funny story from the dealer today

I went to my dealer today to have my seatbelt retractor and noisy blower motor fixed under warranty. I overheard the service guys talking about a ford (not sure the model) they had on the lot with 200,000 mi on it. They were all laughing and trying to figure out how it could be possible.

 

I had a 03 Ford Ranger with 190k on the clock, still ran great, no leaks and no major work other than a clutch. Was even running after a kid turned in front of me in a mostly head on collision. I love my taco for sure but I miss jamming gears in the Ranger lol.

 

My parents, for some reason, still have a 99 Expedition with +270,XXXmiles. With original motor/transmission. Mostly original everything. All it does is sit in the driveway, but it still runs fine. Without a problem.

 

I've got a 2000 F-350 with 280,000 on the stock transmission. They will run forever if you take care of them.

 

Nothing funny about that except the ignorance of the service people. I currently also have a Ford along with my two Toyotas and my Ford has over 400,000 miles, runs fine, and does not use oil. I expect the same from the Toyotas. With few exceptions it all depends on how they are treated not the make.

 

So ....

You were at a Toyota dealership getting defective parts replaced on your 5 year old Tacoma and the techs were laughing at a Ford with 200 000 miles on it ?

 

Dammit, beat me to it.

 

yes, I was. I cant truly bash ford, I just like the jokes/rivalry between makers. my uncle had an explorer that we drove 20 hours to florida 10 years ago. Then 3 years later he was living there, and I drove it around there all summer. Now 7 years later, his kid is driving it with over 200k mi here in MA. I also had a focus, drove it to florida and back 3 times. Never an ounce of trouble With that car.

 

And for every story like that, there is one like mine where I had just bought a 66k$ F250 platinum, 4x4, diesel, had < 7k miles on the clock and left me stranded while towing a trailer to and from a race event... the cause? an burned up EGT sensor and because the truck was unable to confirm complete burn of fuel Ford in their infinite wisdom decided it'd be better and safer to shut the truck down instead of just put in limp mode or something.

The problem with that logic is I was towing a trailer, I had my family with me, and it was 110 degrees outside, and the truck was black... a 26$ sensor had the ability to turn the truck off, did I mention that the f250 scorpion diesel has 3 others... yes FOUR total EGT sensors and only one had failed but still shut the truck off.

 

Agreed!

The irony was strong at the dealership.

 

It seems like the more vehicles advance with greater technology and such, they become more and more of a problem. My 93 Honda was super basic. Not even one cup holder in it. That thing could not be destroyed. Yet one little part can shut down the whole truck.

I've seen plenty of Ford vehicles last a long time. My brother traded in a 99 F150 with 250k+ miles on it for his Taco. He hasn't looked back since that day. Not saying everyone has a good story to tell, but from my experience, I haven't really had any trouble with them.

 

Good point. All about keeping it simple, one of the reasons I went with the Taco. Simple gives me a piece of mind, definitely shows I'm getting old though.

 

I agree, its scientific - the more cupholders, the faster the vehicle will be in the crapper. Not to mention the driver, with all that liquid intake.

 

I wonder what it cost the owner (all things considered) to get it there.

 

When I did have my focus, my friend used to pick on it because it didnt have power windows/locks. My answer was "one less expensive thing to break". That quieted him.

 

Damn! My regular cab Taco has 9 cup holders! I'll never get home from work...

 

yep, the more cup holders, the faster it breaks. Seems like we may have a problem on our hands. Funny how the OP was getting his Taco looked at.......with lots of cup holders.

 

I have a lot of friends who are Ford fans and I always seem to have a Fox Body in my fleet at all times yet I certainly don't bleed Ford blue. In general they are quite reliable. I know of one Ranger that's got 350K plus miles of minimal maintenance hard miles from a building contractor that's still going strong. Not to mention my last 85 GT that I sold with 175k hard miles on the original drivetrain that was still running great. And now has 225k on the same unrebuilt drivetrain. My current Capri RS is just a baby at 85k miles. I love my Tacoma but to be completely honest durability-wise they don't hold a candle to the Toyota trucks and FJ40's I grew up with. If Ford came out with a new Ranger and I was in the market for a new truck it would certainly get some consideration.

 

Like everything there are good ones with a quarter million miles and there are bad ones that need major repairs as soon as the warranty is up
And there is probably a ford fan laughing at a 2nd gen taco getting its frame replaced