Ford F-150
From town to country with nary a hitch |
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By Richard J. Newman
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NITS: Adding a few extra inches to the passenger compartment appears to have resulted in an engine that's crammed very tight against the cabin area. That could make it harder to work under the hood.
G-FORCES: The 300-horsepower V-8 in
the upscale FX4 was powerful, with the right amount of muscle devoted to low-end torque–for pulling and hauling–rather than off-the-line acceleration. (The base engine, a 231-horsepower V-8, might fall a bit short.) At the same time, road handling was smooth and firm.
GIZMOLOGY: Car buffs might question
all the hype about the F-150's fancy interiors, but I found the cabin to be a nice mix of practicality and understated style–probably the most flash you could get away with when marketing to the pickup
crowd. Radio and climate controls are clean and uncluttered, for example. But the circular air vents have a sleek and modern look–almost European, dare I say. And an optional "flow-through" center console comes with a floor shifter for the automatic transmission, a sportier look than the traditional stalk protruding from the steering wheel.
KID MARKS: One family-friendly innovation is a double-acting handle on models with the SuperCab (a full rear seat, but half-size rear-access doors), which allows the rear doors to be opened from the inside instead of from a handle in the door jamb that kids can't usually reach. The SuperCrew cab, however, is the one
to have with kids, since it has a full rear seat and four regular doors. To entice families, Ford is offering an optional DVD player.
HOT OR NOT?Hot. The straighter lines
and boxier design than the old F-150 speak more of confidence and less of frill.
ENVIROMETER: Not yet given a "green vehicle" rating by the EPA. Mileage ranges from 14 mpg city to 19 mpg highway, depending on the engine and drivetrain.
CRASH COURSE: Not yet crash-tested by the government or by private testing organizations.
PRICE POINTS: Base prices range from
$22,010 to $36,365. Price as tested: about $35,000. (All prices include delivery fees.)
MORE INFO: http://www.fordvehicles.com/trucks/
f150/
Note: Ford will continue selling the
'03 design into next year, calling it the
"Heritage" model. For info on the re
designed '04, go here.
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Model year tested: 2004
I usually prefer to do car evalutions myself. But this time I wanted somebody else to share the blame. Like when we ended up in a bog with mud the consistency of Jell-O up to our fenders. Or when we got beached atop a gravel pile with the drive wheels off the ground. Or when we were climbing a hill so steep all I could see was blue sky out the windshield.
The setting was a quarry operated by Luck Stone in Leesburg, Va. I figured the workers–most of whom drive pickups for work or pleasure, or both–would be able to put the newly redesigned F-150 through its paces better than a suburbanite partial to low-slung two-seaters. And I certainly was glad that one of them was navigating the mud bog instead of me. We had plunged in not knowing exactly where the bottom was, and Luck employee Tony Toler had to grind the truck back and forth several times to find it. But the FX4 version of the '04 F-150 that we were driving–a $35,000 "sport" model with standard
four-wheel drive–plowed through the muck with gusto. We got ourselves back on dry land without having to call for a winch to bail us out.
The F-150 passed most of the four-wheeling tests the Luck workers
dreamed up. It handled rutted trails without a hiccup and showed good
frame stiffness in bumps–a sign of durability and ruggedness. The only time it got snared was on the gravel pile, a situation that would have hung up most mass-produced four-wheel-drive vehicles. Luck workers would have liked to see a little more ground clearance on the F-150, but in other duties it met or exceeded expectations. The 300-horsepower engine that's standard on the FX4 showed decent pickup off the line, with lots of power kicking in at around 3,000 RPMs. And when we put 1,200 pounds of gear in the bed, it barely slowed us down. (The base engine is a 231-horsepower V-8 that presumably would have heaved a bit more.) While looking under the hood, the Luck crowd discovered desirable features like a transmission cooler, which helps protect the clutches if, for instance, the undercarriage gets clogged with mud. It's optional, but still, it shows that Ford has thought this one through.
When it came to the pavement, I took over. And the F-150's smooth performance on the highway may ultimately be what Ford expects will help sell 900,000 of them annually. (See related story) It's no Mercedes, to be sure, but the F-150's highway ride is almost carlike, with very little of the springy bouncing that's typical in some trucks. That will appeal not just to ranch hands and construction workers and others who actually need a pickup, but to Subaruskis and soccer dads and off-road wannabes who simply think it would be cool to own one. Ford is also hoping to woo some SUV acolytes by making the cabin roomier and the rear seat easier to get in and out of. Stylish new interiors, with options like bucket seats and a plush center console, further enhance the illusion of being in a car. Until you hit mud up to your haunches,
that is.
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