Harold here

[HALWADE]

I’m a soon-to-be 60-year-old man who fell in love with Ford’s diminutive pickup when I saw it online late June of last year. I built one online that day, and didn’t think much more about it until the email notifications started flowing in from FoMoCo.

I had a bought-and-paid-for 2017 4WD Chevy Colorado with all the right tweaks and upgrades in my driveway, but I wasn’t taking it off-road as frequently as was my plan during Covid lockdown, so I poked around on KBB to see what it was worth in the exploding used market. My local Chevy dealer agreed to give me $27k sight unseen, so I grabbed my paperwork and tossed them the keys last August. I have a weekend car—an M-B C63 AMG coupe—so I drove that until my Maverick arrived at Gosch Ford in Temecula, CA October 27. That delivery date was within Ford’s 10/31/21 deadline for 0% financing, so I put $15k down and financed the $17k balance over 3 years. I gave my wife Paula the $12k change from the sale of my Chevy and told her to invest it—she’s got a green thumb when it comes to making money on the stock market.

After Christmas last year I asked the old lady how that $12k was doing. She told me she put it in Dogecoin and one other cyber security, and that it had reached $28k.

We have no intention of paying off our Cactus Grey XLT AWD Maverick any time soon—why would we when Ford was giving us free money.

My truck’s specs are perfect for our needs:

• EcoBoost 2l
• AWD
• Tow package
• Factory gloss black 17” alloys w/ Goodyear Wrangler AT meats (235/65-17)
• off-road package (sans bedside decals; they peeled those of while I sat with the closer—I hate stickers)
• Rough Country +1” leveling kit
• tailgate lowering piston
• Factory installed bed liner, sliding tie down rails, and Horst Leisner-designed Bed Extender (google him—interesting cat)
• MT Engineering engine hood hydro tube kit

We haven’t had an opportunity to take our new little trucklet to SoCal mountains in our area because I received a total knee replacement November 2. I’ve been rehabbing that mess ever since, but nine weeks hence I’m getting around well enough to take her for a legitimate spin.

Like the rest of you nerds on this message board I’ve watched all the videos and read all the reviews.

What I can tell you about my personal Maverick is this:

• The suspension squeaks less than my wife’s 2018 M-B GLC300 SUV
• Its EcoBoost turbo 2.0 has more ponies than the identically sized engine in wife’s car, too
• I’m the second customer to take delivery of his custom order at Gosch Ford in Temecula

Bronco Sports are crawling all over SoCal, but Maverick sightings are still rare—I’ve only seen one other in the wild since I took delivery before Halloween.

That’s the story of my truck. My personal story is even less interesting:

• Born in Florida
• Raised on mini bikes, motorcycles, and BMX
• Moved to SoCal in ‘82 to chase those dreams
• Started Biltwell Inc., a boutique motorcycle safety gear and bolt-on parts company in 2006 after working in bicycle and Motorsports design and marketing for 25 years
• Married a single mom and took over payments on a 3-year-old son named Silas in 2017

Plans for the future include retiring in five years, moving to WA or TN to dodge CA taxes, and driving the wheels off my Maverick now that the knee lets me get out of the house. Business travel during never-ending Covid lockdown appears out of reach, so I’ll have plenty of time to enjoy light Baja desert crawling and exploring local mountains on weekends.

Any tips or tricks for enjoying my new woman’s model pickup I should be aware of?

Thanks to everyone who’s posed info on this site. It’s been a great resource and inspiration for future mods.


Picture attached is our company‘s chopper adventure support vehicle: The Biltwell LMTV. My business partner is taking it and a fleet of H-D Pan America ADV bikes to the Arctic Circle next August. Follow their adventures on Instagram: @biltwellinc

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[olderbudwiser]

I’m a soon-to-be 60-year-old man who fell in love with Ford’s diminutive pickup when I saw it online late June of last year. I built one online that day, and didn’t think much more about it until the email notifications started flowing in from FoMoCo.

I had a bought-and-paid-for 2017 4WD Chevy Colorado with all the right tweaks and upgrades in my driveway, but I wasn’t taking it off-road as frequently as was my plan during Covid lockdown, so I poked around on KBB to see what it was worth in the exploding used market. My local Chevy dealer agreed to give me $27k sight unseen, so I grabbed my paperwork and tossed them the keys last August. I have a weekend car—an M-B C63 AMG coupe—so I drove that until my Maverick arrived at Gosch Ford in Temecula, CA October 27. That delivery date was within Ford’s 10/31/21 deadline for 0% financing, so I put $15k down and financed the $17k balance over 3 years. I gave my wife Paula the $12k change from the sale of my Chevy and told her to invest it—she’s got a green thumb when it comes to making money on the stock market.

After Christmas last year I asked the old lady how that $12k was doing. She told me she put it in Dogecoin and one other cyber security, and that it had reached $28k.

We have no intention of paying off our Cactus Grey XLT AWD Maverick any time soon—why would we when Ford was giving us free money.

My truck’s specs are perfect for our needs:

• EcoBoost 2l
• AWD
• Tow package
• Factory gloss black 17” alloys w/ Goodyear Wrangler AT meats (235/65-17)
• off-road package (sans bedside decals; they peeled those of while I sat with the closer—I hate stickers)
• Rough Country +1” leveling kit
• tailgate lowering piston
• Factory installed bed liner, sliding tie down rails, and Horst Leisner-designed Bed Extender (google him—interesting cat)
• MT Engineering engine hood hydro tube kit

We haven’t had an opportunity to take our new little trucklet to SoCal mountains in our area because I received a total knee replacement November 2. I’ve been rehabbing that mess ever since, but nine weeks hence I’m getting around well enough to take her for a legitimate spin.

Like the rest of you nerds on this message board I’ve watched all the videos and read all the reviews.

What I can tell you about my personal Maverick is this:

• The suspension squeaks less than my wife’s 2018 M-B GLC300 SUV
• Its EcoBoost turbo 2.0 has more ponies than the identically sized engine in wife’s car, too
• I’m the second customer to take delivery of his custom order at Gosch Ford in Temecula

Bronco Sports are crawling all over SoCal, but Maverick sightings are still rare—I’ve only seen one other in the wild since I took delivery before Halloween.

That’s the story of my truck. My personal story is even less interesting:

• Born in Florida
• Raised on mini bikes, motorcycles, and BMX
• Moved to SoCal in ‘82 to chase those dreams
• Started Biltwell Inc., a boutique motorcycle safety gear and bolt-on parts company in 2006 after working in bicycle and Motorsports design and marketing for 25 years
• Married a single mom and took over payments on a 3-year-old son named Silas in 2017

Plans for the future include retiring in five years, moving to WA or TN to dodge CA taxes, and driving the wheels off my Maverick now that the knee lets me get out of the house. Business travel during never-ending Covid lockdown appears out of reach, so I’ll have plenty of time to enjoy light Baja desert crawling and exploring local mountains on weekends.

Any tips or tricks for enjoying my new woman’s model pickup I should be aware of?

Thanks to everyone who’s posed info on this site. It’s been a great resource and inspiration for future mods.


Picture attached is our company‘s chopper adventure support vehicle: The Biltwell LMTV. My business partner is taking it and a fleet of H-D Pan America ADV bikes to the Arctic Circle next August. Follow their adventures on Instagram: @biltwellinc

Sounds like you have. plan So far it's working. Good for you!!!

 

[Gabbydad]

I’m a soon-to-be 60-year-old man who fell in love with Ford’s diminutive pickup when I saw it online late June of last year. I built one online that day, and didn’t think much more about it until the email notifications started flowing in from FoMoCo.

I had a bought-and-paid-for 2017 4WD Chevy Colorado with all the right tweaks and upgrades in my driveway, but I wasn’t taking it off-road as frequently as was my plan during Covid lockdown, so I poked around on KBB to see what it was worth in the exploding used market. My local Chevy dealer agreed to give me $27k sight unseen, so I grabbed my paperwork and tossed them the keys last August. I have a weekend car—an M-B C63 AMG coupe—so I drove that until my Maverick arrived at Gosch Ford in Temecula, CA October 27. That delivery date was within Ford’s 10/31/21 deadline for 0% financing, so I put $15k down and financed the $17k balance over 3 years. I gave my wife Paula the $12k change from the sale of my Chevy and told her to invest it—she’s got a green thumb when it comes to making money on the stock market.

After Christmas last year I asked the old lady how that $12k was doing. She told me she put it in Dogecoin and one other cyber security, and that it had reached $28k.

We have no intention of paying off our Cactus Grey XLT AWD Maverick any time soon—why would we when Ford was giving us free money.

My truck’s specs are perfect for our needs:

• EcoBoost 2l
• AWD
• Tow package
• Factory gloss black 17” alloys w/ Goodyear Wrangler AT meats (235/65-17)
• off-road package (sans bedside decals; they peeled those of while I sat with the closer—I hate stickers)
• Rough Country +1” leveling kit
• tailgate lowering piston
• Factory installed bed liner, sliding tie down rails, and Horst Leisner-designed Bed Extender (google him—interesting cat)
• MT Engineering engine hood hydro tube kit

We haven’t had an opportunity to take our new little trucklet to SoCal mountains in our area because I received a total knee replacement November 2. I’ve been rehabbing that mess ever since, but nine weeks hence I’m getting around well enough to take her for a legitimate spin.

Like the rest of you nerds on this message board I’ve watched all the videos and read all the reviews.

What I can tell you about my personal Maverick is this:

• The suspension squeaks less than my wife’s 2018 M-B GLC300 SUV
• Its EcoBoost turbo 2.0 has more ponies than the identically sized engine in wife’s car, too
• I’m the second customer to take delivery of his custom order at Gosch Ford in Temecula

Bronco Sports are crawling all over SoCal, but Maverick sightings are still rare—I’ve only seen one other in the wild since I took delivery before Halloween.

That’s the story of my truck. My personal story is even less interesting:

• Born in Florida
• Raised on mini bikes, motorcycles, and BMX
• Moved to SoCal in ‘82 to chase those dreams
• Started Biltwell Inc., a boutique motorcycle safety gear and bolt-on parts company in 2006 after working in bicycle and Motorsports design and marketing for 25 years
• Married a single mom and took over payments on a 3-year-old son named Silas in 2017

Plans for the future include retiring in five years, moving to WA or TN to dodge CA taxes, and driving the wheels off my Maverick now that the knee lets me get out of the house. Business travel during never-ending Covid lockdown appears out of reach, so I’ll have plenty of time to enjoy light Baja desert crawling and exploring local mountains on weekends.

Any tips or tricks for enjoying my new woman’s model pickup I should be aware of?

Thanks to everyone who’s posed info on this site. It’s been a great resource and inspiration for future mods.


Picture attached is our company‘s chopper adventure support vehicle: The Biltwell LMTV. My business partner is taking it and a fleet of H-D Pan America ADV bikes to the Arctic Circle next August. Follow their adventures on Instagram: @biltwellinc

Welcome man! I’m a Biltwell fan! I used to send Bill (your partner?) the mechanics wipes we used to manufacture.

 

[HALWADE]

Welcome man! I’m a Biltwell fan! I used to send Bill (your partner?) the mechanics wipes we used to manufacture.

That’s us. Bill and I have been partners since 1991, and and fans of Monkey Wipes from day one! What happened to those jewels? They ruled

 

[Gabbydad]

That’s us. Bill and I have been partners since 1991, and and fans of Monkey Wipes from day one! What happened to those jewels? They ruled

The Monk went away, my boss sold the brand off. I have another version we’re producing. But had thought you guys sold and left. Hit me with Dm and I’ll send some out, you guys were really nice to me!

 

[LC48]

How big is Temecula now? I lived there from '92 to '02 and she grew from 17,000 to 77,000 in that 10-year span, doubled my money on that little house when I retired from service and came back to Texas.
I wonder how many kids are playing in TVSA now, we had a hell of a great association.

 

[TCK]

Grats on the truck and welcome to the forum- and thanks for my riding gloves! Love them!

 

[SoCal OG]

My spare helmet for my Triumph Scrambler is a Biltwell Gringo!

 

[HALWADE]

Well, that went to hell pretty quickly. Seriously?

How big is Temecula now? I lived there from '92 to '02 and she grew from 17,000 to 77,000 in that 10-year span, doubled my money on that little house when I retired from service and came back to Texas.
I wonder how many kids are playing in TVSA now, we had a hell of a great association.

115k as of 2020, probably +10k more in the previous two years.

It’s truly the jewel of SoCal’s Inland Empire, but that’s not saying much: as you know we’re surrounded by trailer parks, Orange groves, cactuses and rocks.

Wine country has become A cash cow for the city and a vacation destination for a certain cohort, and golf tourism is off the charts, too.

Many Pro motocrossers still call Temecula and the surrounding area home, and every major motorcycle builder operates a SX test facility within 25 miles of us.

Thanks to money from Pechanga Casino Resort—America’s top-grossing casino not located in Las Vegas—schools in the area are fantastic. Big stadiums, great classrooms, new buildings, well-paid teachers, etc. We’re here until our 11-year-old graduates from HS, then we’re out.

Taxes are bananas, and housing prices are through the roof; our modest 3B/2b single-story has gone up +50% in four years, thanks to Covid, under-building in the area, and other forces.

Everyone I know with the means to do so in this area is selling their house at a massive profit and moving to states with no income tax, lower housing costs, more green space/less desert, etc.

Re: TVSA, it’s still bananas. The fields are outdoor astroturf now, thanks to a grant from Pechanga, and thousands of kids and their families come to the facility every weekend. It’s beautiful.

Where in TX do you live?

 

[LC48]

Wow!
Rod Run still a thing? If I remember this was the first run of the year and always had a great turnout of excellent rides, so-cal car culture is hard to match.

I went from so-cal and all that to a small town of 1300, South of Fort Worth. One stop light, gets real dark and real quiet at night - and I love it. See more concrete than I care 5x a week in DFW, but decompress all the way home.

 

[LC48]

The run always had a great spread of types of vehicles, I appreciated the craftsmanship and ingenuity across the board.

Welcome to the board, hope you enjoy your truck as much as I do mine!

 

[HALWADE]

I originally posted this in the Cactus Grey thread where it died on page 48, so I’m giving it a bump on my member intro. Moderators can merge or delete if that’s not kosher…

I finally saw my second Ecoboost FX4 in town today (mine was the first). It was black.

Not a fan—too much of a heat synch in the SoCal sun.

I ordered Cactus Grey sight unseen late June last year, and DID. NOT. ONCE. Worry about it being too minty, too drab, too green, too (fill in the blank) for my eclectic blue-collar tastes.

After joining this message board to figure out what right-sized gimmicks I needed, I threw a Rough Country +1” leveling kit, a tailgate damper, twin MRT deck lid lift tubes, and a set of Goodyear Wrangler 235/65-17 meats on my diminutive daily driver and called it a day.

After 1500 miles I remain happy as the day I built my stupid but lovable Maverick online.

I’ve yet to use the AMP Research-style FoMoCo OEM bed extender, but I had one in my last truck so I know its charms.

I live in SoCal, so I get plenty of chances to kick it into Off-Road mode, but rarely into Slippery. On the sandy river wash behind our warehouse, the Maverick left me feeling more confident than the Chevy Colorado it replaced. I think Ferdinand Porsche’s theory on lightness being >/= brute force plays a role in this matter, as proved by all the class 11 Beetles that make it to Cabo in the Baja 1000 every year. I’ll know if a bone-stock Maverick is better than a modified Colorado V6 4x4 when I drive to the Biltwell 100 in the Mojave Desert next April.

That’s all I got. My truck (I refuse to call it my “build”) starts conversations everywhere I park it. My wife loves it. Our kid doesn’t give a shit, so I don’t have to worry about loaning it to him in four years. I’m averaging 23mpg but don’t give a shit despite being one of 35 million suckers in the Golden State who pays $5.50 per gallon.

For extra blue-collar street cred, I shot these photos behind the Walmart off highway 79 in Temecula, CA. It doesn’t get more white trash than that.

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