I dislike car dealers just as much as most Americans, but I’m also a big proponent of personal responsibility and financial literacy when buying a car. Blindly signing on the dotted line can get you into a life-changing situation. Take the ordeal one Ford Maverick owner is currently in. Detailed in a Reddit post to the r/FordMaverickTruck subreddit, a Maverick owner says buying Ford’s small pickup was the worst mistake they’ve made in their life and, after reading the details of the deal, I’m forced to agree with them.
The owner says they’re 22 years old, make $55,000 a year and had never purchased a vehicle before, but “have always had great credit.” Last year, they bought a 2023 Maverick XLT Hybrid. The compact Maverick has been a hot seller for Ford since it debuted a few years ago, when the base price on the Maverick XLT Hybrid was just over $26,000. Of course, this person didn’t pay that at the dealer: after taxes and registration, they had themselves a Maverick Hybrid for $44,000. It gets worse.
As if to soften the blow of just how shitty the deal was, the dealer talked this person into signing up for the Maverick by telling them they could refinance. They agreed and signed on the dotted line for in-house financing at 15 percent. In the comments, they mention they pay a whopping $950 a month. Now, after trying to refinance the truck a year later, they got hit with more bad news:
“Fast forward to me trying to refinance and get a better rate… I’m under water 6k and am probably never going to be able to refinance.”
They’re asking for advice, stating they feel like their life is over. There are a few things wrong here, obviously. The first is that this person is seriously financially illiterate. For instance, in a response to a now-deleted comment, they mention they had no idea what amortization is.
“I agree I didn’t even know what amortization was until I bought it. The thing is the dealership told me I could refinance it and I believe it. That was a straight up lie , even with my credit being 700. I just tried to refinance with Navy Federal one of the best credit unions and got denied.”
Down in the comments, they mention the price for the Maverick was $36,000, meaning that the dealer stuck on a serious markup and screwed them on financing. They have a credit score of 700, but got hit with a 15-percent interest rate. Even when my own credit was in the low-to-mid 600s, I got a 9-percent APR.
While it may not seem like there’s much this person can do, there’s always a way. Honestly, the best course of action would be trying to sell the Maverick for more than what he owes on the loan. In any other situation that would be hard, but given the popularity of the Maverick, this person should be able to get close to, if not $30,000 for the truck. They may not like the option because they want to keep the truck, considering how they are trying to refinance, but it’s the best way out right now. Then they could do what they should have done in the beginning: buy a nice, reliable, cheap beater to get around in.
Any way you go about it, though, this person is in a bad situation. It sucks, but it’s doesn’t have to be a life-ruining situation. If anything, this should be a learning experience. They do take some responsibility for everything, saying “it’s definitely a hard lesson learned.” However, they also say they felt coerced, and that’s why it’s important to go into a dealership with a clear plan of what you can afford and what you want to achieve.