F-150
Back when I was in New York for Thanksgiving, my dad pointed out to me that the Dennis Leary Ford F-150 ads are extremely annoying. This was wise on his part, but also unfortunate because ever since then I’ve had a kind of heightened sense of annoyance every time I see the ads — which is a lot, because they’re shown constantly during NFL games.
Are we alone on this? Surely not. I had a good joke in mind about how any Detroit bailout should be conditioned on ceasing these ads, but (a) the thread by which hundreds of thousands of jobs are now hanging isn’t very funny and (b) the bailout proposals are for GM and Chrysler anyway. I will say this for Ford’s advertising, though. I’m obviously not the sort of person who’d know much about trucks. But I do always really enjoy getting behind the wheel of one of Zipcar’s Toyota Takomas when I need to move something large. And yet despite my truck experience being limited to good experiences with the Takoma, the idea is planted firmly in my head that the Ford F-150 is the best truck out there. I think that’s a pre-Leary notion, but maybe while he’s annoying me he’s also having an incredible impact on my subconscious.
66 Responses to “F-150”
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December 14th, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Yes, that’s the bright spot for American automakers. Car reputation: terrible. Truck repuation: very good. In fact, Toyota for years, even after the cred of its cars was soaring, couldn’t come up with a decent truck, though the trucks now are fine.
See the article in the NYT Mag last year (Feb or so?) on Toyota and how it managed to work on its truck image.
Oh, and Bob Corker can eat a dick.
December 14th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
I think the “Dodge Ram Challenge” ads, which run just as often during football, are more annoying. Overly typecast blue-collar guys driving trucks through exploding buildings gets really inane.
December 14th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
I’m hypersensitive to irritating ads, but I have to say that I find the Leary F-150 ads to be pretty good by truck ad standards- among other things, they actually tell you something about the damn thing- features available, mileage, etc. Watching Dodge Ram ads right now and all it tells you is that ‘it will make you manlier because you can drive through explosions.’
December 14th, 2008 at 3:34 pm
I agree on the ads, though I find Leary less and less tolerable in general as time goes on. Also, I find the fact that you have an opinion on truck bestness but almost no truck experience interesting (and I don’t mean that as a subtle backhand, it really is an interesting media effect). My dad had a Mazda pick-up when I was a kid that I assume was the only one in the entire state of Michigan, but it seemed to get the job done, which was primarily hauling skiing and hunting equipment.
December 14th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
Speaking of rants and truck ads, B-Lev had one recently:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/barry-levinson/the-big-three-vs-the-nfl_b_150075.html
December 14th, 2008 at 3:40 pm
“by which hundreds of thousands of jobs are now hanging isn’t very funny”
It’s not funny. I’m the medical industry, and we’re doing fine. You will always pay for medical treatment, even if you just lost your job. But many of our suppliers are tied to the auto industry. Few suppliers want to commit to the medical industry because of the high risk. What if the FDA decides you product is no good? Even worse, what if you get sued in faulty product litigation? For those reasons, our suppliers like to have some reliable auto business to keep them safe. But they sunk a lot of money into the machines needed to supply the auto industry. So what happens when those machines aren’t running? Well, they need to make up the costs by raising the price of my products. And we in the medical industry don’t take losses. We transfer the costs to you, because you’ll pay for your medical needs no matter what it costs. Are you laughing now? Didn’t think so. People rightly talk about how suppliers will be affected, but they don’t even know how far it goes.
December 14th, 2008 at 3:45 pm
Aaron: Your dad’s Mazda and a full size truck are very different animals. The F150s, Dodge Rams, etc. of the 80s were quite a bit bigger than contemporary compact trucks, but today’s full size pickups are only slightly smaller than the Spruce Goose. (Mostly to look manly but also so they can occasionally tow enormous 5th wheel trailers with 2 living rooms and a custom jacuzzi.)
And Matt’s right that D. Leary is approaching D. Miller levels of annoying-ness… though at least he probably knows not to spell Tacoma with a “K”.
December 14th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
I’m a Ford truck man
That’s all I driiiiiiieeeeeeeve
I ain’t got no boundaries
I don’t compromiiiiiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeese
December 14th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
If the Leary ad is the one I think it is, the thing that gets me is how explicitly it’s targeted at dumb people (the trucks are designed by “the guys we all cheated off of in school”).
December 14th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
Denis Leary is not funny. I say that even though he’s the only celebrity from my home town. Unless you count Tanyon Sturtze.
December 14th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
So I have a question. Is the Ford F-150 still the most popular automobile in the world? It held that title for a long, long time. I’m not convinced that it was really a great pickup. But you can always get parts for it. It’s the best vehicle to have if you’re driving the Pan American Highway. Second best? VW bus, but you need two of them to make it.
December 14th, 2008 at 4:11 pm
Well, of course, the thing is, the item in the photo is not a truck- it’s a toy. When one of these toys is actually carrying something, what they are most likely carrying is another toy. It is, in short, a consumer item, and it is not at all unusual to find it marketed in a venue and manner suitable to consumer items.
It also makes perfect sense that the value, status, and suitability for use of this item would be established by advertising, because the item itself is first and foremost a form of personal advertising, a means of joining a group, proclaiming an identity, puffing plumage, and saying “who” you are.
(A few days ago I watched a woman spend a half hour washing just such a truck at the car wash, and then she pulled in to the automatic part of the car wash- for what reason, I could not bear to ask. Suffice it to say, many of these vehicles will never haul anything that might scratch or stain the bed.)
So, it’s not really entirely crazy for a guy who knows nothing about trucks to form a conclusion about this vehicle from good advertising. If the Ford company does their part, buying the vehicle really will establish your identity pretty much in line with your dreams- because your dreams will be the creation of the Ford motor company.
If you actually need a truck, though, you’re on your own.
December 14th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Are we alone on this?
No, the Denis Leary ads are incredibly annoying.
And yet despite my truck experience being limited to good experiences with the Takoma, the idea is planted firmly in my head that the Ford F-150 is the best truck out there.
The Titan is basically a clone of the F-series. At best Toyota is on par with the F-series, which is what bugs me about the ‘Americans can’t make good cars’ thing. There is weird concept floating around that the Japanese are innately superior (it must be genetic!) at making cars, in the engineering sense. This idea seems to be particularly popular with bidness people. To wit, my uncle (-in-law), who used to be high-flying executive for a certain well known beer company, lives in a fairly ritzy neighborhood in St. Louis and is otherwise what you would think of when thought of the kind of moneycon who would support Romney, thinks Toyota walks on water. He’s really a nice guy. He also can’t stand black people/East St. Louis, but in that upper-class white people kind of way.
So, anyways, when I had a problem with my very old Ford truck (a ‘79 – it just turned 30), he started giving me the not-a-mechanic rap on the wonders of Japanese cars. Since the problem with my Ford consisted of 30 years of sludge (and maybe some sabotage) in the gas tanks this was not persuasive. But it was certainly interesting to me how effective Toyota advertising must be. Particularly since I know someone young and poor who worships Honda, so she keeps buying old used Hondas and they keep dying on her, at a somewhat higher rate than the old used GMs from the same period.
When you’re hot, you’re hot and when you’re not, you’re not.
max
['Whatever you do.']
December 14th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
I’ve always been puzzled by Toyota’s use of the name Tacoma – because the name isn’t synonomous with engineering quality.
December 14th, 2008 at 4:44 pm
We’re thinking about pizza, they’re thinking about ærodynamic weight properties.
December 14th, 2008 at 4:57 pm
He could have just recycled his previous work for the F-150 ad:
December 14th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Truck identity is indeed one of those weird things that everyone has, even if they have limited or no experience with trucks. This is especially true for people who watch sports or have *any* relative they look up to who owned a truck. In my generation (mid-30s) it is safe to say you were a Ford or Chevy person by the age of 10 (with a few going with Dodge).
I have never owned a truck, and every truck I have ever used for a job or just ridden in seem pretty comparable (given the same model year). That said, I like Fords, even though I am aware of the fact that I can’t articulate why. Probably because my Grandpa owned one built in 1968. Not the most rational way to develop a preference, but there you go. Seems pretty widespread.
SC’s point that trucks are toys…for hauling toys is really spot on. People don’t need trucks for work so much as they need them to haul boats, RVs, snowmobiles (er, machines for you Alaskans), and ATVs. It is a pretty impressive positive feedback system for a certain kind of lifestyle. You buy you truck or toy first, but eventually you own both a truck and toys to put in it.
December 14th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
“We’re thinking about pizza, they’re thinking about ærodynamic weight properties”
That’s not true. Our engineers are just as smart. The difference is that nobody listens to us. If they listened to us engineers, we’d be making the best cars on the planet. But nobody talks to anyone but the accountants. And they don’t know shit. Let’s face it, when engineers fail out of college, they become accountants. The math is much easier in accounting. So why are accountants the experts? Talk to us engineers, we can do the accounting better than the accountants, and we can design stuff too. And we can figure out how to make it. We only let the accountants do their work because we don’t want to bother with that crap. But it seems the accountants can’t do their work. So just let the engineers run everything. When you finance guys actually learn finance, we’ll let you back in.
December 14th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Our engineers are just as smart.
Don’t forget our excellent ‘people skills’.
December 14th, 2008 at 6:31 pm
Re: Naming a Toyota mini-pick-up the “Tacoma”.
Tacoma:
That’s the port-of-entry for these Japanese trucks. And it fits, in an alliterative context, with its big brother truck, the TUNDRA, which alludes to a North American venue just a few hundred miles north, in Palin Country.
All products in “families” need a hook that ties them together.
Back in the ’50s, Ford got on a British kick. Its coupe was a Tudor, the sedan was a Fordor and the up-scale ones were Victorias. The Victoria thing has endured and become emblematic. Ford’s big honkin’ sedan is still the Crown Victoria. But it is mostly sold and used as a police cruiser.
December 14th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
?!?
No matter what truck I’ve ever owned, Ford, Chevy, Toyota, and now Dodge, I’ve always considered them tools. I’ve have no more identity with my truck, than I do with my screwdriver.
I’ve always equated a man having an identity with a brand of truck with a woman having an identity with Prada or Gucci.
That’s what’s weird to me.
Cheers.
BTW, those Leary ads are far less annoying than 99% of other vehicle ads. At least there is no horrible Bob Segar or John Mellencamp songs pounded into your head.
December 14th, 2008 at 6:59 pm
Ford makes a whole line of trucks:
Ranger — light loads, no really heavy towing
F150 — quarter ton
F250 — half ton
F350 — three quarter ton
on up to 750
Virtually every American truck user could get by with a lot less truck than purchased. Most buyers of the F150s with 4WD could get by just as well with a Ranger 2WD.
That’s because an enormous percentage truck owners have seldom hauled anything bigger than a take-home pizza and have never driven off-road. And bed liners. A truck bed is made to have things tossed in. By the time it is junked a truck bed should be more dents than flat surfaces. Dents are proof that it is a a vehicle that is used/useful for work. All else is is vanity and machismo.
Just sayin’.
December 14th, 2008 at 7:13 pm
Pretty much every truck commercial ever made is made for class A morons. Dodge is the worst. Sexism, bullying, pointless aggression, it’s all there.
They’ll get theirs:
http://bridger.us/2002/12/16/CrashTestingMINICooperVsFordF150/
December 14th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
Two observations:
1)Hyper-macho truck ads may well be counterproductive. People who want trucks are going to buy them anyway, while those indifferent between a car and a truck might be swayed away from trucks because the ads convey an image they find repellent. Given our country’s demographics, that may be more people than are swayed by the aspirational goal of being a Mountain Man.
2) Toyota cars’ aggressively bad advertisements, over twenty years, provide strong evidence that advertising doesn’t matter. It’s hard to believe anyone ever bought a Toyota because of “Oh what a feeling!” or (even worse) “Toyotathon” ads. The current “Toyotathon of Toyotathons” seems like an attempt to dare us to buy something that’s advertised so inartfully–they know we’ll buy it anyway.
December 14th, 2008 at 7:36 pm
That’s because an enormous percentage truck owners have seldom hauled anything bigger than a take-home pizza and have never driven off-road.
I’m curious about this. I mean, I don’t own a truck (or any kind of vehicle) but I’ve rented trucks several times precisely because hauling sofas, tables, etc. is the sort of thing that just about everyone needs to do now and again.
December 14th, 2008 at 7:58 pm
A better point is that the Big 3 do not advertise their cars. Most people could not possibly name the model lineups. The newer Ford Fusion and Chevy Malibu are good to excellent cars. Most people don’t know what they hell they are. Habitual Ford or GM buyers do but nobody else really does. Especially people who don’t really care about cars very much which is a huge part of the market.
Strangely, no bizarrely, the auto companies, those masters of marketing have for a dozen years effectively abandoned the marketing of their cars. It is beyond insane that they continue to make these stupid faux manly man truck commercials because at this point they can only possibly influence buyers at the very margin. In the meantime years have been lost rebuilding brand recognition of their cars.
It is little appreciated that the fall of the American car has been partly a marketing failure.
December 14th, 2008 at 8:03 pm
That truck in the picture isn’t lifted nearly high enough to make a suburban male feel like a Real Man, or a college girl to feel like she’s compensating for not having a penis, you know.
That, and there’s no motorcycle in the back.
I have no idea what the point of hauling a motorcycle or ATV around 24/7, everywhere, is, but every insecure little boy in town just has to … because all the other ones are.
I own a ‘90 Chevy Silverado 3500, and it’s a tool, not a toy … nor do I use it to haul toys. I use it to haul wood and tools. Even in this rural area, with its increasingly high percentage of suburban transplants, I’m becoming more and more of an exception …
December 14th, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Tyro @ 4:57 clearly wins the thread.
Great job. Laughed so hard I almost peed myself.
I own a truck, btw. 2001 Nissan Frontier 2WD (not in the same weight class as the F150, to be sure) with $125k miles. Best vehicle I ever owned. I bought it because I had a 57 miles (each way) commute at the time, and wanted something higher off the road than my wheezing, near death 1988 Aries (talk about a piece of crap!), but didn’t want to/couldn’t spend 2x the price of the truck on an equivalent-sized SUV.
December 14th, 2008 at 8:19 pm
The Denis Leary Ford commercials are a good example of life imitating art. In this case, Leary is following in the steps of Krusty the Clown from the Simpsons.
Krusty had embarked on a successful career lambasting corporate America with “truthful” comedy, before being approached by the makers of the “Canyonero” SUV. Krusty then applies his “truthful” schtick to selling the truck…and his reputation is subsequently ruined because he sold out.
I suppose Denis Leary didn’t see this episode of the Simpsons, or perhaps he didn’t see the parallel. Most likely does realize how much of a sellout he has become and he just doesn’t care.
December 14th, 2008 at 8:49 pm
zipcar is for profit, does DC have any nonprofit alternatives such as iGo?
December 14th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Wasn’t he on that episode? A of his buddies who came up in the Boston comedy scene were, anyway: Leno, Garofolo, Stephen Wright.
December 14th, 2008 at 8:53 pm
Why can’t my dream truck be made in detroit?
http://www.autoblog.com/2008/02/11/mahindra-appalachian-diesel-pickup-arrives-in-us-next-year-dies/
“Indian automaker Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. will shake up the U.S. truck market next year when it introduces a new midsize pickup called the Appalachian sporting a 2.2L four-cylinder diesel engine producing around 150 horsepower and 300 pound feet of torque. … that the truck will deliver 30 to 35 miles per gallon and cost in the mid-$20,000 range.”
December 14th, 2008 at 9:58 pm
I’ve rented trucks several times precisely because hauling sofas, tables, etc. is the sort of thing that just about everyone needs to do now and again.
That’s what the Transit van is for. At least, it is everywhere else in the world, where pickups are much less common outside farm and forestry use. Thing is, the Transit (or the commercial van in general) doesn’t have the whole pioneer image. They do have a roof.
Anyway, it seems as if Leary is marketing himself as Voice Of Mass American Product: Bud and now Ford trucks. Yeah, right.
The current “Toyotathon of Toyotathons” seems like an attempt to dare us to buy something that’s advertised so inartfully–they know we’ll buy it anyway.
Yeah, though the current network campaign which runs “all the other guys say their car/truck is as good as a Toyota… so I bought the Toyota” is pretty decent.
December 14th, 2008 at 10:03 pm
Seems car writers like the F-150 too
http://www.philly.com/philly/classifieds/cars/20081214_Ford_F-150_leaves_others_in_the_dust.html
I don’t know anything about trucks either, although we owned a light truck (a Toteyota, as it happens) for several years, until the kiddo came along and the truck’s timing belt went doggo, taking the valves with it. Didn’t use the bed much, but when I did use it, it was mighty handy — friends and neighbors made use of it too. With a bit of storage room behind the seats, it was like driving a SmartCar, except with the handy truck bed.
December 14th, 2008 at 10:05 pm
It’s true that almost all TRUCK people have a preference by a young age. My dad drove a ‘79 Ford pick-up (F-150) for years, and I drove a Ranger for years (I was born in 1969). So formative memories, truck . . . regrets . . . I actually wish I still had that Ranger . . . gave it to a family member because of moving, and family member wrecked it. [Loser.]
I live in DC, in a street-parking-only house, and I walk to work. I may drive our (one) car (which my wife drives to work) once a week on average. But I’ve been toying with buying a Ford pick-up for awhile. A GMC or Chevy truck? No thanks!
Btw, I crave a full-size . . . F-150 or -250. Why? No idea.
December 14th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
unless you want a diesel in which case the ram cummins turbodiesel; both fit three comfortably or four dogs; as you know its funny when dogs drive cars
(everyone knows that linus)
i’ve been trying to make friends with this alley cat in the neighborhood, bought him some food and left it out all day for days; the raccoons eat it at night; he came by and sniffed it then went away
(that’s because it was the store brand linus)
it had nice packaging plus he’s a mangy alley cat you’d think he’d be thankful; the dogs in the neighborhood (muts all of them) come by and they’ll eat practically anything
(it’s like trying to give the stumps of the muffins to homeless people linus)
you don’t like the stumps?
December 14th, 2008 at 11:35 pm
I like F-150s. The other American automakers make good ones, too, though, and Toyota’s Takoma is a good truck as well. I heard, though that for towing big boats and fifth-wheels the Chevys are better than the Ford. I am amazed at the towing capacity of some of these trucks that are being built nowadays. I’ve seen people tow big loads uphill in overdrive on the freeway in a Silverado.
“Btw, I crave a full-size . . . F-150 or -250. Why? No idea.”
I’m against people driving too much truck around–environment, energy use, etc. But I can understand people wanting a full-size truck. If you’re only getting 2 seats anyway, you want something more than a little Ranger. If I bought a new truck it would be an F-150 extended cab or a Chevy Colorado.
Why didn’t they stick with Toby Keith or the guy from Dirty Jobs in the Ford ads? Those spokespeople for the F-150 were much better. Dennis Leary is horrible.
I actually have a 1986 F-150 in the Northern Indiana area if someone would like to buy it. It’s been running fine for me in the 5 years I’ve had it, and it’s got a camper shell. Hey it doesn’t cost too much to drive it anymore, and I’m ready to go under $1000. Seriously.
December 14th, 2008 at 11:35 pm
I drive a 2003 Tundra. I wanted to buy an F-150 but the Tundra was cheaper. I love it. Having a truck bed is very handy when it comes to things like getting your Christmas tree home. No rope. No vacuuming up pine needles. Just throw it in the back.
December 15th, 2008 at 1:56 am
I live in Janesville, Wis., which is losing its GMC Yukon/Tahoe production line a week from now. The GM employee discount means there are a lot more GM vehicles than most places, including the SUVs, but interestingly they don’t dominate. This is definitely a pickup kind of town. A number of them are vanity vehicles or toy transporters, but I would say the majority are hard-working tools.
I’ve owned a couple of small SUVs but right now, I want a pickup for its greater versatility. (Among other things, we own rental property and I would really like to be able to plow the parking lot instead of spending hours snow-blowing it. Plus, we have a couple of years of construction/rehab coming.) Anyway, I haven’t had the impression that the imbalance in the market was in pickups nearly as much as in SUVs. It is definitely the SUV plants that GM has been closing down. We actually have a heavy-duty Isuzu truck line in part of the plant that will continue working into 2009.
December 15th, 2008 at 4:20 am
The least the author of the article could do is SPELL HIS FUCKING NAME CORRECTLY! WWW – WHAT THE FUCK – DOT COM!
Sorry…channeled a bit of Denis there…
Leary was hired simply because his voice is memorable and forceful – and he probably agreed because they paid him gobs of money.
This reminds me of a lot of actors who would never do commercials in the United States because it would spoil their “artiste” reputation before their home audiences. But they don’t mind doing commercials overseas, in Japan or wherever – because the Japanese will pay them half a million dollars for a day’s work. Jodie Foster comes to mind from the article I read, but there are plenty others.
December 15th, 2008 at 4:40 am
First off, it’s not like Yglesias ever reads his comments, but it’s Tacoma, not Takoma. It’s like the city in Washington.
Second, the Tanyon Sturtze reference made me laugh. I had that guy on my fantasy baseball team the year he lost 18 games for the Devil Rays.
December 15th, 2008 at 10:11 am
Yes, for many an off-road adventure is backing over the flower bed…
December 15th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
the good ole fashioned know-someone-who-owns-a-truck-you-can-borrow plan,
This gets old really fast for the one guy in a circle of friends who owns a truck.
December 15th, 2008 at 12:32 pm
Now if we can just get Rush railing about how Obama is going to take your pickups away once he gets elected so better buy one now…..
Tacoma was a famous Native American Chief, like Pontiac….
December 15th, 2008 at 12:49 pm
#33 The Transit is finally coming to America for 2010.
December 15th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
Man I’ve been laughing about those ads since I first saw them. The NFL blog (and warning, this blog can be highly offensive but also hilarious) Kissing Suzy Kolber did what is probably the best take on these commercials here:
http://kissingsuzykolber.uproxx.com/2008/11/buy-our-f%E2%80%94king-pickup-truck.html
TRUUUUUUCK!
December 16th, 2008 at 11:15 am
I think I prefer Japanese cars in general because the cabins always seem more geared towards regular sized people, whereas American cars can seem like they’re built for giants and make me feel like a little kid.
We had a little Toyota 4×4 pickup (it was a couple model years before the Tacoma was introduced…I think it was the same platform as the 4Runner) when I was in high school and it was really sweet…useful, fun to drive, and cool looking. When it got stolen and turned into a meth lab my parents replaced it with a little Chevy that was not nearly as cool.
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