He has to drive for about an hour to Boston and half an hour to Winthrop. However, people in the United States actually have some problems. It is somewhat different from the situation in China. In China, city people look down on the people from surrounding rural areas, even if these rural people have much more money than the city dwellers. This is a regional difference. The same applies in the United States. City people look down on rural people, but similarly, rural people also look down on city dwellers.
This creates a contradiction, so generally speaking, as long as there is something for sale in Winthrop, people nearby rarely go to Boston.
Of course, there is another reason: although it is only an hour and a half drive away, the prices of things sold in Winthrop are cheaper than those in Boston. No matter what they sell, this is one of the things that people here are most proud of.
However, as part of the Greater Boston metropolitan area, the goods sold here are still quite diverse.
Sitting in Robbins' pickup truck, Jiang Hai and he arrived at a large car dealership on the outskirts of Winthrop.
Just like in China, there are very few car dealerships in towns or cities, after all, car dealerships take up a lot of space.
Winthrop was no different. After the two parked the car, they walked into the dealership.
This car dealership is privately owned and called Fred's. It seems the owner or founder of this dealership is named Fred, and according to Robbins, it is very well-known in the area.
It represents many car brands, including American, Japanese, German, British, Italian, and more. It can be said that except for supercars, you can buy almost any car here, and the prices are fair. The most important thing is that if the car breaks down, you can get parts or repairs at family prices.
"Hello, how can I help you?" When the two walked into the dealership, a young girl came over to greet Jiang Hai and Robbins.
"Hey, is Dhruv here? My name is Robbins, ask him to come over!" Hearing the girl, Robbins couldn't help but laugh and say. Just like in China, people like to find acquaintances when buying things, and it's the same in the United States.
After all, they can save money or get more gifts. These people are not stupid, how can they not use these opportunities?
"Oh, is that so? Sorry, please wait." Hearing Robbins' words, the girl's eyes showed a trace of disappointment. It seems she wouldn't be getting the commission for this sale, but her excellent service attitude remained, and she nodded slightly before using the intercom to call someone. Not long after, a middle-aged man, about the same age as Robbins, appeared.
This man was much fatter than Robbins and had Mediterranean-style hair. He walked over with a smile, looking like a big steamed bun with hair.
"Hey, buddy, are you finally going to change that old, broken pickup truck? I thought you'd keep it forever." Seeing Robbins, the man smiled and joked. It was clear that the relationship between them was good.
"Of course I have to support my old friend, but today it's my boss who wants to buy a car." Robbins bumped fists with the fat man and then introduced Jiang Hai with a smile.
"Your boss? Wow, Green Forest, that's a big shot! You must need a lot of helpers. Come on, little boss, Drufu Car Dealership can meet all your needs." Hearing Robbins' words, Dhruv was momentarily stunned, then let out a strange cry, threw his arm around Jiang Hai's shoulder, and led him inside.
Since Robbins had brought him here, Dhruv didn't show Jiang Hai any unnecessary or low-quality cars.
They went directly to the pickup truck section, and as soon as they entered, rows of steel monsters appeared before Jiang Hai.
"Come on, little boss, although we can't claim to have the most complete selection of pickup trucks in the United States, I can guarantee we have everything New York and Boston have, and I even have some cars from your country. Want to take a look?" While guiding Jiang Hai, Dhruv continued with his introduction.
"Haha, forget it." Although Jiang Hai felt somewhat proud that domestic cars were sold in the U.S., the thought of the quality of domestic vehicles dampened his enthusiasm. Of course, he had heard that cars sold in China and abroad were not the same, but Jiang Hai wasn't interested in exploring further. Since he was buying a car, he would go for a good one. He was short on money, but not that short.
"Oh, that's a pity..." Dhruv sighed upon hearing Jiang Hai's words, but looking at his fat face, there was no real trace of pity. He quickly moved on and began to introduce the cars to Jiang Hai.
In the U.S., there are four main brands of mid-to-high-end pickup trucks. First, the most popular is the Ford F series. This truck has a price advantage since it is made in the U.S., is easy to maintain, and is not prone to breakdowns. Prices range from tens of thousands of dollars to hundreds of thousands or even millions, depending on what Jiang Hai wants.
Second, the Dodge series is a bit cheaper than Ford, but aside from that, the options are similar, with fewer styles available, as it is mainly an MPV.
Next is Toyota, which has several advantages over Ford and Dodge. Firstly, it's cheaper, and secondly, it is very fuel-efficient. Although gas is quite cheap in the U.S., when taxes and highway fees are added, it costs around $1 per liter, similar to domestic prices.
However, don't forget that they earn money in U.S. dollars, while China uses RMB. They don't charge road tolls, bridge tolls, or any additional fees, with only a few private roads having tolls. These are included in the fuel price.
At the same time, the most important factor is the exchange rate, which is about six times more favorable in the U.S. than in China. A middle-class income in the U.S. is around $50,000, while the equivalent in China is about 100,000 RMB. The purchasing power in the U.S. is much higher, and the average middle class has more purchasing power in the U.S. than in China.
Toyota pickup trucks have been selling well in the U.S. recently, but as far as Jiang Hai is concerned, he was not keen on buying a car from an island nation.
In addition to the three previous brands, there is also a high-end brand, CMG. This used to be a commercial vehicle but is now also available as a pickup truck. Dhruv recommended these four brands and said any of them would suit Jiang Hai.
After hesitating, Jiang Hai decided to go with the crowd. While he was tempted by some unusual vehicles, it was hard to know how their performance would hold up, so he decided to buy a Ford.
Now that he had decided on Ford, he had to choose a model. Ford's F series includes seven models.
From smallest to largest, they are the F150, F250, F350, F450, F550, F650, and F750.
The most common is the F150, also known as the Raptor. The price in China is about 500,000 RMB, but here it's more expensive due to a 40% customs tax. After deducting that, it costs about 350,000 RMB. Due to the exchange rate difference, a brand new, high-powered, top-of-the-line Ford F150 costs around $60,000 in the U.S. Including the license plate, insurance, and the first year of car ownership, it totals less than $80,000. However, since Jiang Hai was purchasing the car for agricultural and animal husbandry purposes, there's a government subsidy. After the subsidy, according to Dhruv's calculation, the final price would be about $58,000, which is really affordable. The 6.2L engine can handle almost any task.
Jiang Hai was somewhat tempted, but Robbins shook his head. While a Ford F150 would be enough for an average family farm, Jiang Hai's farm was too large. Not to mention hauling boats and fish in the future, even just transporting cattle would require more power than a 150 could provide.
"You can buy this car, it's fine for transporting fodder and such, but if you want to do real work, you need something stronger." Hearing Robbins' comment, Jiang Hai was disappointed. Why was the car he thought was good here considered so weak?
"Indeed, your farm is too large. If you want to transport cattle, this car can only carry 50 at a time. It can't handle more. If you need something for farm work, you should look at the F450, F550, or F650. The F750 is too expensive, and I wouldn't recommend it unless you want to spend a fortune." Dhruv agreed with Robbins.
After all, Jiang Hai would be his neighbor soon, and he didn't want to risk cheating him. It's better to be honest from the start.
According to Dhruv, the F450 and F550 are considered medium-sized vehicles in this series, and their prices have gone up significantly. With government subsidies, an F450 costs around $140,000, which would be over a million in China. The F550 costs $210,000, which is quite expensive, but its power is five times greater than that of the F150. Robbins said that with the F550, you could attach a flatbed and transport 300 cattle at a time.
This would be the standard for large farms. Many large farms in the West use the F450 or F550.
But in fact, from the beginning, Jiang Hai's eyes were always on the largest model.