I'm not hung up on engine options. I can live with a 2.3L EcoBoost. Sure, I would like something bigger, but my first vehicle was a GMC Sonoma with a 2.2L naturally aspirated I4. I have no doubt the small EcoBoost would be better than that.
I'm not hung up on transmissions. I hope all of you who who want a manual transmission get your wish, but my knees can't take mashing on a clutch, so I'm getting an auto anyway.
I'm not hung up on suspension in and of itself. I know all of the arguments for and against chair throwing, but it's not a deal breaker for me.
Here's what I care about:
1. Capability. If I can go everywhere my friend's FJ Cruiser can go and 95% or so of everywhere an equivalently outfitted Heep Wangler can go, I'm good.
2. Price. I have to be able to afford it without getting rid of my Tundra. I can't not have a pickup truck of some form. If I have to trade the Tundra to get a new vehicle, it would have to be another pickup truck (probably a Ranger, maybe an F-150). Now, part of this is a matter of me saving my pennies, for sure, but not all of it. Ford still has to price it where I can afford the monthly payments after making my down payment without having to carry a retardedly long note (anything longer than 60 months is too long, anything longer than 66 months is retardedly long).
3. Comfort. I don't need it to be super cushy and luxurious, but I need it to not physically hurt me to sit in it. One of the times I had to put my Tundra in the shop, I got stuck with a Camry as a loaner vehicle. My back was killing me by the time I got home. Drove it to work the next day, back was killing me before I made it 5 miles. I suffered through that for 3 days before my Tundra was done. If I'm going to buy a vehicle, I intend to own it for a while. That Sonoma I mentioned earlier? I bought it in June of 2001, traded it for the Tundra in December 2011. So yeah, it needs to be comfortable enough.
4. Unnecessary options. I can suffer through a few unnecessary options to get the upgrades I need, but not many. Part of that goes back to the price discussion. For example, if you configure a Ranger and you want to keep it as base as possible, but add the FX2 or FX4 package, you have to add the 101A group. Fine. I like cruise control and power mirrors (but I can live without them). It also adds the STX appearance package. That adds fog lamps and tow hooks, which are useful, but it also adds decals, aluminum wheels, and "premium" cloth seats. Decals add nothing to the functionality of the vehicle. You can make the argument that aluminum wheels make the vehicle lighter and more nimble (in an "ounces count" sort of way), but what if I just like the steel wheels? Or what if I don't like steel wheels, but I just want that extra inch of sidewall they give me over the aluminum ones? Or what if I have a specific set of aluminum wheels in mind and don't want the Ford ones? And what if I want vinyl seats? I mean, I don't, and especially not black ones, because I don't like sticking to my vehicle in the summer, but there is an argument to be made for vinyl seats (they're water resistant, thus harder to damage and easier to wash after getting them wet and muddy while wheeling). But I also don't need "premium" cloth seats. Point being, tow hooks and fog lamps aren't worth the extra $1000, and I don't want or need anything else in that setup bad enough to pay $1000 for it, especially if that $1000 is going to push it into the "unaffordable" area.
I'm not hung up on transmissions. I hope all of you who who want a manual transmission get your wish, but my knees can't take mashing on a clutch, so I'm getting an auto anyway.
I'm not hung up on suspension in and of itself. I know all of the arguments for and against chair throwing, but it's not a deal breaker for me.
Here's what I care about:
1. Capability. If I can go everywhere my friend's FJ Cruiser can go and 95% or so of everywhere an equivalently outfitted Heep Wangler can go, I'm good.
2. Price. I have to be able to afford it without getting rid of my Tundra. I can't not have a pickup truck of some form. If I have to trade the Tundra to get a new vehicle, it would have to be another pickup truck (probably a Ranger, maybe an F-150). Now, part of this is a matter of me saving my pennies, for sure, but not all of it. Ford still has to price it where I can afford the monthly payments after making my down payment without having to carry a retardedly long note (anything longer than 60 months is too long, anything longer than 66 months is retardedly long).
3. Comfort. I don't need it to be super cushy and luxurious, but I need it to not physically hurt me to sit in it. One of the times I had to put my Tundra in the shop, I got stuck with a Camry as a loaner vehicle. My back was killing me by the time I got home. Drove it to work the next day, back was killing me before I made it 5 miles. I suffered through that for 3 days before my Tundra was done. If I'm going to buy a vehicle, I intend to own it for a while. That Sonoma I mentioned earlier? I bought it in June of 2001, traded it for the Tundra in December 2011. So yeah, it needs to be comfortable enough.
4. Unnecessary options. I can suffer through a few unnecessary options to get the upgrades I need, but not many. Part of that goes back to the price discussion. For example, if you configure a Ranger and you want to keep it as base as possible, but add the FX2 or FX4 package, you have to add the 101A group. Fine. I like cruise control and power mirrors (but I can live without them). It also adds the STX appearance package. That adds fog lamps and tow hooks, which are useful, but it also adds decals, aluminum wheels, and "premium" cloth seats. Decals add nothing to the functionality of the vehicle. You can make the argument that aluminum wheels make the vehicle lighter and more nimble (in an "ounces count" sort of way), but what if I just like the steel wheels? Or what if I don't like steel wheels, but I just want that extra inch of sidewall they give me over the aluminum ones? Or what if I have a specific set of aluminum wheels in mind and don't want the Ford ones? And what if I want vinyl seats? I mean, I don't, and especially not black ones, because I don't like sticking to my vehicle in the summer, but there is an argument to be made for vinyl seats (they're water resistant, thus harder to damage and easier to wash after getting them wet and muddy while wheeling). But I also don't need "premium" cloth seats. Point being, tow hooks and fog lamps aren't worth the extra $1000, and I don't want or need anything else in that setup bad enough to pay $1000 for it, especially if that $1000 is going to push it into the "unaffordable" area.
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