Back when I was a little kid, I liked fast cars. At 6-7 years old, I used to draw dragsters.......wish I could find the drawings, the motors looked like giant wedding cakes with a scoop on top and pipes spittin' flames!!!!

Pretty sure the more layers, the faster it was....LOL!!!

Kid in my 3rd grade class had a b-day at Irwindale dragstrip in So. Cal.!!!

Don't think I was yet brand specific.

Then it happened, my parents brought home a '71 LTD station wagon!!!

Mind you, this was no ordinary wagon. I have a feeling it was an un-purchased law enforcement or some kind of special order vehicle.

No power anything, vinyl seats, and the holy grail of motors for a wagon:

A 429 Police Interceptor.

My mom was a few years away from becomimg a cop and she was a very young 26 year old who would listen to her 9 year old egg her on to do "funny car burn outs!!!"


Ford kicked butt in nearly every racing venue and I actually remember reading about Ford's domination at Le Mans even though it had happened 6-7 years earlier.


The Big OLY Bronco was my dream truck......and yes, I have an early Bronco that I'm building. (but it won't have a giant sprint car wing!!!)


Right out of the USAF, while waiting to be picked up by the LASD, I even worked at a Ford dealer, later to become F&I. Unfortunately, making nearly mid 6 figures as a 25 year old put my public service aspirations on hold for a while.



While I still have a place for Ford in my heart, my feeling is that they aren't the same company that tried to buy Ferrari and when they couldn't, they stomped them into the ground on the track.

I've owned probably close to 30 Fords over the years, the last 2 new ones have had their share of problems. Even the Marauder coughed up a window regulator 100 miles out of original warranty and the dealer charged me the $100 extended warranty deductable!!!


The 6.2L on again, off again fiasco has me bummed......just friggin' offer it as an option!!!

Ford going after small specialty shops that sell parts for Mustangs or old cars and trucks because they use a name or logo really burns me. (Yes, I understand it, but one would think Ford would be happy for the exposure)


The Ford GT was better than Viagra.......I would take one over even the new ZR-1.....but it only went 2 freakin' years!!!


I want Ford to rebound and be profitable again (but not if it means continued out-sourcing and building factories over seas which IMHO defeats the whole purpose of "Buy American")



Let's read your stories.

I had a nice response typed up on my computer at home, but I guess I forgot to click "post" before I walked out the door. Hope it's still there when I get home.

I also forgot to grab a cup of coffee to bring with me...it's not a good day today.

My dad bought a 1994 EB F150 Supercab 4x4 5.8L Green and Tan. I begged him to buy a bronco that year but he said he needed a box.

Well after leasing that truck, we really stretched its legs out, It was a pretty quick truck for a kid my age, did great going back to our hunting spot, pulled out ALOT of chevys that tried to make it where we did, as well as the boat launch.

Dad and i use to take the truck to the boat launch on the other side of town and sit there and wait for people to get stuck (Sandy bottom and parking area), and me thinking only chevys and dodges got stuck, because my dads was the only ford there pulling them out. It was then it sunk into my head that i loved fords. I use to fight in school allll the time about ford being better, because the town i lived in was buy a ton of GM plants and everyone drove chevy.

Il always have my arse in a ford seat. I love the way my truck feels when driving it. Anything else and it feels like crap.

Our first Ford in the driveway- just like this (same color).



The '57 got a little tight for a growing family, so it got traded in '59 for one of these.



The convertible was entertaining, but unreliable. It got traded for a '60 Mercury Comet (mom hated it), which mom traded for a '60 Mercury Park Lane (dad hated it), which got traded for one of the best cars we ever owned- a '61 T-Bird.



Dad always drove a Mercedes. Back in those days, a S-Class sedan looked like a Rambler and had power-nothing. Armstrong steering, 4-speed manual on the column. Unimpressive, especially compared to the T-birds, which had every convenience known to Western Civilization (except A/C- go figure), and was arguably one of the prettiest Ford's ever made.

polarbear said:

Our first Ford in the driveway- just like this (same color).

The '57 got a little tight for a growing family, so it got traded in '59 for one of these.

The convertible was entertaining, but unreliable. It got traded for a '60 Mercury Comet (mom hated it), which mom traded for a '60 Mercury Park Lane (dad hated it), which got traded for one of the best cars we ever owned- a '61 T-Bird.

Dad always drove a Mercedes. Back in those days, a S-Class sedan looked like a Rambler and had power-nothing. Armstrong steering, 4-speed manual on the column. Unimpressive, especially compared to the T-birds, which had every convenience known to Western Civilization (except A/C- go figure), and was arguably one of the prettiest Ford's ever made.

Click to expand...

And we'll have FUN FUN FUN till daddy takes the T-bird away......


I'm seeing a trend here that our parents' choices influenced ours quite a bit!!!

DOHCmarauder said:

And we'll have FUN FUN FUN till daddy takes the T-bird away......


I'm seeing a trend here that our parents' choices influenced ours quite a bit!!!

Click to expand...

Ya think? In 1967, a neighbor two doors up came home with the twin of this-



I've been hooked on them ever since..

polarbear said:

.......which mom traded for a '60 Mercury Park Lane (dad hated it)...........

Click to expand...

Was that by chance the one with the rear window that rolled down?

Dad's always driven Fords. They've been good cars, but he's really more loyal to the dealership than the brand. (With good cause- for example, at 33 months/37k miles, the trunk latch in his old Focus broke. Warranty repair.)

Also, the two vehicles with the highest reading odometers I have ever driven are both Ford pickups. My '97 Ranger has a little over 250k now, and a friend has a '95 PSD with 330k or a little more. Replaced drivetrain parts between the two of them: 1 Ranger transmission at 220k, a couple of clutches in each, a few axle bearings in the Ranger and maybe a few wheel seals in each.

Not to say either has been perfect, but my Ranger has been dead reliable since new (I know the original owner) and the F-350 has worked hard for a lot of the miles on it and continues to do so, usually running pretty well. (I was sitting in the passenger seat when it rolled over 300k. It was 100*, pulling a 20'x8.5'x6' trailer packed with furniture and tools (cleaning out an estate), headed south out of Denver for Wolf Creek pass.)

I have a very good friend who's a die-hard Chevy guy. Somewhere along the line, it dawned on me that he's too smart to be wrong...so I got to thinking. Most of the Chevy people I know are about speed; Ford people are often about reliability. I can't count the number of times I've had arguments where I claimed my Ranger was a good truck because it's got high miles and still runs well; only to have Chevy people try to convince me that doesn't matter none, it's still junk because it's slow.

And I am all about reliability...fast can be fun, and something that doesn't have the power to do what you need is a pain in the butt, but at the end of the day, I'm impressed by a truck with a big number on the odometer (or maybe on a weight slip), not a little number on a slip from the drag strip.

Another part of it is comfort...when I drive, I drive hard. 400 mile days and 600 mile weekends often enough to be a significant fraction of the miles I drive, 7-900 (or more) mile days if I'm on a long trip by myself. Ford seats generally suit me pretty well, and their interiors tend to be pretty quiet (no squeaks), pretty easy to operate the controls, and not too offensive to look at (*cough*mid-'90's Chevy*cough*).

So that's why I'm a Ford guy.

(Though...last winter, a buddy bought a pretty new used Tahoe. First time I drove it was a trip to New Jersey to get a '26 Dodge with a UHaul car trailer. I was very impressed by the Tahoe- great MPGs for what it is and the power it has. Interior was nice, seats decent, transmission is brilliant. I'd buy one if I wanted such a vehicle.)

ee where never into fords but when my dad saw that 1990 F250sitting there he just fell inlove with it and when he bought it my big bro went crazy becuase he is a chevy man!! but when he test drove it and felt the power and the comfort and the durability he too fell inlove and gain more respect for it when he had an BIG accident in it, then after all that i got it fell inlove right away the old 351w was asleep when i got it from my dad everything stock bad sensors.. i started looking up forums and books see how can i fix it so i did and did a few mods and here it is now its my daily driver and never let me on the side of the road exept when it ran out of gas !! haha!

on top of that my brother the chevy guy had an 1988 silverado he bought it 2 years after my dad bought the ford.. and guess who is still around the ford ofcourse the silverado dunno what happend to it my brother said the engine was bad.. bla bla trany gave in etc etc.. it onmly had 150+- K miles if i remember corectly! it was a nice truck tough 1988 blacl\k silverado all digital guages, flareside 350TBI it was fast becuase it was light.. the ford is faster
!

CowboyBilly9Mile said:

Was that by chance the one with the rear window that rolled down?

Click to expand...

Yep- shur was. Huge car, think it was bigger than mom's '70 Marquis.

I was brought home from hospital in a 66 427 Fairlane . Still got the motor soaking in oil . No the manifolds r not for sale.

My dad was a chevy truck guy . But I always drew the 70's 4x4 Ford in 70's style stacks big tires .

I bought my First ford truck at 14 a 79 f150 4x4 Sandbox conversion . At 16 I could smoke any production ride with it . And did .... 351M built to max . It didn't idle it loped . Broke the rear leaf so much got discout at spring shop.

SO 19 some odd truck later still Ford . Cant stomach the new ones but sooner or later they will make one I like .

I grew up riding in everything that dad could buy cheap and sell for a profit... I remember 55/56 Pontiacs, 51/53 Chevy sedans, 47 Dodge convertible, 64 Plymouth Valiant, 63 Buick LeSabre, 64 Pontiac Tempest, 56 GMC pickup, etc.

And then Fords started showing up - 62 Fairlane, 63 Falcon Club Wagon, 64 Country Sedan, 64 F100, 66 Country Sedan, 69 LTD, etc.

About then I left home and had to start working on my own rigs. This might not make sense to anybody, but I can follow the logic of Ford engineers and I understand the cars/trucks.

GM and I are from opposite planets, and Dodge has always been about 2 decades behind Ford.

Long story short, I drive Fords because the engineering makes sense to me.... for the most part.

My dad brought a Ford ranger new in 89 and totaled it in 92~93. Even though he didn't have it long I have so many memories of that truck. From hunting to fishing to him letting me shift and sit in his lap sometimes to drive. I was 3~7 when he had the truck, and its pretty much the only truck that I remember him having except for a old 79 f-150 he had as a farm truck. My dad is a straight up for fan and my mother also had a 73 mustang that she loved and got her only speeding ticket in her life in. I guess it was a no brainer that I got a ford bronco II as my first vehicle, and later got a '89 ranger like my dad's old's one. I think it was also pretty impressive that my dad flipped/rolled the truck 4 and a half times and survived. Also taught me to always wear my seat belt.

I'm a bit of a self-made fan. We've always had a mix of GM products and FMC products in the front driveway as a kid. I always found myself more fond of the FMC products in terms of reliability and comfort. Then I started driving...

I had a 1990 Lumina. Good drivetrain, but had brake ghosts like no other. I never got it fixed before I ended up wrecking it.

I drove a 1992 Aerostar between vehicles. The thing was bulletproof.

Got a 1990 Chevy Cheyenne 1500. It had the 4.3 v6. Reliable as all heck, but SUCKED on gas. For a 6 banger, I couldn't live with 12mpg.

Drove the Aerostar again after I sold the Chevy trying to get a new vehicle. The thing ended up lasting 311,000 miles and we sold it running great on the original engine and transmission for 800 bucks.

Got the 1994 F-150 and am in love. I'm never getting rid of this truck.

Ryan

My Dads whole family has always drove fords since the 1950s. My dads first truck in 1977 was a 1960 Ford F100 with the Yblock 292. He eventually had a 1984 Bronco II (bought new), and custom ordered the 1989 F150 (see signature). I remember driving on his lap, when I was young, fishing out of the back. Burning my hand on the cigarette lighter when I was 6 (learned my lesson the hard way), and the pickup has always been rock-solid reliable. My Family's been ford since the 1927 Model T (we have pictures from 1931 of my Great grandparents in it), which when exploring their massive ranch at 9 years old I found abandoned in a field with about 30 other cars and trucks. That was cool, solemn and weird all at the same time.

My first car was a 1995 ford escort lx still have it. Beat the hell out of it hasnt let me down once. I like my fords cause of there reliability and design make one good automobile. My whole family is into gm and im into ford and yes i do get made fun of time to time but hey if i like it im not changing. I was actually raised up around gm used to praise them untill i bout the escort then my love of fords began.

The one thing I like about Ford are they're build like a tank, and when you get a good one (and most of them are. I've had a few bad ones, but not many) they'll run forever.

But thats also the BAD thing about them...........They're built like a tank. So they're like WORKING on one too. Changed a water pump out on a 400 Ford one time in a 1978 Merc Grand Marquis..........took me two days. Swore I'd never wrench on a Ford again. And I haven't.

But I own two

Gunner

I don't have a real good explanation as to how I started liking Fords like some folks here.

My first car was a Nissan Sentra. When it came to buy a truck my dad told me to get a Ford Ranger. I never really knew why but I figured since he sold cars for 25 years that he would know which ones were good to buy.

When I got married I met the Fleet Manager at the local dealership, he knew the ex's family. He always gave a great deal and I have never had any significant problems with the Ford product or the Ford service.

Nowadays I really think it comes down to more of a personal prefrence for people not so much because one brand is SO much better then another. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. It's your money so better buy something that your gonna be happy with, for me that is a Ford.

I am just naturally a Ford girl. Not sure why. My dad drives a 1967 firebird...the thing is heavy and loud and eats gas. My mom drives a mitsubishi something or another because it was recommended by consumer reports...yuck. my bio dad had a ford truck and that was the first vehicle i had ever driven a stick in. he had the little zx2 that i have now. gave it to me with a little over 100,000 miles and the things still runs great 5 plus years later. it is such a great little car. i love the fusions and will one day have a truck, especially the 2004 to present body styles.


oh and not to mention moms toy-yoda. not to steal ryans word, but gag.

I really do not know an answer to that question.

I remember dad driving a 65 impala when I was little (cool car!). Mom drove plymouths most of the time (that I can remember). Dad bought a 77 F-100 new. Mom bought a 79 malibu wagon new. The tiny V8 was junk.

Beyond those two new ones...I remember a string of Oldsmobiles mom owned. They would break down as much as the wagon did. That much I remember. Dad kept his truck for 18 years.

My first car (age 14) was a GM product (wish I had it back!!!!!). Then it was fords from then on (other than the audi era-but I had a ford then too).

Out of 8 vehicles I have owned...6 have been fords and 4 of them are still "in the family".

My parents have since owned hondas, fords, and even a dodge product.

I did fall in love with my neighbors 56 F-100 (serious hotrod) he built in the garage when I was 14. That is where the 56 ford influence came from.

Not sure how I ended up driving the other fords. Just the right price at the right time I guess.

I do not mind chrysler products too much (never owned one), but I hope to never own a GM one. I was totally embarrassed when I had to move my cousins cheby van around to the other side of a building about a year ago.