We Welcome A New Family Member

I know. You thought we were FINISHED adding family members. You've asked if we were finished. We've sworn we were perfectly balanced and happy with our situation.

But things change.

So recently we welcomed Hestur to the fold. We hope you'll love him as much as we plan to:



The choice wasn't easy. We wanted a vehicle that will not only tow some significant weight, but will also STOP said weight with relative ease. I did a lot of research, we drove a variety of trucks, I haggled.

Dad's F-250 beats the heck out of anything I've ever driven for towing. But the F-250 wasn't in our budget, nor would it be possible for Mr. B to drive the behemoth to work and actually SQUEEZE into any of those tiny parking spots. So we looked to the F-150 and the Tundra. I haggled with dealers from Oxnard to San Luis Obispo, pitted brands against each other, was basically shameless in my pursuit of a replacement for Mr. B's trusty 1992 Toyota pickup.

It came down to numbers, largely, and creature comforts in the end. The F-150 and the Tundra measure up so remarkably similarly. While Ford has a long reputation for providing work trucks, Toyota has an equally long tradition of providing vehicles that perform well over the long haul. Will Toyota's commitment to longevity carry over to the new truck line? We're taking that chance. And the Toyota had perks Ford didn't offer - like rear seats that can recline, thereby providing a much more comfortable ride for backseat passengers. Toyota also offers rear seat vents that passengers control, a plus when there are four folks in the car with different heating/cooling needs.

And, when it came down to haggling, I wasn't in a hurry. I knew they'd play games. I was ready this time. And I played their game. I pitted dealers against each other, makes against each other. And when it came down to it, Ford, to which I give great credit for apparently turning itself around financially,  wasn't willing to deal. Toyota beat the hell out of them price-wise.

Here are the stats I drummed up on our final two choices. We'll see if reality has anything to do with the way these trucks look on paper. (Note: The tow capacity on the Ford is based on the 3.55 rear end. Our local dealer said they couldn't get the 3.73 which would have boosted the capacity, but still wouldn't match Toyota's numbers.)