Posted by Brian (IP: 206.190.168.137) on April 14, 1999 at 15:54:18:
In Reply to: Sick of this!! posted by Chris on April 13, 1999 at 23:59:31:
Grew up around Chevy cars...1974 & 78 Chevy van, 1970 Chevy Suburban, 1977 Chevy Caprice Classic, 1985 GMC van. While my family stayed pretty much Chevy, they did buy a Chrysler K-car, 1984 Dodge 600 ES. My first and second cars were was a 1975 & 1978 Pinto (don't laugh they were paid for), which, except for a vapor lock problem, turned out to be more reliable than the Dodge. I totaled the '75 and traded the 78 in on a then new 1987 Ford Ranger, 2.6l V6. About the same time I got my truck, my dad got an '88 F-150 with a 300 inline six, his first Ford. Since, I have owned an 86 Escort GT, 78 Buick (Nova look-alike, can't remeber the name), 85 S-10 Blazer, 84 Buick Electra Estate Wagon, 94 F-150 and my 74 Maverick. Currently, I still own the Escort, the 94 F-150 and the Maverick. The reason, not "Ford Bias" but RELIABILITY and DEPENDABILITY. I maintain all of my vehicles in the same manner, but, what the Ford's have not done is, failed to start or leave me stranded. Something ALL of my GM made vehicles have done.
Does this mean that I dislike GM cars or that they make bad vehicles, not really. It just means I have had better luck with Ford cars and I will stick with Ford cars. My Escort has 175,000+ miles on it. The only things I have done have been normal maintainence and, thanks to two years drive the roads of Washington, D.C., one front end suspension rebuild.
Just one more thing... My brother in law has an '83 Olds with a '78 350 4-bolt main Chevy truck engine, basically stock. His Chilton's manual rate this at 195 hp. My '74 Mav with a 302, stock except RPM manifold & Holley 600, will smoke him every time. The cars weight close to the same, his is a little heavier but he has a stouter rear gear.
: Everyone, it seems, has a reason to hate everything but fords! Now, i hate to come across as a ford hater because i'm quite proud of my maverick and my whole family likes fords, but...
: You guys don't have any real reasons to hate Chevy's or Mopars!! All i hear is "Well, uh, Chevy's are ugly" and "Everyone owns Mopars" and "Fords are just better (no reason)". Well, the truth is that Fords aren't ALWAYS better. The reason that people use Chevy engines in their 'Rods are because the heads are much better designed and the engine is more streetable to begin with. This is the major reason that parts for Chevy's are easier to come by. With LITTLE exception ford engines just aren't that great for racing without a lot of modifications! The Cleveland and the Boss and the Cammer and the SCJ are good examples of GOOD Ford race engines, but the rest need a lot of work to compete (i.e. a lot of machining, boring, etc.). If you were not discriminating against chevy's, which would you honestly say is the more credited engine, the 454 or the 460? I've seen local 454's go for $1000 rebuilt, while a rebuilt 460 will go for about $300.
: On one of my previous posts, where i questioned putting a Mopar/other engine in my maverick, i got a few good responses like "It's heavier and wider than a 351", etc. Those are GOOD responses, and because of the intelligent answers i won't be putting anything but a Ford engine in my maverick. Stupid responses are ones that imply that the 318 can't compete with a 302 because it's not Ford. Truth is, my friend has an old ('68?) Dodge p/u that was used as a Forest rangers car for god knows how long...the STOCK 318 can beat out nearly every mustang (5.0) we've found w/out nitrous or a blower! Yes, the 302 can be tricked out beyond belief...but why would i want to do that (unless i found a money tree in my ass, of course) when i could start out with an engine that's faster stock? (The point that the 5.0 is common because it's a good engine was a good point, however).
: My friend owns a '73 Ranchero 500 (400CID), he's put literally $10,000 into the engine and car, all the tricks without a blower, and now he wants to sell it, why? Because his dad's bone STOCK '69 Challenger with a 340 four barrel can rape it. It tears it to shreds! Since Ford's are obviously (according to a lot of people here) the supreme machine, why is this?
: Anyways, i'm not saying i hate fords or fords can't compete with other manufacturers or anything like that, but it really pisses me off that the Ford/Chevy/Mopar guys are so busy pasting those "Piss on ______ (fill in: Ford/Chevy/Mopar)" stickers on their car that they won't even consider a second look at an otherwise nice car. I post on this board just as much as the next guy (or girl), i'm a dedicated ford fan. But i just don't understand why there's such a feud other than the obvious: it's a tradition.
: If there's anyone to be pissed on, let's piss on those turbo-charged imports, okay?
: Chris
: BTW, let's try and keep responses on an intelligent level, okay?