[oldE]

Or: Why I like living in here.

Safety Inspection revealed our 98 F150 was going to need more work than I was willing to put into it, so it was time to move on to a newer truck. A few days of research on mid-2000s vehicles available in the area gave us a list and price range.

On Tuesday, we took a drive. The nearest dealer is 30 miles away.
Our first stop took us to the GM dealer. When we walked in, the first person I saw was Rob. I have known Rob since he worked for one of our drivers twenty five years ago, my wife knew him when she taught elementary school. We gave him our wish list and he told us what he had available and apologized he had nothing meeting our needs today. We chatted for a while, thanked him, shook his hand and walked out.

Second stop was the Ford dealer. A few days before I had talked with Scott, who I have known for over twenty years, regarding a truck he had taken in on trade. He took our old vehicle for a drive, came back and made another offer. He came awfully close to our budget, but we had to tell him we couldn't swing it. He said, "No hard feelings." Thanked us for coming in and said he hoped we'd be back.

A mile up the road is a private dealer which used to be a VW shop. We have, since the early 80s, bought 4 cars from these folks. They had a truck on the lot that looked to fill the bill. We stopped in and before we could ask for the keys they were in our hand. Ed (who we have known since he was washing the cars) and his dad, (the owner) looked over our truck while we took theirs for a drive. When we came back, I told Ed what we wanted for our truck, he made an offer. In the next five minutes we worked out they would transfer our cap and trailer brake controller and would loan us a car so we didn't have to hang around while we waited. Two hours later, we came back. All was done. We signed the paperwork and a cheque and drove our 2006 F150 home.

Did we pay the absolute rock bottom price for the truck? Probably not, but I know (from experience) if I call up or stop by with a concern they will look after me however they need to.

I mentioned in another thread there is more to a purchase than the bottom line. When you are dealing with friends, you are perhaps wiling to acknowledge this is their living and you would like them to be around to look after you in the future. Maybe it is a rural thing, stemming out of a sense of community. In any case, I feel a lot of empathy for folks who spend time in dealerships where they feel they are a mark.
May your next vehicle, house or other purchase be done through someone you trust and respect.

Best
Les