Carlo Santin
Junior Member
- Joined
- Nov 19, 2020
- Posts
- 12
- Reaction score
- 22
- Location
- Ontario, Canada
- Ram Year
- 2020
- Engine
- 5.7 Hemi
Hello there everyone. New member and first-time truck owner here. As of last night I am the owner of a 2020 Ram 1500 Big Horn North edition. 5.7 Hemi. Patriot Blue. I pick it up Monday evening. The 2020s are being cleared out here where I live (the great white North, Ontario Canada) and I'm really happy with the deal that I got.
Let me tell you where I'm coming from as a first-time truck owner. Most of my driving life, I'm 52 now, was spent driving whatever beater or second-hand car I could find cheap. I've driven all sorts of small cars and SUVs. You name it. Some great used vehicles and some real **** boxes. Then about 5 years ago I found myself in a position to get a nicer ride and treat myself a little. Nothing outrageous, I'm not wealthy. I splurged on a very lightly used BMW 328i xdrive, pretty much brand new but at a crazy price of about half the sticker, so 36k. I said why not? I'm a huge BMW fan. I knew what I was getting into with the vehicle. I did a ton of research on it. It was a fantastic vehicle for the 5 years I owned it. Lots of great summer rides on twisty country roads. I still love the car and loved every minute of driving it. Best vehicle I ever owned. But yes, the rumours are true...it's not a cheap car to maintain and the BMW maintenance schedule is aggressive. I took good care of her but the time came to move on because I could see the $$$ starting to pile up and it was only going to get worse in the future. It never broke down, never left me stranded, and always put a smile on my face. I don't regret the experience at all.
So I've always wanted a truck. Always loved them. You can love both right? Sporty cars and trucks. Why not? I never owned one though. In early 2020 I started researching the market. I encountered the usual internet talk...Rams suck, Fords suck, Chevys suck, buy a Tundra etc. I spoke to owners. I test drove vehicles. Watched a ton of videos. Hit the forums. I came close to buying an F150 with the 2.7 Ecoboost. It was a nice truck, XLT Sport with the FX4 package. I decided not to pull the trigger. I originally wanted a new Ranger but two test drives later I was horrified at how poorly that vehicle drove, how cheap the interior was and how small and cramped it was. (always test drive!) I'm a big guy. I wanted a Tacoma at some point but again, two test drives later and I couldn't believe that people actually buy that truck. Extremely uncomfortable. Same experience with the Jeep Wrangler. Terribly uncomfortable for me. But each time I test drove the Ram I liked it more and more. I went to a bunch of dealers, encountered some awful dealerships. Well yesterday I saw a dealer had some 2020s on clearout sale so the wife and I went in...and here I am, an excited owner of a 2020 Ram
My dealer experience was very good and that was a great help in deciding as were the deep discounts on the outgoing 2020s. I also got a nice value on my BMW trade in which really brought the price down for me. The Ram beat the Ford in interior, comfort, ride and driving experience. The Ram is extremely comfortable for me and an absolute pleasure to drive. I can't wait to pick her up on Monday. I plan on keeping her a long time, at least a dozen years. I made sure to get rust protection and undercoating. The roads here in Canada are brutal on cars. I take good care of my vehicles and always do regular maintenance and fluid changes so I'm very optimistic about getting a dozen or more years out of her.
Thanks for reading if you made it this far. Cheers.
Let me tell you where I'm coming from as a first-time truck owner. Most of my driving life, I'm 52 now, was spent driving whatever beater or second-hand car I could find cheap. I've driven all sorts of small cars and SUVs. You name it. Some great used vehicles and some real **** boxes. Then about 5 years ago I found myself in a position to get a nicer ride and treat myself a little. Nothing outrageous, I'm not wealthy. I splurged on a very lightly used BMW 328i xdrive, pretty much brand new but at a crazy price of about half the sticker, so 36k. I said why not? I'm a huge BMW fan. I knew what I was getting into with the vehicle. I did a ton of research on it. It was a fantastic vehicle for the 5 years I owned it. Lots of great summer rides on twisty country roads. I still love the car and loved every minute of driving it. Best vehicle I ever owned. But yes, the rumours are true...it's not a cheap car to maintain and the BMW maintenance schedule is aggressive. I took good care of her but the time came to move on because I could see the $$$ starting to pile up and it was only going to get worse in the future. It never broke down, never left me stranded, and always put a smile on my face. I don't regret the experience at all.
So I've always wanted a truck. Always loved them. You can love both right? Sporty cars and trucks. Why not? I never owned one though. In early 2020 I started researching the market. I encountered the usual internet talk...Rams suck, Fords suck, Chevys suck, buy a Tundra etc. I spoke to owners. I test drove vehicles. Watched a ton of videos. Hit the forums. I came close to buying an F150 with the 2.7 Ecoboost. It was a nice truck, XLT Sport with the FX4 package. I decided not to pull the trigger. I originally wanted a new Ranger but two test drives later I was horrified at how poorly that vehicle drove, how cheap the interior was and how small and cramped it was. (always test drive!) I'm a big guy. I wanted a Tacoma at some point but again, two test drives later and I couldn't believe that people actually buy that truck. Extremely uncomfortable. Same experience with the Jeep Wrangler. Terribly uncomfortable for me. But each time I test drove the Ram I liked it more and more. I went to a bunch of dealers, encountered some awful dealerships. Well yesterday I saw a dealer had some 2020s on clearout sale so the wife and I went in...and here I am, an excited owner of a 2020 Ram
My dealer experience was very good and that was a great help in deciding as were the deep discounts on the outgoing 2020s. I also got a nice value on my BMW trade in which really brought the price down for me. The Ram beat the Ford in interior, comfort, ride and driving experience. The Ram is extremely comfortable for me and an absolute pleasure to drive. I can't wait to pick her up on Monday. I plan on keeping her a long time, at least a dozen years. I made sure to get rust protection and undercoating. The roads here in Canada are brutal on cars. I take good care of my vehicles and always do regular maintenance and fluid changes so I'm very optimistic about getting a dozen or more years out of her.
Thanks for reading if you made it this far. Cheers.
