RiceMaster

I looked at a Tundra the other day and it's a great looking truck, probably the best looking truck ever IMO. But inside is super cheap, almost as cheap as Titan. Everything is huge inside, from the radio/climate control buttons to the grip bars and steering wheel, it's big, but UGLY BIG!!! In their efforts to sell to more american buyers, they've dumb down Toyotas famous interior for a cheaper domestic flavor. I thought the idea of buying a Japanese product was so it has a japanese flavor to it, not a watered down american flavor? Americans didn't buy the old Tundra because it wasn't american enough, it was simply too small and not manly enough for major truck duties.....plus it was an asian brand. Toyota even proudly say Tundras are built in the USA. I don't know if that's a good thing to be bragging about. Toyota succeeds based on the perception of japanese quality. It seems to me, Toyota is still behind the game even with a brand new design. GM/Ford has already gone upscale(euro upscale) with their truck interior while Toyota is still working on detroit style interior.

The only reason I would rate Tundras interior better than Titan is the Lexus like plastic grains which gives it a slightly upscale ambiance, while the Titans is a mix of weird and cheaply grained materials Ford would be ashamed to use in their 80s escorts. However, Titans plastic door panels are thick and padded while Tundras is thin, hard and hollow. You win some, you lose some.

Pearlpower

iTrader: (2)

Sales numbers have little to do with the quality of a product. A few of you here should know that by now. Myself, I often find that my choice in a purchase is not determined by my neighbors decision but more if the item meets my higher expectations in what I decide to spend my money on. Some people will be happy with Fords-especially if they have nothing to compare it to-whereas myself I prefer to spend the extra money to get the higher proven quality in items such as vehicles, computers, lcds, hotels, restaurants, etc.....Of course more $$$ does not always equate to better, but in most cases after I have done considerable research and made a decision-it does.
So Paul ,as you came in here to defend Ford to the hilt, if you had my experience with Ford products (perhaps you have), what would your perception be of Ford? To add, I did not see a comment from you on the sole purpose of this thread-the video.

Just to give some real world examples:
2006 Ford Fusion

1) New transmission before 12k miles
2) A/C lost pressure around the same time. Replaced high pressure line.
3) CD changer required replacement at 36k miles. 122 miles after the warranty
4) body panels loose
5) rattles on both doors
6)Updated software to fix severe and sporatic hesisation. Still has it-just not as bad and not dangerous as prior.
7) Front right door speaker replaced
8) Front left door speaker replaced
9) Left door aligned-typical Ford problem
10) Clunk in suspension repaired
11)Idler pulley went out-122 mile after warranty expired
12) A/C compressor went out at 36k miles. Again AFTER warranty ended and 3 visits to dealer to get it addressed
13) Engine cuts out as if half of its cylinders are not firing. Last for 10 minutes and goes away. Ford cannot find the problem. The will rear itself once a month or so.

and there is more which does not come to mind.

Now as this car was at Ford for 7.5 out of 8 weeks to address a few of these issues (parts backordered) I had rentals

2007 Mustang Convertible-3k miles, interior kick panel kept falling off. Stalled twice at intersection for no reason. Gas guage was broken.
2007 Expedition-2k miles. Again-kick panel kept falling off. Power drivers seat had a bad motor or linkage as only one side moved back and forth causing the seat to want to turn.

Now this is on top of my Mustang GT from years ago (when I really wanted one and knew nothing of cars) plus my Ford Taurus LX-1987 with every bell and whistle Ford offered. It ended up as a Ford (not dealer) buy back in 6 months due to bad fuel sender and the entire braking system failed me twice-once causing me to rear end someone -at low speed thankfully.

Not to mention I am in the automotive industry (not car sales) and my stories are just a few of a great many out there on Ford and the surveys on automotive quality back up my experiences.

So with that, would you really recommend a Ford to a friend if you were me? Plus, do you see why I dislike Ford? Or do you think I should give them another chance?

Now with all of that stated, I have said it before and here again, I really do like the Fusion and think it would be an awesome car if not for all of those issues. If someone else made it, it would be a top notch car. Good power when it works, nice 6 spd trans when it does not buck as it sometimes does, decent handling for a stock car in this class, good room, looks ok, ok mileage, good trunk space, nice radio unit. I should post a pic, only car I do not have a picture of.

Och

iTrader: (3)

Wow Pearl... And those are virtually new cars too! My uncle used to own a Taurus back in the early-mid 90ies, it was the most unreliable POS ever, but I thought they would've improved since then. Guess not.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

When my wife and I realized we needed our first pickup truck in '03 (I think), and it had to be capable of a pretty big towing haul, our choices were pretty limited. The Titan was pretty new, and we just didn't like the looks, the cheapness, or the newness, although the engine is awesome. The Chevy/GMC offerings then were just butt ugly and cheap. The Tundra was way too small and wimpy to consider. So we looked at the F-150 and it was a no brainer. Very nice interior, TANK like construction, huge aftermarket support, lots of configurations, and reasonable price. What's not to like? So we got it. Of course it being the #1 selling vehicle didn't hurt but that certainly wasn't our main consideration although we wanted one that 'bubba' in the middle of nowhere could fix if we ever had a problem!

I think I would have gone for lemon law on your Fusion - I just don't believe they're all that bad.

But then you rant about rental vehicles which are always used and abused. Hey I had Lexus loaners that weren't in great shape either. Finally you relay problems with cars from 2 decades ago - hardly relevant to today.

So your particular experiences, sure, I can see why you feel the way you do.

Ok, about the video - I think the guy makes a few valid points, but it's mostly a pretty silly babbling where he often says Toyota has caught up with Ford on this or that or that he'll enjoy critiquing this or that later. I've no doubt that the new Tundra will serve most of its customers very well and they did their homework. But I also fully expect the next gen F-150 out next year will raise the bar significantly. I think Ford has more to worry about with the Silverado than the Tundra, as GM certainly doesn't have the capacity constraints that Toyota will for a while.

mmarshall

According to Consumer reports, the Fusion ( and, of course, its twins Milan and Zephyr), reliability-wise, is one of the most impressive domestic-nameplate vehicles on the market, at least for the FWD versions. The AWD versions have not been out long enough for a database.

mmarshall

This would be a long and exceedingly unusual list of problems in a new car, EVEN for a notoriously unreliable make like a Mercedes, Jaguar, or Land Rover, much less a generally more reliable Ford.


I don't think your particular car was built at the factory that way. It may have been damaged on the transporter, been in a flood, suffered other storm damage, been carjacked or stolen, or any one of a number of things that the dealership may have unscrupulously covered up with makeshift repairs or bodywork before you bought it. I'm not saying that IS the case, or that the people you bought the car from are crooks, but take my word for it....it DOES happen.

Also, did you give this car a reasonably good inspection and test-drive before you bought it? I spend a lot of time with car-shoppers showing them how to do just that, and what to check.

Pearlpower

iTrader: (2)

I actually was one of the first to take delivery of a Fusion. Brand new. Fully inspected and I am picky with a capital ,"P".

Keep in mind though that poor dealer service did not help matters much at all.

Also to the poster on the Consumer Reports rating, this car has not even been out long enough for a rating-thus the ES350 rant in that forum on CR ratings.

Oh, and I forgot the battery was replaced by Ford as well. Only 1 year old.

But ,knock on wood, I do hope the car has ironed out it's issues and gets me back and forth. I drive up to 300 miles a day at times and hate to put the mileage on the Lexus as I will be sadly departing from it in 5 months or so.

Without a doubt ,this will be an exciting year for truck buyers. So many good choices out there, we shall see how the year ends up.