Getting Screwed, yet again...
I must remember to post some "good news" ASAP, as there have been some good things in the last couple of days - it's just that I've been busy taking care of all the troublesome stuff and haven't had time to write about the good stuff.
Today has been a pretty craptastic day. At least, the last few hours have been, as I'm looking over stacks of bills that are due, and knowing that there's still no money in the accounts because I still haven't been paid. Then I see that PSC screwed up yet again and billed my MasterCard instead of just sending me the bill - which means that my MC is overcharged and the auto-payments that are supposed to be going to it will now probably bounce...
There's a mysterious "name search" charge against my business chequing account. It's not huge, but it's a few dollars for something that I didn't buy, nor authorize, so I wonder what the heck it is...
I'd like somone who knows, to explain to me what 4-Wheel Drive actually means. I was under the impression that when you shift a 4x4 vehicle into 4x4 mode, power is equally applied to all four wheels. This is why you're not supposed to drive it much on dry paved roads, because there is extra strain on the power-train as all four wheels are fully engaged. That is, the differentials are locked, which makes turns more stressful on the system. Either I'm totally wrong about that assumption, or there's something wrong with my F-150. It got stuck in the snow again, because although it was in 4x4 mode, one rear wheel and one front wheel were slipping on the ice, and thus they just sat there and spun on the ice while the other two wheels didn't turn at all. What the heck is the point of having 4x4 mode when all four wheels are not actually engaged?! Am I missing something here?
Also, I was outright lied to. My concern about buying a large truck like the F-150 instead of a Ranger, was that the F-150 would suck back a lot more fuel. I was told that I could expect this truck to get about 19 mpg in the city, and 28 on the highway. That's only a little worse than what the Ranger would have done (32mpg highway) so it seemed to be a good trade-off for the extra size and power. Well, according to the US Department of Energy's official fuel-economy website, the 2005 Ford F-150 4x4 only gets 12 mpg in the city, and 16 on the highway! And that's with a smaller engine than the one in my truck, so I should consider myself lucky if I get that kind of mileage! The Canadian guide rates it a little better, working out to roughly 19 mpg highway. I'll have to look at my actual numbers (I've been recording them in a log-book) to see what I'm actually getting.
The events of the last few days have left me very dissatisfied with the purchase of this vehicle, and the service I have been getting from the dealership. This is the second used vehicle we have purchased from them, and I rather doubt that we will buy another vehicle from them.
Today has been a pretty craptastic day. At least, the last few hours have been, as I'm looking over stacks of bills that are due, and knowing that there's still no money in the accounts because I still haven't been paid. Then I see that PSC screwed up yet again and billed my MasterCard instead of just sending me the bill - which means that my MC is overcharged and the auto-payments that are supposed to be going to it will now probably bounce...
There's a mysterious "name search" charge against my business chequing account. It's not huge, but it's a few dollars for something that I didn't buy, nor authorize, so I wonder what the heck it is...
I'd like somone who knows, to explain to me what 4-Wheel Drive actually means. I was under the impression that when you shift a 4x4 vehicle into 4x4 mode, power is equally applied to all four wheels. This is why you're not supposed to drive it much on dry paved roads, because there is extra strain on the power-train as all four wheels are fully engaged. That is, the differentials are locked, which makes turns more stressful on the system. Either I'm totally wrong about that assumption, or there's something wrong with my F-150. It got stuck in the snow again, because although it was in 4x4 mode, one rear wheel and one front wheel were slipping on the ice, and thus they just sat there and spun on the ice while the other two wheels didn't turn at all. What the heck is the point of having 4x4 mode when all four wheels are not actually engaged?! Am I missing something here?
Also, I was outright lied to. My concern about buying a large truck like the F-150 instead of a Ranger, was that the F-150 would suck back a lot more fuel. I was told that I could expect this truck to get about 19 mpg in the city, and 28 on the highway. That's only a little worse than what the Ranger would have done (32mpg highway) so it seemed to be a good trade-off for the extra size and power. Well, according to the US Department of Energy's official fuel-economy website, the 2005 Ford F-150 4x4 only gets 12 mpg in the city, and 16 on the highway! And that's with a smaller engine than the one in my truck, so I should consider myself lucky if I get that kind of mileage! The Canadian guide rates it a little better, working out to roughly 19 mpg highway. I'll have to look at my actual numbers (I've been recording them in a log-book) to see what I'm actually getting.
The events of the last few days have left me very dissatisfied with the purchase of this vehicle, and the service I have been getting from the dealership. This is the second used vehicle we have purchased from them, and I rather doubt that we will buy another vehicle from them.