Learned how to drive in a 1972 F250 with a stickshift. Did ya know that when it's in creeper gear it will go right through a five-wire fence? We were always a Ford family. Then I grew up and bought my first car, a Ford, and it was a lemon. Complete and utter crap. I could have forgiven the mess if the dealership had made it right, instead of ripping me off at every turn. Flat out lied to me, claming they had changed the plugs and wires and it was all good to go. I popped the hood and it was the same damn plugs and wires I had put in myself trying to get the stupid thing to run. When I complained they were nasty and said I didn't know what I was talking about because I was a woman.
Ever since that day Ford is a 4-letter word and I'll never buy another one. (It was also one of my earliest lessons about dealing with idiots as a single woman.)
I switched to GMC trucks and never looked back. Drove a 1997 Silverado to 350,000 miles. The 2007 Sierra I have just hit 300,000 miles, and my 2016 Silverado just rolled 100,000.
Yeah, manufacturing defects/bad components/planned obsolescence is everywhere these days and spending money on a vehicle will always be a gamble, no matter what you choose. But the way I was treated by Ford means I will never drive one again, and will always encourage others to step away from Ford. Their failure to fix that car almost killed me, as it simply shut off while driving. In the middle of I-75. And they stood there and said it was because I was driving it in the rain, and they expected me to believe it. I will never forget that.