 2005 V6 F150 sitting on the driveway with over 260K on it. A little rust from Kansas winters and a dent from a high school parking lot incident. (The grill was replaced after the deer encounter.) Overall, it’s been a great vehicle once we found a decent independent mechanic to get it back up to snuff and keep it there. Would I buy another one? Probably not, I’m not mortgaging the farm to own one. Nor do I want to deal with the shenanigans between the salesmen and the finance office.
Driven mostly Ford’s all my life. I’m not a die hard, but I liked ’em. You could not convince me to buy newer than 2019 right now. and never a “common passenger car”. My F-Series trucks have been solid, but my 2017 Super Duty is likely the last truck I’ll ever buy. With 122K on the odometer, I think it’s just getting broken in. It does what I need it to do and what I bought it to do, and the XLT trim-line is fancy enough for me. It ain’t lifted, no oversized aftermarket wheels- all it’s got added to it is a suite of Banks items and that 6.7 is a horse. Seems most mfg has peaked and is in decline now. They want us to remain soft and unskilled, weak, broke, and controllable…better get your asses in shape and sharpen your skills for the rough ride ahead.
I’ve own Ford F150’s for the last 35 years, I’m on my third one. Short of me totaling my last one they have all been very reliable. My last purchase was a used 2019, pre covid production and I’m very please with it.
Plan on keeping and caring for it Bigus. The stories above and below apply mostly to the newer stuff.
I’ve been driving fords since 1976 or so No real problems to speak of other than abuse and neglect.
In a 2016 escape with 90k now and a 2012 e-350 motorhome with 40k.
This is what Auto CEO’s, actually CEO’s that employ manual labor, should REALLY be shitin’ themselves over:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2025/10/12/why-western-executives-visit-china-coming-back-terrified/
Ever since I found out that Ford, GM, and Chrysler/Stellantis have sold out to the Chinese, I will NOT buy any new or nearly new cars. I will keep my ’03 Jeep, ’89 Taurus Sho, and my ’85 Beaver Motor Coach. They are paid for, and can be repaired without special equipment – when I can bend a wrench on them, that is. Having a bad back doesn’t help a bit even though I have beaucoup experience with cars, electronics, motors, controls (electric, mechanical, air logic).
Gonna get spicy when the economy crashes…
I drive a lot for work, and i drive on forestry trunk roads 50% of the time, so the mileage i put on is hard.
My 2001 f-150 maxed out with 390,000km
My 2014 f-150 is at 300k
The wife had a 2014 transit connect that was a hanger queen.
Now work has fleet trucks, all the post aluminum frame f-150’s have been replaced as the roads are too rough for them. The 2013 f-150’s are all dying with engine issues and electrical faults, but they have been used for day and night shift since 2013 constantly and most lasted till 2023 at least and most with under 250k put tens of thousands of hours.
The 2023 dodge 1500 rides like shit and dont like moist conditions when electric issues creep up
The 2022 chevy 1500’s have dashes that are sealed units, everyone has had at least 2 dash replacements that if not on warranty would be over 7k each to replace. All of those are scheduled to go away in 2026 before warranty expires.
I’ve been testing the a 2025 f-150 and while nice has already been a problem in a week of testing.
Lastly the 2022 trucks we have have to be driven once a month the 2 hours through the bush till they get cell reception. They have a hard drive, it records all details of how you drive, location data, fuel efficiency etc to report back to the manufacturer. If the hard drive fills and it has not had cell reception it bricks the truck till its able to upload the data. So we have to take each truck on a drive to a spot it can report what it spied on you about or its a paperweight.
Last Ford truck? ’93 f150. Gave it to a kids friend with 270K miles on it. Still runs. Current “new” truck? ’98 f150, 170K on it, paints starting to fade, runs like a champ, No plans to trade up in the foreseeable future. ZERO complaints, will buy another if it ever needs replaced. Keep in mind, these are work trucks, not mall crawlin’ blingy douche-wagons. They WORK.
The Snap-On & Mac Tools guys are laughing all the way to the bank because of these scanners and special tools.
I gave up working on cars for a living in ’92.
There is a reason I picked a 2014 Edge with a 3.5 over a 2018 Edge with a 2.0 Eco-crap, for the wife. The only issue with the 3.5 is the water pump. The 2.0 Turbo is junk from top to bottom.
Meanwhile, the ’03 Battle Taurus is just under 260k and still knocking down 24mpg – even the way I drive it.
I do have to replace the cab mount on my ’87 F-250; but it was like that when I bought it four years ago. No computer anywhere in that one. Holley carb and a C6 transmission; gotta love it! Plenty of room to work on it and only three bolts to change the thermostat. Sorry, Phil…..
Leigh
Whitehall, NY
Doesn’t surprise me, the dealers don’t want to pay the techs enough either. Long ago when I spent a few years with their biggest competitor the back end as it was called was the second biggest money maker at the dealers after F&I.
A commentor somewhere awhile back spoke of his son killin it at the dealership, could write his own ticket. Another sign to many dont want to work as well.
Unfortunately have to agree. My wife is big on leasing our vehicle (she’s an ex ford 33 year employee). But the last two have been shit. Not so much mechanically but fit, finish, shift profile and just general bullshit. To the point we are seriously looking at Subaru for the next vehicle
I have a 2005 V6 F150 sitting on the driveway with over 260K on it. A little rust from Kansas winters and a dent from a high school parking lot incident. (The grill was replaced after the deer encounter.) Overall, it’s been a great vehicle once we found a decent independent mechanic to get it back up to snuff and keep it there. Would I buy another one? Probably not, I’m not mortgaging the farm to own one. Nor do I want to deal with the shenanigans between the salesmen and the finance office.
Driven mostly Ford’s all my life. I’m not a die hard, but I liked ’em. You could not convince me to buy newer than 2019 right now. and never a “common passenger car”. My F-Series trucks have been solid, but my 2017 Super Duty is likely the last truck I’ll ever buy. With 122K on the odometer, I think it’s just getting broken in. It does what I need it to do and what I bought it to do, and the XLT trim-line is fancy enough for me. It ain’t lifted, no oversized aftermarket wheels- all it’s got added to it is a suite of Banks items and that 6.7 is a horse. Seems most mfg has peaked and is in decline now. They want us to remain soft and unskilled, weak, broke, and controllable…better get your asses in shape and sharpen your skills for the rough ride ahead.