Trucks pay off--big time--for Ford

Having spent a little time riding around in a 2019 model 4WD F150 recently, I can understand why. 5.0 V8, 4 doors. It was a very nice truck.

The owner’s only complaint was how high it was but he was too cheap to buy the running boards. And, of course, the 4WD’s contribution to that height.

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1 yr ago fords stock was $11. Its $7.70 today. Great results?
Market cap is $30B. Apple went down $75 B yesterday. And will go up the same amount today. It’s all perception.

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No it isn’t. Sales dollars and profits are the reason the company is in business. And those results were pretty good. Yeah the stock is down, that is the only part that is perception.

Comparing Apple to Ford is like comparing apples to buffalo.

You might as well compare Ford to Uber
 one company builds things, the other has an app. Both have value, one is undervalued, one is over valued
 but that is MY perception, not the market’s.

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Airlines are 10% capacity. No sports. No restaurants. No hotels? Millions out of work. And stock market is fully recovered from March dump? Yesterday morning every stock was down 3% and Apple was up? Took a few hrs and Apple did bleed a bit but will recover just fine. Everyone needs a phone. Do they need a $65k truck?

Once again, it is all about perception. I surely don’t need a $65k truck, and neither do you, but if enough people perceive that they “need” a luxo-truck, and if they have the wherewithal to do so, then they may just go out and buy one.

Let’s not forget that people are socking a lot of money into savings accounts right now–despite the fact that interest rates on those accounts are negligible–and I think that some people are choosing to treat themselves to something that–technically–they don’t “need”.

I live in Oklahoma and it might be called truck country. I do not want one of those over grown expensive trucks but they are every where . I have been looking for a used Ranger of the years when they were smaller. The prices of those are way too high .

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Apparently quite a few DO need a $65K truck.

Maybe in your neck of the woods, but not everywhere. Not in Florida nor in Georgia from personal experience. IndyCar race up the road in St. Pete last weekend with 20K fans. I travelled to a sports car race outside Atlanta 2 weeks ago. 40-50K fans, hotel was fairly full as were the roads to get there. Restaurants open but not full.

Reports from friends in Ohio and Michigan were very, very different. It would be a miracle if 20% of the restaurants and small businesses re-open. Different Governors, very different responses, very different results.

Yep, Apple is up 3% this morning. $60 billion. And ford is up 5%. Nice

The gaming of CAFE regs resulted in the marketing of station wagons rebranded as trucks(SUVs) which were outrageously luxurious in order to sell them to women. Marketing was so successful and coincidentally the price of gasoline declined to paint a great picture for truck(?) sales. But honestly the opulent four door behemoths are just swelled up station wagons after all.

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The actual transaction prices are typically nowhere near sticker prices when it comes to trucks. I bought a 2019 F-150 last year for over $13k under sticker price, without a trade mind you, and without playing games with floor mats for 3 hours. I still feel like I Ieft a bit on the table as far as negotiations went. A truck that stickers for $65k, can be had for right around $50k OTD if you play your cards right. The MRSP’s on trucks and truck-based SUV’s have been artificially inflated for about two decades now.

Do people need a 65K truck, yes, about as much as they need a $1200 Phone. I son’t tow anything and am retired so if I did wan to move something I can’t get in my car, it would make more sense to rent the right size truck.

I son;t mind that the sticker range up to 65K as much as the fat that they start at 33K. { can remember when a ford, chevy or dodge pick op was cheaper than their lowest price sedan.

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I guess you have to remember that people will be driving more instead of flying, for a while at least, so a good solid $65K truck might be tempting. I’m still thinking about the figures in one of the car mags that said males buy about half of the trucks and females buy the small cars and SUVs. I got my quarterly statement though yesterday and stocks were 8% year to date. I just don’t worry about individual companies anymore. So making money but nowhere to go and nothing to buy. I don’t think the truck would fit in the garage though, but my neighbor has two of them.

+1
In my area, virtually every time that I see a huge SUV in my mirror, about to rear-end me, it being driven by a woman.

Yes, and I agree despite being a woman.

I’ve rarely had men try to convince me to trade my sedan for an SUV but oh how women I know spend a lot of effort trying to get me to switch.

I’ve nothing against SUVs. Several made my short list both times I ending up buying sedans in relatively recent years. My choice of sedans came down to an aggregate of factors. Basically, sedans suit my personal needs and budget.

My frustration is that sedans are simply dwarfed by most trucks and SUVs these days, making it difficult to see traffic ahead down the road, etc. And, increasingly, those driving gigundatrucks and SUVs seem to enjoy bullying drivers of smaller vehicles. In that regard, men no longer hold exclusive title to aggressive road bullying.

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And very often waaaay, waaay too close!

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It seems to me that back in the mid 1980s, U.S. manufacturers decided to get motorists out of station wagons and into minivans. This worked for 15 to 20 years and then the auto manufacturers gave minivans the image of Soccer Mom’s vehicles and convinced the auto buying public to trade in their minivans for SUVs. Now it’s time to get motorists out of SUVs and into crew cab pickup trucks.
I am rather surprised with the recession caused by COVID-19 that these expensive trucks are selling so well. I well remember the recession that began in 1957. Sales of the VW Beetle were strong and the AMC Rambler became popular. The 1955 Chevrolet which was an efficient design turned into the ‘bat mobile’ 1959 Chevrolet. The big cars weren’t selling, so we got the compact Ford Falcon, Chevrolet Corvair and Chevy I I and Plymouth Valiant. These compacts were a little too small for a family car, so we got the ‘intermediates’. The Chevrolet Chevelle was about the same size as the 1955 Chevrolet. I think the four door pickup trucks may be replaced with more practical vehicles in the near future.

Even here in California the prices of those older . . . the small ones, as you said . . . Rangers are absolutely outrageous. Highway robbery, in my opinion. In some cases, you might be better off buying new. At least you can haggle and won’t be overpaying for used up old truck that probably needs a lot of work immediately

Yup . . . those big SUVs are thirsty and they’ll probably cost more to maintain and repair over the years. Those big LT-series tires for the bigger SUVs aren’t cheap at all, at least not the decent tires.

Yes . . . big trucks and SUVs are great equalizers, so to speak. Anybody, no matter their age, size, gender, etc. feels emboldened to act like a total jerk. I’ve seen people who fit the description of “little old lady” get into Chevy Suburbans and drive like absolute menaces

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I disagree with that. Having many relatives at the time working for Chryco and GM
it wasn’t the manufacturers PUSHING the public into minivans
it was the public WANTING the minivans. When minivans first came out the manufacturers couldn’t make enough. Sales climbed and climbed. They were very versatile. Delivery vehicles were also a big driving force to the minivan revolution. Sales in that market were huge.

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@MikeInNH. That may be true about minivans. However, the reputation that minivans got as a ‘soccer mom’s car’ seemed to steer people from minivans to SUVs. I agree that minivans are versatile. I have owned five minivans since 1991. However, there really isn’t much that can be done with the styling of minivans. I think it is the urge for buyers to want something different. My 2017 Sienna looks like my 2011 Sienna except for the color. My 2011 was maroon and my 2017 is gray. I told a friend after I bought the 2017 that I had my Sienna repainted by Earl Scheib for $39.95. He thought they did a wonderful job. I bought a 2000 Ford Windstar from a dealer I liked working with. When I was ready for a new minivan, Ford quit making minivans. The dealer tried to steer me to a Ford Escape. I went to the Chevrolet dealer and bought an Uplander. When I was ready for another minivan and went to the Chevrolet dealer, Chevrolet no longer made minivans. The salesman tried to sell me a Traverse. I then went to the Toyota dealer and bought a Sienna.
I understand the 2021 Sienna will only be available as a hybrid. Maybe Toyota will keep upgrading minivans.