Posted on 02/06/2019 4:48:54 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
DECATUR, Texas/FLINT, Mich. (Reuters) - Mickey McMaster is on his 12th pickup truck.
The 61-year old farm equipment dealer in Decatur, Texas, two weeks ago treated himself to a 2019 GMC Denali for around $69,000 - a reward for long hours at work.
For me this is the Cadillac of trucks, its a real luxury vehicle, McMaster said. Ive worked my way up to afford a truck like this and it shows that Ive earned it.
McMaster is the kind of customer General Motors Co is banking on as it plans to add 1,000 jobs at a plant in Flint, Michigan that will build a new generation of its largest pickups. Demand from Texas and other heartland states for big pick-ups is providing a lifeline to many workers the No. 1 U.S. automaker is laying off at plants elsewhere....
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
My 16 Tacoma sticker price new was 33k.
It is plenty of truck for me.
The manual transmission was cheaper.
all the Yodas around here from the 80s, and really the 90s all rusted away..
some the frames taco’d on as well (rusted away and folded up like a taco)
my back up truck is a 82 F-250 with a 460-4V.. Only thing that truck stops for?
gas stations.. every single one of them.
My dad bought an S10 the first year they came out.
It withstood a couple decades of abuse running all over America on construction jobs.
300k of hard mileage.
I’d like to have a Chevy LUV.
My 2004 Toyota Tundra still drives like the Lexus that was built on the same chassis with the same engine.
Detroit is DAMN LUCKY that the Japanese didn’t go after that market. They almost did, but then got scared off by Obama tightening the screws on gas mileage.
I cannot fathom $69k for a pick-up.
Even if I could afford it.
I’d buy a $40k (plain) truck and a $29k Accord. Or some other nice sedan.
Use each as intended.
I know somebody that bought a brand new Ford F150 with all the bells and whistles. He would never use it to haul anything and kept the truck bed waxed and spotless. For the money he spent, he could have had a luxury car. But he wanted to project that “real man” image while he was actually a fussy neatness freak who never got his hands dirty.
“The Ford 5.4 litre engine in trucks is one of the worst on the planet. “
Hater posting fake news alert!
Where I live, Texas, I see plenty of trucks that never get dirty.
Jeep wranglers too. Especially the Wranglers with $10-$15,000 worth of optional wheels, tires, lifts and all of the bling you can afford. And do they ever go off road? No way.
Still, they could buy a BMW or Mercedes which would be a bigger waste of money. So as I always say, to each his own.
And fewer have long beds. The short 5 foot beds are practically useless.
My Tacoma stays in a somewhat unwashed state.
My CJs have either white spoke wagon type wheels or powder coated chrome originals. Basic and basic AT radials.
I’ve seen a handful of old 4 door dodge like those but not since the 80s.
One Dodge truck I always loved was the Rick Simon Power Wagon.
For him it is practical.
Life is to enjoy sometimes.
I LOVE my Challenger and don’t give a #### about the monthly payments or how much it will decline in value (actually not dropping too badly).
For your reasoning, why EVER eat an expensive meal or spend money on non essentials.
Maybe you don’t and you’re rich :)
In which case it’s not a bad idea after all and I wasted all that money on a Challenger.
I just killed my own argument.
I have a 1997 Ford Ranger with 240,000 miles. Original everything. Still runs like a top. Bought it 5 yrs used for $2000 :-)
What do you do with a luxury car beside try to impress the neighbors? One can do way more with a truck than some luxury car with bells and whistles that most never use anyway. And looking at the condition of the streets/highways in CA and other venues, a truck will hold up much longer than a luxury car with 4" of ground clearance.
I’ve made my living in the oilfields of west Texas for over 45 years and buy a new truck every 2 to 3 years. I’ve been a big fan of GMC’s and I’m running a 2016 Z-71 with the 6.2. I just hit 100,000 and it’s time for a new one and it will be another Z-71 with the 6.2. 400+ HP and suspension that can handle rough old ranch roads.
Thank EPA's Corporate Average Fuel Economy Regulations. Pickups go by different standards, which are easier to meet.
So people who used to buy station wagons or mini-vans decades ago, are being steered into pickups.
While it’s not how I would spend my money (I’d have 5 bikes in my garage instead of 1 if I could afford to), I don’t understand why some of the commenters seem to feel that people shouldn’t spend their money any way they like.
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