EBV8

I went through one of these "experiences"... The salesman laughed, out loud, in my face, and asked me when my parents were gonna show up "for real". Apparently, if you don't look like you're going to be buying a 50k Super Duty, you're not worth respect. Never mind that I was 21 and ready to pay cash in full (not normal, I admit) for an F150. Once he found that fact out, he got real buddy buddy with me- which was just more of a turn off. Oddly enough, he was fat and had a combover... What astonishes me about it is that he assumed I was very young (younger than I actually was), probably buying my first vehicle, prime for life-long Ford loyalty- yet he found it necessary to mock me! In the middle of the lot! I can't even comprehend why you would treat someone, anyone like this? I mean, I'm the middle-aged midlife-crisis buyer of tomorrow! My uncle was treated the same way by Toyota dealer when he was my age, and he still won't even look at them- lucky for Ford my love of F-150's outweighs my pride... I didn't post it on Facebook, but nobody I've told will ever step foot in that particular dealership again. I don't think it's representative of salespeople either, just the poor hiring practices at one dealership.

I had an Acadia rental for a week this summer (we were the first people to get it- they were peeling the shipping film off of it as they handed us the keys), and I can vouch for the shear retardedness of the GM folding seats. It took four adults to figure out how it worked, and then once we did figure it out, it was impossible to use. The kids ended up just climbing over the seat for the remainder of the week because they weren't strong/coordinated enough to work it. Even the diehard GM couple that was with us admitted it was the stupidest thing they'd ever seen on a 40k vehicle- it was an embarrassing lack of thought in design. It makes the seats in my 02 Explorer look like witchcraft... About the overall feel of the interior: the materials felt nice I thought, but their assembly was questionable in my mind. Pressing on the door panels caused all of the "layers" of trim materials to separate and reveal their seems- they immediately returned to a tight fit once pressure was removed, but it wasn't confidence inspiring. Also, the bezels around the air vents were loose (they looked tight until I touched them). And finally, the center console was completely loose (I could shake the whole thing form the floor up), and the upper sides that ran toward the second row under the armrest just stopped halfway back, and floated there... you could grab them, bend them around, and pry them off of the console. Honestly, the materials in my Fords aren't as nice, but at least they feel solidly constructed. I can push on the door panels in the f150 all day long and nothing separates, same with the Explorer.

I saw one two or so days ago. It was ugly. I thought I might like it from the pictures- but no, it's just ugly. Oh, and I finally saw a Camaro up close- not bad, but ugly from behind.

Too bad they can't fix it with zip-ties...

I do see a lot (comparatively speaking) of Acadia's driving around. I think they're the best of the lambdas. The first Traverse I saw was pulling into a gas station in the San Diego area. The (IMO) horribly ugly ass on it caught my eye. The second was at a Home Depot in San Luis Obispo- again the ugly rear-end caught my eye. I guess the Flex's just find me...

I always feel compelled to mention this when people call the Flex a failure because it doesn't sell like the Traverse. Here in California I see Flexes on a daily basis, I have seen -two- Traverses. I drive from central California to San Diego -300 miles of the most trafficked roads in the country- on a regular basis and I've seen two of 'em. Undoubtedly, if I were to go to my Dad's in TN the situation would be reversed. Point is, if the purpose of Flex was to reintroduce Ford to lost markets (in this case CA) then I would argue that it is extremely successful.

That was my first thought. I love the keypad, but seriously now- they've been better integrated than that for some time now- on Fords! Let alone Lincolns.

The other day I was following a Tundra and two Fords (a 04+ 150 and an older 250) down the 101 through Ventura. It's a rough freeway -no Silvercreek- but a rough road nonetheless. Point is, the Tundra tail lights (it was 11 pm) were visibly bouncing in the same fashion seen in the test video. The whole truck was twisting from side to side. After 10-15 minutes at 75mph he had to get over and slow down. The Fords -myself included- kept going without any issues. It wasn't buttery smooth, but I sure as hell wasn't being shaken to pieces. It positively made my day to know that my truck was, in fact, superior- not only on a controlled test track, but in real life. I used to think these test were not much more than entertainment for the Ford engineers. But now I know that those guys saying these tests are useless- are just flat out making excuses so that they don't feel so bad about the hunks of wasted metal they jiggle down the road in.

I always thought that was an interesting marketing approach. Do you really want to point out the features that you don't offer? Seems like it would appeal to the cold showers manly-men, but not really any one else. Why would I buy a Chevy lacking conveniences?

Unlit Cruise Control. While I don't mind the Ford 5 (or 10?) MPH auto-lock feature, I wish it would un-lock when it was put in park. Passengers are way to impatient... god forbid they should have to wait for the driver to unlock the doors. I've yelled at many a person for grabbing, repeatedly yanking, and then "snapping" the handle closed in fits of sophmoric mini-rage.

That's basically what they said about the 5r55w in the 02 Explorer (I believe it was supposed to be good to 150,000mls). Hopefully they're right this time... Mine is on it's 3rd. at 70,000 miles. Not to get too off-topic, but what exactly went wrong with that design?

Did anyone click the "something really bad" link in the last sentence of the article? Good times...

The only over-the-top negative comment there (out of 3 pages!) was by somebody named "Matt." Coincidence? I like the interior. I think it would look awesome with the sweeping door pulls from the new MKZ though...

It's Aztek ugly in those pictures...

Damn. The comments on that one went off-track faster than a BON thread... I think some people are still in denial that Ford actually makes a car worth it's salt. I'll take one please!