East Coast Filly and I got a new ride!

[Clay Mosby]

First a thank you to all the saloonatics for thoughts and prayers for my Mom. She lost her battle with dementia back in June.

 

After all the legal things were out of the way, Filly and I, as well as our two boys, found ourselves the recipients of a substantial inheritance.  It's allowing us to do major repairs and renovations to our 31 year old house, as well as replace our aging and mechanically iffy vehicle.

 

And here it is. 2019 F-150 Supercrew Cab, 4x4, Lariat with the twin turbo 2.7L Ecoboost.  I was leery of that small an engine in a full size truck, until I took the test drive and HOLY SH*T!! That little sucker will pin yer butt into the seat, no problem! Rather glad it didn't have the 3.5L, I could envision tickets in ones future!!  The color is called Magma Red, but we can't see anything but dark brown, maybe root beer, and sometimes black in the right light.

 

Being only barely computer literate this thing is a real learning experience. It's got more bells and whistles than the computer department at Best Buy! I can make calls, it reads texts to me, I can tell it to turn on a specific radio station. I can lock and unlock the doors and start the engine without a key. I can configure the look of the dash instruments, and it has a Back Up Camera!! Imagine that! I can even fold the side mirrors with the push of a button.

 

There are a couple of very minor nits about it that I will just have to get used to. In some twisted thinking the engineers thought that it would be a good idea to add what they call auto stop-start. It means that when you come to a stop at a light or stop sign or in traffic, after a few seconds the engine shuts off. It then restarts as soon as you start to remove your foot from the brake. You can turn it off, but as soon as you turn everything off it resets to On.  

 The other is a 10-Speed transmission!!  In an 18-wheeler and other large load movers I can see that. But in a personal vehicle? Really?  It's a bit uncomfortable if your not careful pulling away from a stop as it seems to shift about every 5-10 feet. It has a drive mode called ECO that you can set, that shifts 2 gears at a time so it's not as jerky. But like the auto stop start it reverts back to normal every time you shut the truck down.  Just need to get in the habit of hitting a couple button when I get in.

 

Being a 4x4 it sits a bit higher than the 2 wheel version, making it very difficult for 5' nothing Filly to get in, so we had aftermarket power steps added. We went with the power steps because a) they are lower than the standard rigid bolt on steps, and b) they are completely out of site when not in use.

 

We are still waiting for a camper shell, painted to match, and a pull out tray for they bed.  We had one in our previous truck and can't imagine, at our age of having a truck without one.

 

Forgive the long-windedness, we're a bit excited about it. We haven't had a brand spanking new vehicle in a LONG time!

[Noz]

I gots her older sister!  Mines red but everything else said applies.  Fun to drive but will get out from under you if you get to heavy on the gas.

[Calamity Kris]

Congrats!!!  Enjoy your ride!!

[Pat Riot]

Nice truck, Clay.

 

Personally, I am not sure I like all the bells and whistles. 

“They” have made vehicles really complex.

My wife’s 2007 Suburban is in the shop for body work after a lady nudged the rear end of her Suburban. The insurance company gave her a comparably sized rental so she got a new Infinity QX80 to drive until her Chevy is ready.

Holy Cow! This thing has everything I didn’t know was even needed in a vehicle. It’s impressive, daunting and cumbersome all at the same time. Lots of pretty cool stuff, but man, you need classroom training just to know how to operate all the doodads. 

 

Enjoy your new spacecraft...I mean, truck. 

[Linn Keller, SASS 27332, BOLD 103]

My wife got a new Dodge Charger.
It has the same problems that you've enumerated.

I do my best not to drive it.

She is younger, smarter and better looking than me, she's left handed, which means she's in her right mind ... and she's far more confuser literate.

Given my druthers, I would druther have something like a 1965 Land-Rover, the boxy African safari car that's absurdly simple and intended for service far in the outback.
I liked that '67 Dodge pickup I had as a college lad ... the hood stood straight in the air, and (skinny as I was) I could climb into the engine compartment (225 slant six), straddle the port side engine mount, stand flat footed on the ground and work with both hands on the Carbon Tater.
(sigh)
Back when dirt was young, and so was I.

Now where's that T-shirt ... you know ... the one that says "The older I get, the better I was!"

[Allie Mo, SASS No. 25217]

Looks nice. I never would have guessed red is in its color name.

 

I'm not so sure I'd like all of those new-fangled features.  One thing I love that my car has is a back up camera.

[Clay Mosby]

I do have to admit that as I learn more about some of the I  find I kinda like most of it. Being able to make and receive calls without taking hands off the wheel is nice. I may only use  it once every dozen trips or so, but it's nice. And I do like being able to unlock and lock it without having to fumble around with the fob or a key.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

By the time you get the 'puter stuff figured out.

You will be able to fly a Boeing 767......

My wife's 2019 Subaru outback is like that.

The cars made today-Teach the driver to depend on the car to drive'em, and not the knot-head sit'n behind the wheel.

 

[Forty Rod SASS 3935]

14 hours ago, Pat Riot, SASS #13748 said:

Nice truck, Clay.

 

Personally, I am not sure I like all the bells and whistles. 

“They” have made vehicles really complex.

My wife’s 2007 Suburban is in the shop for body work after a lady nudged the rear end of her Suburban. The insurance company gave her a comparably sized rental so she got a new Infinity QX80 to drive until her Chevy is ready.

Holy Cow! This thing has everything I didn’t know was even needed in a vehicle. It’s impressive, daunting and cumbersome all at the same time. Lots of pretty cool stuff, but man, you need classroom training just to know how to operate all the doodads. 

 

Enjoy your new spacecraft...I mean, truck. 

My year old Impala has gillhoolies all over it that I'll never use, but it actually costs more to get a vehicle without some things than just to get them on the car.  Some are truly annoying, like the messages that keep popping up on the screen (especially the one that informs me that reading messages on the screen can be dangerous and I shouldn't do it.  It usually come on when the car is moving.)

[Rye Miles #13621]

Nice! My son's been looking and pricing that exact truck!

[Clay Mosby]

We figured that at our age, if we take care of it, it could be the last vehicle we'd need to buy, so might as well get what we really wanted rather than settling for something else.  We wanted 4 doors because we often travel with 2 adult German Shepherds. We wanted new for the warranties and we wanted a pickup because we do occasionally carry large or odd shaped things.  For the last 11 years we've been driving a pickup we bought used that was so basic it didn't even have power windows! So this was a treat for ourselves. 

 

We were pleasantly surprised at the price considering what it came with. The Lariat trim level is in the middle of the seven levels they offer but we find it pretty fancy.  Of course what is reasonable pricing today is a far cry from what it was the last time we bought a new vehicle.  Back in the dim and dusty past we bought a fairly well loaded Oldsmobile for around $23.000. I can remember when pickups were very inexpensive to buy, until the younger generation discovered them and now they are so popular that Ford, except for the Mustang, is only going to produce pickups, SUV's and Crossover's (whatever those are?)

[bgavin]

Congrats on the new ride.

If I ever get a new truck, I'm thinking seriously about ordering one with power windows.
My '91 is really old, ugly and has an AM radio, so nobody bothers it.
It is also very reliable because it is simple.

I don't have a place to park a nice one where it is out of the sun and rain, so I don't replace the old one.
...also have a problem with a new truck costing half as much as I paid for my house.

[Seamus McGillicuddy]

Rented a VW recently with that auto stop start.  It was a PIA but at least you could switch it off. 

Transmissions with a zillion gears is how they increase gas mileage these days. My Acura has 8 gears but I almost never notice them shifting it is so smooth. 

 

Seamus

[Clay Mosby]

I hear ya bgavin, it won't fit in our garage. That's one reason why we had the sealcoat put on after we bought it. I have thought about asking the county if I can erect a shade over our driveway to keep the worst of the weather off of it. I doubt it because we're too close to the street, but heck worth it to ask.

 

I'm learning to have a gentle foot when accelerating, keeps the shifting smoother. If I push a little too hard the turbos spool up and it gets a bit jerky.

[bgavin]

Even a portable carport from Harbor Freight will provide more shade than none-at-all.

My bride bought herself a brand new Toyota RAV4 that sits in the driveway under the Sacramento sun.
I feel bad her nice ride is out in the weather but we are stuck for the moment with #4 and hubby and toddler living with us, and no room to garage it.

My last new one was an '83 Dodge 4x4 that I was able to keep in the garage.
It stayed in immaculate condition as a result.

As to a gentle foot, my ol' 1991 squirrel requires a lead foot whenever the A/C is turned on.
This is all time time here in the Sacramento heat.

[The Original Lumpy Gritz]

7 hours ago, Clay Mosby said:

I hear ya bgavin, it won't fit in our garage. That's one reason why we had the sealcoat put on after we bought it. I have thought about asking the county if I can erect a shade over our driveway to keep the worst of the weather off of it. I doubt it because we're too close to the street, but heck worth it to ask.

 

I'm learning to have a gentle foot when accelerating, keeps the shifting smoother. If I push a little too hard the turbos spool up and it gets a bit jerky.

 

If you have been into the turbos much when you go to turn the engine off.

Let the engine idle for 1-2 minutes so the engine oil can cool the waste-gate bearings down. 

OLG

 

[Painted Mohawk SASS 77785]

I'm jealous..nuff said !!!!!!

[Clay Mosby]

OLG I think I can count on one hand the number of times I've gotten the turbos spooled up, and always some time before I shut it down, But will keep it in mind.