'09 F150

[PDenbigh]

Have you guys/gals seen the 09 F150?

Here's a sires of comparisons against the Toyota, Chevy, and Dodge.

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What do you think?

[Mike]

first, i like denis leary, but he doesn't do it for me as a narrator.
second, mike rowe rocks.

durability - yep, it's stiffer. damn @ the yota. is that really a durability test though?
towing - before they even tested... uhhh so you're saying your truck is best at towing incorrectly? great, but i'm not an idiot... or at least i like to think i'm not. anyway, cool feature. is it really that big a problem? i've towed a couple of times and it wasn't an issue that i recall.
hauling - uhh stiffer suspension. yeah, throwing an f'ing metal bar on the end to dig in to the ground will f up handling.
efficiency - could the ford perhaps have a better fuel tank/pickup design?

yep, f150s are still the best working trucks you can buy, but this whole video was kinda lame.

[stevegula]

yep, f150s are still the best working trucks you can buy, but this whole video was kinda lame.

I think that's the key part. My dad and I both looked at F-150s back in '06 or so when he was looking to get a new truck and I was debating upgrading. We weren't impressed with the passenger headroom or the road noise. While I think it's cool the F-150 can move as much weight as it does, I don't know if that's the best thing to focus on since no one will really use it for that. I know the GMC he ended up with was hands down more enjoyable to be in when driving around (and over its lifetime is getting 18mpg).

[PDenbigh]

While I think it's cool the F-150 can move as much weight as it does, I don't know if that's the best thing to focus on since no one will really use it for that.

Interesting point Steve. I have to think it's ironic though that people want to buy trucks for their car-like features :-).

I guess there are two different types of truck drivers - those that use the truck for a truck, and those that use the truck for transportation. Neither is right or wrong, just different preferences.

I work the heck out of my truck, pulling, loading, off road, nasty roads, jumping railroad tracks, etc. I want a vehicle that will be there for me when I really push it so that's what I look for when shopping.

That's really an interesting perspective that I have been blind to though. I look for the best frame, the toughest gearing, locking rear diff, blah blah, when a lot of shoppers look for the softest ride, creature comforts, etc.

I'm sure Ford knows this, so maybe they've made the choice to focus on the owners that work their trucks?

I wonder where the money is?

hmmm. Good thoughts. Thanks.

[Jeff]

Damn it MM. Huge post lost!!! So I'll just sum it up real quick.

Fuel economy - 09' Ram w/ Hemi (used in their test) 390hp. The largest V8 that Ford offers in the 09' f150 is 310hp. Seems to me to be the classic trade off of hp/fuel eco.

Trailer tow- The Ram was the only other truck to have a trailer sway control system. I have seen the system in action in Chrysler training video and it performed way better then exhibited in these Ford tests. Why could this be? Other then maybe proper loading of the trailer for the Dodge tests I have a theory. The Ford from my understanding does not have an ESP system (Benz electronic nanny that comes on all Chrysler products now). So, I would imagine they might have pushed "ESP off" to equalize the test slightly. However in doing so they limit the aggressiveness of the ESP/TSC systems. On the 300c I bring to the tack sometimes this is made clear, that ESP never goes away, it just cuts down to 40% effectiveness. This is just my guess, but this could be why the Dodge performed poorly.

Ride Quality- I understand that Ford was not making the point of ride quality but of rigidness. However I would like to see how their ride quality stacks up to the others in a more practical test. People buy trucks to haul things...but more often then not the average 1/2 pickup is unloaded and just hauling people down the road. The Ram was the only truck in the test with coil springs on the rear. Coil springs without loosing payload capacity over the previous model. This works out to a truck as capable as the previous generation (actually more) with a FAR superior ride quality. The new Ram ride better then any truck I have ever been in. I would like to see this element tested between the new 09's.

Some Dodge comparo video. All these videos are slanted but the Dodge testing is more traditional. I think its interesting to see different company's takes on the competition. I just wish this had an 09' Ford instead of an 08'.

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[stevegula]

I wonder where the money is?

The money is in selling someone on something they want and not what they need. Or at least it used to be, I think the auto market now dictates that's not the case (drop in SUV/truck sales for econoboxes).

[Jeff]

I wonder where the money is?

The money is in selling someone on something they want and not what they need. Or at least it used to be, I think the auto market now dictates that's not the case (drop in SUV/truck sales for econoboxes).

The credit crunch obviously exacerbates this problem. People buy all kinds of shit they don't need with other people's money. But as soon as it has to be cash out of pocket they go strait for what is a need not the wants.

[Dave]

I'm with Pete on this one as well. It seems to me that for many years, the vast majority of people were willing to pay for a vehicle with marginal fuel economy to haul people around and have a truck bed "just in case" they needed one. I bought my truck to use it as a truck and it rarely gets driven as a people-hauler. That is why I have a car.

The softness of the Tundra astounds me in comparison to the other trucks in this test, but to me it says that Toyota is doing what it does best, catering to 95% of the market, and that is why they sell so much shit. Most of their cars are soul-less lumps of metal that are utilitiarian and offer no enjoyment to their existence aside from minimal maintenance costs and high dependability, but that is what people want. The tundra is no exception, IMO, and they have built something that is comfortable to multiple passengers, CAN haul stuff, and will last a long time, at the sacrifice of being able to put an elephant in the bed. I hate their products, but the business model is almost flawless...

[HAULN-SS]

I was just about to comment on how it seems like toyota built a good car, seems like. Having driven multiple ford and chevy trucks, and a couple dodges, I can say that the ford trucks have the roughest ride of all of them. We did used to have a 250 though, and that damn thing could get stuck in a puddle of spit on the ground. That was about when people in my family switched to Chevy's, and haven't had to get one pulled out yet.