Michigan Radio & TV Buzzboard

Ford = "Fucker Only Runs Downhill"

MWmetalhead wrote: ↑

Sat Jun 04, 2022 10:29 am

Sadly, this isn't terribly surprising to me:

https://www.freep.com/story/money/cars/ ... 512077001/

The 2.7L has been used in other Ford vehicles with little issue (often with twin turbos), so the issues in the Bronco must be either QC related or due to engineering modifications specific to that model.

I'm weighing my options on a new car. Fortunately I won't be needing it until fall of 23', which maybe sounds a little too forward thinking but Bronco orders are running about a year out. I was pretty jacked about the Bronco but I've been following an enthusiast website and the news seems to get worse daily. 100's and 100's of new cars out in the weather over the fall, winter and now spring (Dirt/Ice Mountain as it's called) waiting for parts. The third version of the fiberglass top is getting in the supply chain after the first two variants were pretty deemed unsellable.

From everything I've read Rolling Shitbox is something of a kind understatement. A lot of the problems are typical of domestic manufacturing, fit & finish sloppy at best, questionable engineering and customer service by Ford and it's dealerships antagonistic to customers. Standard Operating Procedure.

I'd really like to find something with a ragtop but it's slim pickin's at least in terms of something up for the roads I'll run into after my new house is built. It would take a lot to be convinced Ford hasn't changed it's stripes, so I (and a lot of other folks as I understand it) are looking at other products but that too has been no picnic. Jeep is naturally the first 4x4 you'd think of but they too have a ton of problems and have for quite a while. I've also been considering a Land Rover Defender 90 but I think JLR doesn't have much to write home about reliability either.

At this point I think I may just do a factory order on a cheap spartan Wrangler Sport to get by for awhile until Jeep has a EV product that has better range than 20 miles or a Land Rover EV. I would think five years out there will be some very interesting EV vehicles being made.

Ford's greater problem is with the abysmal Bronco rollout, there's some real evidence Ford's wish/plan to lure possible Jeep and JLR purchasers over to consider a Bronco is quickly falling apart. When Jeeps and Land Rovers start appearing like a more trustworthy vehicle, you've got some serious business problems.

Among the Asian manufacturers, I would trust Toyota and Mazda the most. Too bad the infotainment experience in most Mazda vehicles is user unfriendly. Need to be a rocket scientist just to use the damn radio tuner.

Pretty good choices. A few years back (after Ford sold their stake in Mazda) I drove a rental Mazda CX-5 across country and I remember being very impressed with the vehicle. Really solid rig.

When Jeeps and Land Rovers start appearing like a more trustworthy vehicle, you've got some serious business problems.

Toyota really needs to show up in the catagory. My lady has a 2017 Wrangler and I now know why there are so many after market drivetrain options.

TC Talks wrote: ↑

Tue Jun 07, 2022 8:40 am

When Jeeps and Land Rovers start appearing like a more trustworthy vehicle, you've got some serious business problems.

Toyota really needs to show up in the catagory. My lady has a 2017 Wrangler and I now know why there are so many after market drivetrain options.

Amen! Those late 60's Land Cruisers or the FJ Cruiser in later years. I'd snap up something like that in the blink of an eye. I hope Ford's atrocious Bonco rollout doesn't scare off rivals to shelf any idea of competing in this space. Suppose OTOH it could also speed up any plans by others predicated on Ford having that space locked up with Jeep. Ford is very vulnerable to pooching the entire works.

A member of the family used to work for Roush and they built some the protos for Ford.

He said Ford hired all the first-year engineering grads from all over the world for cheap, and said they were terrible to work with. Bad ideas, poor communication.

All the OEMs hire engineering grads to work for them right out of college. None of them are making important program decisions.

craig11152 wrote: ↑

Sun Jun 05, 2022 9:22 am

The old acronym jokes ...

Ford= found on road dead
Fiat= fix it again Tony.

Those are the only two I know.

I once had an oil-burning Escort and told people that Ford stood for "Fill Oil Reservoir Daily".

Other ones I've heard:
Plymouth: Please let your mechanic open up the hood.
Pontiac: Poor old neighbors think it's a Cadillac.

Do not buy a Land Rover, Lester.

If you want to lease one for two years - OK, I guess.

Every Land Rover has technology that malfunctions or breaks almost constantly. Endless money pits once off warranty. Few people know how to work on them and parts are very expensive.

Jeep vehicles have plenty of issues, too, but a lot more people know how to repair those, and parts (at least in normal times) are widely available.

TC Talks hit the nail on the head earlier.

MWmetalhead wrote: ↑

Fri Jun 10, 2022 8:33 pm

Do not buy a Land Rover, Lester.

If you want to lease one for two years - OK, I guess.

Every Land Rover has technology that malfunctions or breaks almost constantly. Endless money pits once off warranty. Few people know how to work on them and parts are very expensive.

Jeep vehicles have plenty of issues, too, but a lot more people know how to repair those, and parts (at least in normal times) are widely available.

TC Talks hit the nail on the head earlier.

Thanks MW. Mrs. Nightfly is kinda leaning on me to get the LR, but she won't be the one driving it when something goes gunny sack. My biggest reason for pushing back on it is servicing. We're building in Tucson which has a total of one LR dealer and two indy shops. OTOH, Tucson has a couple of dealers and probably a dozen indy Jeep shops. The place is just crawling with them. I know Wrangler's are probably not the safest thing to drive but at least I'll get a real ragtop and nobody will look at me like I'm from Mars if I go into a parts store asking for an oil filter or something.

Appreciate the advice.

My wife really liked a Land Rover we saw on a dealer lot a few years ago, and we came close to pulling the trigger on it. A few questions of those who have owned them and our trusted gear head convinced us not to do it. In his opinion, ike Volvos, Land Rovers have a tendency to start to self-destruct when the warranty runs out.

And though it is not a acronym, I got a chuckle out of gear head's statement:

"Look under a Land Rover. If it ain't leaking, it's empty."

I have a 2011 Escape... the second generation of the old boxy one. Reliable as hell.. 260K miles and only 1 check engine light. Then again its a Mazda engine and chassis. Have put a new ignition switch in it as well as a new blower motor resister (settings 1 and 2 no longer worked for fan speed... 30 minutes and about $20 DIY) as well as the suspension parts you would expect to replace. Out of all the older Ford models I see Escapes the most driving around.

I'm on my third Chevy Equinox. I've had a 13. a 16 and now a 20. I bought them all new. The vehicle is boring as Hell but reliable as Hell. They haven't given me a minute of trouble

This Equinox will be my last. They are built at the GM plant in Ingersoll ON, about 20 miles from here. We have neighjbours working at the plant. But GM is pulling production of the Equinox from that plant and moving it to Mexico.

Toyota builds the Rav 4 in Woodstock ON, abot 25 miles from here but they aren't Union. I only buy vehicles that are Union built in North America, So it looks like my next vehicle will be either a Chrysler minivan or a Ford Escape.

Turkeytop wrote: ↑

Sat Jun 11, 2022 6:05 pm

I'm on my third Chevy Equinox. I've had a 13. a 16 and now a 20. I bought them all new. The vehicle is boring as Hell but reliable as Hell. They haven't given me a minute of trouble

This Equinox will be my last. They are built at the GM plant in Ingersoll ON, about 20 miles from here. We have neighjbours working at the plant. But GM is pulling production of the Equinox from that plant and moving it to Mexico.

Toyota builds the Rav 4 in Woodstock ON, abot 25 miles from here but they aren't Union. I only buy vehicles that are Union built in North America, So it looks like my next vehicle will be either a Chrysler minivan or a Ford Escape.

TT - try the Chevy Traverse. Built in Lansing, Michigan and an incredibly roomy vehicle, I’m 6’3” and a big guy. I’ve sat in them. Lots of legroom and space, plus an optional third row of seating. I’ve told my wife if something happened to our Impala, I’d like to buy this.

Too big and roomy for me. I'm 5' 6" and 145 lb. I'd need a booster seat.

Turkeytop wrote: ↑

Sat Jun 11, 2022 6:05 pm

I'm on my third Chevy Equinox. I've had a 13. a 16 and now a 20. I bought them all new. The vehicle is boring as Hell but reliable as Hell. They haven't given me a minute of trouble

This Equinox will be my last. They are built at the GM plant in Ingersoll ON, about 20 miles from here. We have neighjbours working at the plant. But GM is pulling production of the Equinox from that plant and moving it to Mexico.

Toyota builds the Rav 4 in Woodstock ON, abot 25 miles from here but they aren't Union. I only buy vehicles that are Union built in North America, So it looks like my next vehicle will be either a Chrysler minivan or a Ford Escape.

Mexico is in North America.