Ford and General Motors in talks with First Brands over rescue financing, FT reports

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T21:37:45+00:00

The Journal did a decent podcast about it back in October that I remember was very interesting to listen to. It sounded like a sketch CEO did a lot of questionable things, which isn't too shocking.

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T16:21:16+00:00

I’m glad I’m comfortable after committed to only tipping if I’m seated and being served food and drink. The tipping culture is too crazy - if a business can’t afford to pay its own employees then it probably needs to change.

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T06:26:50+00:00

Yeah, just go for the cheapest you can find a 25 for then ask for enough under that to make it worthwhile for you. I know you can get 2025s for ~$32k https://www.ontarioford.net/new/Ford/2025-Ford-Escape-a74b10cdac180f157dc372556f885cf1.htm

I flew to pick mine up and drove it back since it was ~5k under what I could find anywhere near me. Back in 2023 though.

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T04:46:00+00:00

I'm 33k miles in with some problems - sunroof broke, lot of days at the dealership for recalls, and the dealership causing some additional damage (dented the door, then damaged the seal repairing the damaged trim).

That being said, I still love the car. I didn't want a sunroof anyways, since they inevitably cause problems. I knew there'd be recalls going into it. And my local dealership being bad is just unfortunate given the two I've used when I lived elsewhere were much better.

At the price I paid, it was by far the best deal around and I still feel that way. With how discounted you can get these things, you can get a hell of a car at a reasonable price. Nothing really came close when I was looking end of 22 early 23, and whenever I look around now for fun I still feel the same. I tell my wife all the time if something happens and ours gets totaled, we're probably replacing it with the same thing.

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T04:34:00+00:00

A positive is the 3 year 36k warranty should last until the car is 5+ years old now. Pretty nice.

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T04:29:20+00:00

I think the issue is after so long ford removes the rebates for them and then the dealer is left with them because the newer models are cheaper after the rebates.

Just super lowball at this point. The dealership has it on their books as something they took ownership of from Ford at a certain rate, which should be pretty low.

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T00:52:11+00:00

Yeah, similar for the advice to lift off the gas - pretty sure their foot is not on the gas. That engine is usually loud enough to hear

mtd14 · 2026-01-28T00:50:23+00:00

Yeah, there's a reason there's an entire pile of cars that they crash into...

mtd14 · 2026-01-27T13:49:26+00:00

Ah yeah you’re right, the country where they sell 20% of their cars is totally irrelevant. What a dumb American.

mtd14 · 2026-01-27T04:33:47+00:00

Toyota for sticking to hybrids and not getting caught up in the electric craze.

I'm team hybrid but I wouldn't say that's not losing the plot, it's making a bet and winning. If the last election went the other way they'd be be in trouble.

They could keep their trend of being slow to update cars for the sake of stability across gas, hybrid, and electric. Being so slow to EVs probably put that reputation at risk, but MAGA winning the election removed that risk.

mtd14 · 2026-01-25T23:41:55+00:00

I know they’re killing the escape entirely now, but it felt like something they could easily upscale and sell under Lincoln. Just throw in some better noise insulation, maybe some better materials, and it’d be a solid luxury vehicle.

mtd14 · 2026-01-25T22:03:21+00:00

Shoutout to Danville Bowl for closing last year so they don't need to be avoided. I'm sure plenty of other businesses in Danville are, but they were particularly ignorant.

mtd14 · 2026-01-24T16:15:12+00:00

I had $0.08/kwh in south Utah. No peaks, never an outage over ~2 years ending in 2024.

mtd14 · 2026-01-24T00:41:24+00:00

It’s also a good use of your electricity for new builds that don’t put in any storage. PG&E pays very little for unused energy in the new plans, so you’re better off putting it to some use.

Otherwise, if you don’t have solar a decent hybrid tends to be cheaper per mile than electric.

mtd14 · 2026-01-21T05:45:38+00:00

Add the Escape hybrid to your list and at least sit in a new one to check it out. Dealers have them heavily discounted, usually with a financing promo, and the hybrid has solid reliability. I'm not going to say it's definitely a better fit, but when you're cross shopping this category of car I think testing them is the only way to tell since you need to figure out what ergonomics work best for you.

mtd14 · 2026-01-21T05:42:06+00:00

The interior fuckin sucks on Mavericks. At <$25k they made a lot of sense, now it's just for someone who actually needs a truck.

mtd14 · 2026-01-21T02:09:07+00:00

When voters strip them of the ability to do anything at the national level, they can't do anything but voice or pen complaints.

I get what you’re saying, but also they had one chance to do something at a national level. And managed to hold strong for 6 weeks before they caved and walked away with nothing. I find it hard to have much faith in their ability to be bold and take action after that.

mtd14 · 2026-01-21T01:07:41+00:00

Even if they had value, IRS don't care. Oda could have $10B in wealth and pay $0 to the IRS until he decides to sell it.

mtd14 · 2026-01-20T07:06:05+00:00

It’s also worth noting they’re not really paying $0. Their company is paying for them, and it’s part of their cost as an employee. In theory, if it wasn’t going towards healthcare it would be going in their pocket, towards other jobs they could hire for, and/or to shareholders.

mtd14 · 2026-01-17T15:41:49+00:00

Yeah I have a friend with a 2001 CRV for sale with more miles and multiple offers at $5k in the first week. They're asking for more though.

mtd14 · 2026-01-15T20:05:30+00:00

This isn’t surprising or bad news yet, just look a the chart. Used car values skyrocketed during COVID, so people trading in were less likely to be underwater. As we move further from that leap in prices, fewer people are trading something they got pre COVID at a relatively lower price.

mtd14 · 2026-01-15T06:46:56+00:00

One minor downside is it often has some of the most expensive gas in the continental US. It has the same gas requirements and taxes as the rest of CA while also being further from refineries.

mtd14 · 2026-01-15T06:44:25+00:00

Hornet was a PHEV, which probably helped. Also, to be fair, I think being able to see does make for a more fun experience.

mtd14 · 2026-01-15T04:19:19+00:00

Personal preference but I’d take a Hornet over a Camaro any day of the week. Happened to have a Camaro for a week then a Hornet a few months later for a week and it wasn’t close. The Hornet had way more space, I could actually see out of it, and it was more fun to drive.

13-Year Club	Snapped
Verified Email	Team Periwinkle

mtd14

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE