It’s A Truck

As some of you know, back in late May or early June, I put in an order for a new Ram Laramie pickup. I was promised it would be here months ago, but it’s still on order at the factory waiting for parts, even though dealers are getting lots of 2022 models in. The hangup seems to be the V-6 engine. Apparently, they won’t even start making trucks with them until sometime early next year. So I decided to go to Plan B and put in a search through the Ram dealer network for any truck that met some basic criteria of mine.

I specified that I want a new 2022 two-wheel drive truck, not a four-wheel drive, and I want the upgraded Laramie model, not one of the lower trim packages. Since I could not get a V-6, I said I wanted a gas-powered V-8 Hemi, not a diesel, that I wanted the multifunction (split) tailgate, and I wanted either the Firecracker Red or Billet Silver exterior color. I specified in the search that those were the options I would not compromise on, and that I did not want to be bothered with calls from anybody who did not have what I wanted or anyone offering to order it for me, since I’ve played that game before.

Then a couple of weeks ago I found a listing for pretty much the exact truck I wanted, in the Billet Silver, with the Hemi and all the other options I want. The online listing said the truck was in transit to a dealer about 80 miles away, so I called and talked to someone there, who said it should arrive any day. After a few days, I talked to him again, and he told me that it was at the port in Jacksonville, waiting to be loaded onto a  transport truck to be brought to their dealership.

He and I stayed in contact, and when the truck still didn’t come, he called to find out what the hang-up was, and it turned out it had a flat tire. That shouldn’t be any real problem, right? Wrong! Apparently, it had to be a mechanic from a union shop or who had some kind of certification who came out and changed the tire, and they couldn’t find one. Then, when they finally did, the part of the port we are dealing with was closed for the four-day Thanksgiving holiday weekend. So who knows when they’ll get around to delivering it? I told the gentlemen at the dealership that I want it and we’ve agreed on a price, so it’s just a case of getting it in and going there and signing the paperwork and picking it up.

Meanwhile, the other day I got a call from a salesman at a dealership in Tampa who saw my search online asking if I was still in the market for a Ram. I told him I had already located one and was waiting for it to get delivered to the dealer, and he basically said stop the presses, there was no need to wait because he had exactly what I wanted. A 2021 Ram Bighorn (a lesser grade trim package than a Laramie). I asked if he had read my listing, and he said yes, he did, he had it right in front of him. Then went on to tell me that the four-wheel drive truck he has on his lot is blue, has a diesel engine, and admitted that, no, it does not have the multifunction tailgate. So it’s the wrong year, the wrong trim package, the wrong engine, the wrong drivetrain, the wrong color, and the wrong tailgate? I get it. It’s a truck.

I told him not to waste my time calling me again since he was too dense to even understand that when someone specifies these are the things they want and will not compromise on, I had no time to waste with him. His response was that sometimes you have to bend a little bit. Have you seen me? Is this the body of a man that can bend even a little bit? But I did. I pushed the disconnect button and bent over and set my phone down on the desk.

Today is your last chance to enter our Free Drawing for an RV camping journal donated by Barbara House. Barbara makes several variations of these, and they all have pages where you can list the date, weather, where you traveled to and from that day, beginning and ending mileage, campground information including amenities at RV sites, a place for campground reviews, room to record activities, people met along the way, reminders of places to see and things to do the next time you’re in the area, and a page for notes for each day. To enter, click on this Free Drawing link or the tab at the top of this page and enter your name (first and last) in the comments section at the bottom of that page (not this one). Only one entry per person per drawing please, and you must enter with your real name. To prevent spam or multiple entries, the names of cartoon or movie characters are not allowed. The winner will be drawn this evening. Note: Due to the high shipping cost of printed books and Amazon restrictions on e-books to foreign countries, only entries with US addresses and e-mail addresses are allowed.

Thought For The Day – Why look for conspiracy when stupidity can explain so much?