New Truck Prices

Yep. I have done the exact same thing. No power anything but steering and brakes. Manual. Tow package. Off-road package. No air conditioning either. That was a 98 Dodge Dakota. 4x4, regular cab short box. 318 Magnum, 5 speed with 3.92 limited slip rear. It was a ripper.

 

Not so much that base trucks are special order as it is dealers don’t order base models because a very slim amount of people buy them. Gets expensive for them to stock units they have to sit on for 9 months in order to sell them. They have a 90 day turnaround or start paying interest on them.

 

100% truth.

 

if it isn't on the lot, than it's a special order , order, whatever you want to call it... semantics..
I don't disagree why stock something that won't sell, you need to find a dealer that deals with fleets if you don't want to "order" it.

 

Tell then those are winning lottery numbers....lol

 

I'll be dammed if my kids aren't going to learn to drive standards.

 

As a youngster I was taught to shift with my left hand as mom and dad did the clutch.
At 16 a kind old truck driver taught me the ways of a 13 speed.

 

Grew up on plantary trannies and hand breaks. Square corners anyone. I was about 10 driving the grain truck next to tractor and harvester. Big old blocks of wood strapped to the go and stop peddals and a couple of old phone books on the seat. i was about 14 when i could finally crank that ac tractor over myself and not get tossed a half a block away by a kickback.

 

Young fella needs to learn not to rest his foot on the clutch pedal. That destroys the throwout bearing sooner. I rarely use the clutch in my Focus or my farm tractors (12-12). I float the gears almost all the time. Saves the clutch disc and saves me working my left leg too. Directional changes in the big Kubota's I have is via hydraulic shuttle anyway to the clutch is really optional.

Even my wife is a good gear shifter but she grew up on a farm too. I like farm gals the best anyway.

 

Hard to find standard shift vehicles anymore to buy for a teenager.. But my Kubota is standard and my lil girl can drive it and back it in and out of barn

 

Not bad for a kid that had a stroke at 14.

 

Fleet vehicles are a different type of unit. Fleets get a special discount and have a different type of order not associated with regular dealer orders. If it’s not on the lot and it’s something you want, and order, it’s just a stock order. Nothing special about it, just something different that the dealer doesn’t order. There typically is no such thing as “special order”.

 

Some areas might have property values go down, but it's really not possible to have that happen where I live. It's great for us because our home value has gone up quite a bit since we bought it.

The other difference from 2008, was that loans were given to people that couldn't afford them. Now when people pay over the homes value, it's cash. No mortgage co is footing that. These super inflated home sales are all cash. Some people have cash to burn, especially if they are moving from a state that their home they are selling or moved from was with twice as much as the home here, despite the home here being larger, nicer, and more land. That's pretty common in this state. To those people the 450k house here is nothing $ wise to the 900k they just got for their old house.

 

Inflation is worse now. I'm not 50, but I definitely know what inflation was from the 80's.
Ford wasn't shocked about the demand for the maverick. It was designed precisely for the segment buster it ended up being. Unfortunately the supply chain can't support them making more.

Yep, that's how I bought my truck, 40k on it and 3yrs old. I let someone else eat 50% depreciation from sticker. I'll never pay over MSRP for new. There's dealers that don't gouge. People just need to stop paying those ADM charges.

 

The lady who cuts my hair told me on my last visit:

“Did you see that guy who walked out as you were walking in? He told me he just bought a $100,000 Ram truck. Yet all he left me was a two dollar tip”

 

That's how many of those people are. They think nothing of spending $100k on a vehicle, or $1,300 on a phone, or $100 a plate at a restaurant. Paying a tradesman who's fully licensed and insured more than $25/hour. Absolutely out of the question!

They are cheap when it comes to spending money on anyone other than themselves. They "deserve" these items/luxuries/things in their mind.

 

Sad, but true.....
I grew up so poor I'd've gladly eaten the scraps off the plates of such folks......
I often wonder how someone can enjoy living in such luxury knowing full well there are hard-working people all around them who can't even make ends meet.
On the other hand, I have memories from growing up in the 80's that are worth every bit of the hardship we went through.... for example, going dumpster diving with my dad for our food was more fun than spoiled folks with all their toys will ever know!

 

I agree. You build character and grit that way, while making memoires. This is why so many military people stay close years and years after serving. You build bonds through hardships and tough times.

No amount of money can buy these things.

 

Here I disagree with you my friend. All real estate is local and especially houses. Your area may be different BUT Numbers don’t lie
a 450k house 30 year fixed principal and interest monthly payment about $1,900 around 3%

Same house interest at todays rate is $3,100

And it’s worse than that when you go to Lender. You have to prove not only that you have extra $2,100 a month but your total debt to income is below 45%