Can you imagine spending $85,000 for a pickup truck?
That's the question that Thomas (@carsrme) asked as he looked at which new pickup to buy. He is checking out the new 2024 Ford F-150 Platinum trim level. His question is legitimate because the price of new trucks keeps climbing.
I recently wrote a story about Kyle Carter, who is keeping his 2000 Toyota Tacoma because he can work on it himself, and the new Tacomas are too expensive. Check out my report here.
Before I tell you what Thomas found on the Ford F-150 Platinum, imagine checking out a new pickup at the dealer. You have a twelve-year-old Ford F-150. It's been reliable and a great truck.
However, it has 160,000 miles on it, and it's starting to need major maintenance. So, it's time to start looking at new trucks. You paid $26,000 for the truck in 2012 and haven't been paying much attention to the new trucks; you know prices have gone up, but you didn't know how much.
You pull into the Ford dealer's lot, walk up to a Ford F-150 Platinum, and check out the sticker in the window. You are shocked. The manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) is $84,583. That's more than triple what you paid for your last Ford truck.
You open the door and start looking at the interior. It's all plastic. You pop the hood, and it has a V6, not a V8 like your 2012 Ford F-150 with a 5.0-liter V8. You can't even imagine what your new truck payment will be. Probably over $800.
You talk to a salesperson and are shocked again when the dealer tells you they will only give you $4,000 for your truck on a trade. You stagger out, wondering what you should do.
Now check out what Thomas finds as he looks at the 2024 Ford-150 Platinum truck and considers which truck to buy.
Thomas says, "Can you imagine spending $85,000 for a pickup truck? More importantly, spending that for a Ford F-150? This thing doesn't even have a V8 engine. It's a V6 hybrid system."
What could possibly go wrong, right? he says as he points to the truck's 3.5L EcoBoost V6 engine technology.
Why are there not one but two reservoirs for the coolant, one for the battery and one for the engine coolant? That will go wrong he says, as he talks about all the extra technology needed to keep this new truck running.
This is the new Platinum trim level ($85,000 including all fees), and this one has plastic everything on the door panels; it's all plastic, and he knocks on the panels, "plastic."
He continues revealing every piece of plastic on the entire door panel, along with some small suede and leather trim areas.
"It's like, how cheap can you make this truck? They are charging $85,000 for plastic, and it's unfinished," as he points to a sharp plastic edge on the door panel."
"Look at that nice little ridge there." Thomas shows how cheap it looks. "Like that's some great build quality there," he says sarcastically.
"If I spend $85,000 on a pickup truck, I probably wouldn't buy a Ford F-150. Dare I say you should go look at a Dodge Ram? Those RAM Limited interiors look really good."
Thomas finishes and points to the touchscreen in the F-150 Platinum. "I mean, that screen is tiny for what this thing is. I might buy a Dodge (RAM) instead of this."
The Ford F-150 Platinum is near the top of the lineup. And you don't need to spend $85,000.
The 2024 Ford F-150 Platinum trim level manufacturer's suggested retail price for the base trim is $73,945 without tax, finance, dealer processing charge, electronic filing charge, and emission change. It also does not include document fees, destination/delivery charges, taxes, title, and registration.
It's $85,000 when you get the few upgrades most customers want, and a lease starts at $743 per month.
You don't have to spend $85,000 on a 2024 Ford F-150. The base F-150 XL starts at $37,065 before all the dealer fees. So, you'll pay close to $40,000. Still, it's less than half of the new Platinum trim.
However, the F-150 XL trim comes with a 2.7L V6 EcoBoost, not the V8 engine our buyer trading in his 2012 F-150 wants.
He must step up to the STX trim to get the Ford 5.0-liter V8 engine. He'll have to pay around $47,000 to get the truck and features he wants. Still, it's far less than the $85,000 Platinum or over $100,000 for the F-150 Raptor 5.2-liter trim.
Why are truck prices so high?
A report from Forbes says, "As anyone who's been in the market for a new truck lately can attest, the prices for a full-size pickup are just plain crazy, fueled by a costly combination of inflation, demand for additional amenities and performance capabilities and the genre's still-swelling popularity."
According to Cars.com, the average price of new pickup trucks is more than $60,000, representing a 6% leap over the past year (2023) and far more than the staggering prices of top models recorded in the pre-pandemic period.
The report says and that's not counting the most capable heavy-duty models and the latest full-electric trucks that command the most extreme MSRPs of all.
Which new full-size truck did Thomas buy?
Thomas didn't buy a Ford F-150 or a RAM pickup. He purchased a 2024 Chevrolet Silverado. Check back tomorrow and find out why he chose the new GM truck. There's a fascinating reason why.
How about you?
Have you purchased a new truck recently? Tell me about which brand and why you chose it. Click the red Add New Comment link below and let us know.
What about the Ford Raptor?
Check out my story titled, Ford Dealer Says “My Ford Raptor R Customers Always Want Me to Remove the $1,800 Graphics, But I Would Keep Them On”
I am Denis Flierl, a Senior Torque News Reporter since 2012. My 30+ year tenure in the automotive industry, initially in a consulting role with every major car brand and later as a freelance journalist test-driving new vehicles, has equipped me with a wealth of knowledge. I specialize in reporting the latest automotive news and providing expert analysis on Subaru, which you'll find here, ensuring that you, as a reader, are always well-informed and up-to-date. Follow me on my X SubaruReport, All Subaru, WRXSTI, @DenisFlierl, Facebook, and Instagram.
Photo credit: Denis Flierl via Thomas
Comments
There's no V8 in the tan…
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There's no V8 in the tan either. Twin turbo inline 6. Ram killed the hemi in all but the HD trucks. Complaining about plastic? Dune look at RAM or GM either.
It's called late stage…
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It's called late stage capitalism. It's what happens when the Republicans get the government out of your(corporate America's) business. It's the same result as every single time in history that the con known as Reaganomics, aka "supply side" economics has been pulled. The rich get obscenely rich and everyone else gets screwed. Y'all should hold your breath until the billionaires, that caused the problem, to fix the problem.
Your new ram will rust away…
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Your new ram will rust away before the new F-150 needs replaced.
Yes buy the Ram. You will…
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Yes buy the Ram. You will look and sound just like every other latent small D "guy" out there. You will also fit right in after inauguration day. Way to go. "GOD" forbid you don't have a V8 that has 400 less horsepower than an EV Lightning 👍