Foster,
I live in Garland and I teach in Plano so I REALLY know how twisted it is over here. For those of you that are curious about what Plano is really like, go see"American Beauty" it is an exact replica of Plano.

 

Shifter...

Yeah, I think I agree with you...mostly. Up here in Minnesota, you get about two days a year when it snows/blows/sleets badly enough to warrant 4WD. And you're right, if you take it easy and know how to drive and have a "feel" for the road, you can probably make it just fine.

In my case, I have a 42 mile commute and I travel gravel roads in the country that get plowed dead last, to paved, but crappy county roads to trunk highways to major highways. While I seldom really need 4WD, if the roads get to making the truck feel the least bit twitchy, I engage four-wheel just to be on the safe side.

The real problem up here are the morons who don't have a clue how to drive in the snow/rain/sleet/ice. Seems they either go 7 mph or 70 mph. You'd think Minnesotans would be better able to cope with bad road conditions because it's a fact of life here in the winter. NOT HARDLY!

Just my 2 cents worth.

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'97 F150 Supercab XLT; 4.6l; B & M ShiftPlus; Bosch Plus4s; Pacific Green; 3.55; ABS; 17" whls; dual exhaust; Waldoch Conversion (Custom Paint/graphics, powerslider rear window; walnut dash trim; overhead console; F'glass 'boards); ARE fiberglass bed cap; towing package; JVC Head unit & 12 disk changer; Prince compass/temp RV mirror; Anti-theft.

 

Foster,

Depends on where you live in Plano. I'm east of Central, where the snobby West Siders tend to avoid.

Plano started east of Central and grew west and north. The salt of the earth folk (and yeah, a few of them do drive SUV's, too ) favor the east side. But you are right, heroin's a problem throughout the city, and it'y my opinion 99% of it stems from vicarious parenting (the parents are there, but not REALLY there).

My wife drives a two wheel drive Expy, plain vanilla by many yuppie standards. She hates the mall and we don't have soccer kids. But it's the best vehicle for a six foot five inch tall guy like me to take on a long road trip. Not even a full sized Crown Vic is comfy enough for me. (and I'd much rather drive an F-150 based Expy ANY day than that "old fart's car"...no offense to Crown Vic fans!)

 

Crazy C,

East of central? Ewwww.

It's been about 10 years since I lived in the Metroplex and I am absolutely shocked at how much Plano grows everytime I go back. Is that city a cancer or what? I really didn't think that heroin was that big of a problem (media tends to exagerate) but I was just thinking of that bust a few years back. Oh well, a few more rich kids get thrown in jail and maybe we can stop wasting our tax money on a drug war we will never win.

Speaking of the mall, I remember when Collin Creek was almost in the country. Holy crap has that area developed. And what's with this George Bush Highway? Naming a Texas highway after a guy born in Maryland just ain't right.

I can relate on the size thing, I'm 6'5" myself (only weigh a hair over 200, so I'm not a huge guy), and I had a Ranger for awhile. I never did thank the idiot who totalled it, but needless to say, I fit much better in the F-150.

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1993 F-150 SWB Supercab 4.9l 4 speed auto w/ OD, 3.55 gears, K&N fipk, Custom Exhaust w/ Flowmaster.

But to chip or not to chip? Hmmmmm...

 

East side Plano is down to Earth, its the west side that is so bloated an saturated with yuppies. Its amazing how much of a difference there is in peoples attitudes judging by which side of town they're from.

Foster,
Don't be bagging on the George Bush, that road shaves about 10 min off my commute.

 

jaymz: Stay with me on this one. It's the Northerners vs. the Southerners.

For those two days a year of supremely bad weather you mentioned, I say people should just stay at home, do stuff with the family, and save the $3,000 premium for four wheel drive. You can buy a pretty good used putt-around fishing boat for $3,000. Or a week or more at a very good outfitter's fishing camp with the family.

Foster: Snow is that fluffy stuff that is probably God's dandruff of something, that is cold and falls from the ski and piles up, that people then ski, snowboard, snow-mobile and ice-race on, that generally makes driving a slippery nightmare unless you have four special winter tires, or stay home.

Hey Texans. Geeze, I gotta see that movie American Beauty you're all talking about.

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Black 2000 SC short-box XLT. 4.2V-6, 5-speed, 3.55 limited-slip. CD, remote entry, factory side steps, FORD box liner.

My third F-series: '73 F-100, '98 F-150 and '00 F-150. GREAT trucks!

[This message has been edited by Shifter (edited 04-07-2000).]

[This message has been edited by Shifter (edited 04-07-2000).]

 

jaymz: One thing you said stuck with me. You said "Most of the time the capabilities of a 4WD SUV are totally wasted, except for maybe a couple times a year when it snows bad enought to warrant the 4WD".

Well, I don't think anyone who sticks to regular roads NEEDS the capabilities of a 4X4 EVER, even when it snows bad. Buy a 4X4 if you want it, but don't try to convince me that you NEED it.

My 4X2s get me anywhere I try to take them and always have. Judgment and momentum (and an LSD) are enough for 95 per cent of folks.
I read that four-wheel-drive makes bad drivers overconfident, so they just stuff their vehicles further in a field when they sail off the road.

Another 20 cm. of snow are forecasted for here tomorrow (about 6 inches, I believe) and I'll bet the yuppie soccer-moms will leave their Explorers parked snugly in their garages 'till the plows come by.

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Black 2000 SC short-box XLT. 4.2V-6, 5-speed, 3.55 limited-slip. CD, remote entry, factory side steps, FORD box liner.

My third F-series: '73 F-100, '98 F-150 and '00 F-150. GREAT trucks!

 

also in defense of my Explorer, how many rear wheel drive cars are there out there now? I hate FWD cars. I would have bought a T-bird V-8 if they still made them. Mustang was too small. Crown Vic not for me (yet). And GM has only the Camaro and Firebird now.

Cars were better with RWD, remember the T-bird/Cougar, the Celica/Supra, the Nissan "Z", the Mustang (thank God it still is) and all of the other great cars before the proliferation of FWD in the late 80s early 90s. Who wants a FWD Cutlass? It just doesn't sound right to me.

I got more bang for the buck with the Explorer. I can tow a boat(RWD) while hauling three others with all of their crap in comfort. Can't do that in a Camry.

 

Well, for your Explorer money (at least, a really loaded one) I can get a Geneva Conversion with drop down TVs (front and rear, like the Airbus A-300 or a 767), leather all around, a power sofa in back that flattens to queen size, and all the practical room I can use pulled by a hefty V8.

Looks cool, too; they've dropped the Swiss-Family-Robinson motif that seemed to plague the old conversions. One color on top, one on bottom, and no 'washboard' skirt, either.

Yowza!

Who needs a Sport-Rip-Off?

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I think Explorers are overpriced as well. I bought a demo with a $6,000 discount so I could sleep at night. Like I said I use it to haul stuff and to tow my trailer occasionally when the F-150 is overbooked.

 

Oh man, is so nice to see this much disgust towards SUVs. Feels like home! I'll have to get a pick, but I run around town with a nice "**** on SUV's" sticker, and he wears a cowboy hat just to tick em off more. I can see the soccer moms and boy wonder dads saying "hick" You guys have to check out poseur.4x4.org. You'll thank me for it!

 

Oh and Selva, I see you're in Columbus. I work there but live upin northern Delaware county, mainly to excape the SUV driving, cookie cutter house developing locusts. knowing how this town is, I feel your pain!

'97 F150 ORP, 34/11/50/17 Mickey Mickey Thompsons, and a whole lot of earth.

 

I can't agree more with the fact that there are to many yuppies out there that have 4x4 and don't know how to use it. I had a Jeep Cherokee before my 99 F150, and that was always in the dirt and mud when ever I got the chance to go. That is why I got my 4x4 Offroad. When I am hunting in the fall, the 4x4 lever is pulled back the minute I turn of the main roads....onto logging roads. I am not afraid to get stuck.....just adds a little bit of a challenge to the weekend when you have to get the shovel out and do a little work. When the trail gets to tight for the truck, that is when the four wheeler comes out of the box, so that I can go further.
Just my two cents on the matter.....talk about fun watching yuppies sitting in the ditch when the snow comes....and I drive past them in two wheel drive and wave at them........does that make them mad....


[This message has been edited by MNFORD99 (edited 04-24-2000).]