The Update We've Been Waiting For - Was it Worth the Wait?
Written: Sep 18 '03
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Pros: great new interior, improved handling and ride
Cons: bigger and heavier - why? and why no side airbags? and no five-speed tranny?
The Bottom Line: Ford may have stumbled on their 2004 update to the F-150: limited powertrain choice, still no side airbags, and a body "restyle" borrowed from the F-250. Oops?
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| scmrak's Full Review: 2004 Ford F150 SuperCab 2WD |
You heard it from Coach back in high school. Your golf or tennis pro says it today. You hear the same thing from your kid's martial arts instructor: "You can't reach your full potential without being tested by competition."
A case in point: for twenty-five years, Ford's F-150 has been the undisputed king of the road, outselling every competing light truck on the road. For eighteen of those years, the F-150 outsold every single vehicle on the road, passenger cars and SUVs included. But perhaps Ford became a bit complacent, for - after its 1996 update, the F-150 slowly lost ground to GM's Silverado twins and the Dodge Ram. Updates to those two (1999 for the Silverado, 2002 for the Ram) further encroached on the F-150's lead, but the biggest scare for Dearborn came in 2000, when Toyota morphed its undersized T100 into a true full-sized truck, the Tundra. Combining the nearly legendary reliability of Toyota's truck line with a full-size truck was certain to take a bite out of Ford's sales - and slip they did. Adding more fear and loathing is the promise of another Japanese full-size entry - the Nissan Titan, promised for this model year. Ford couldn't help but hear ever louder footsteps.
Fortunately for the folks at the blue oval, a rebuild from wheels to the tip of the antenna was in the cards for the 2004 model year, and - faced with slipping sales of 2003s - Ford rushed the redesigned F-150 into production. The first models rolled out in mid-summer, and are sitting on showroom floors now. The big question is, "Did the competition bring out the best in the F-150?"
What Was "Wrong" with the F-150?
On the face of it, not a thing was really wrong with the 2003 F-150, a vehicle that came in so many configurations and trims that the only thing they seemed to have in common was a grille shaped like a Cameron Diaz smile. It's that the competition, especially the Tundra, had started doing things better. Ford's 1996 redesign of the line stuck with a clunky dual-leaf spring rear suspension that, while friendly to full loads of cargo, is less kind to passengers' kidneys. Then, too, Ford saddled the 4200-pound truck with a standard 4.2-liter V6 so under-powered (202 hp) that a basic model couldn't outrun its own shadow. And when you come right down to it, eight years is a long time to go without a redesign, even for trucks, vehicles that generally have precious little wiggle room for design.
But change they did: the company boasts that they've touched on every system in the vehicle in an effort to make the 2004 redesign total - and from where I sit, it looks like they have. But again we must ask, "Did they do the job?" Let's look and see...
First, Let's Talk Choices
Truth be told, the F-150 comes in so darned many configurations that it's easier to describe with a set of matrices than it is to list 'em all. But I can't draw a matrix here, so let me break it down this way:
Drive Train: 2WD or 4WD
Trim Levels: Five, from the base XL, STX, XLT, FX4, and Lariat
Cab Configurations: Three: Regular (not available in Lariat trim), SuperCab, and SuperCrew (not available in XL and STX)
Bed Length: Three: 5.5' (not available on regular cab), 6.5' (not available on SuperCrew) and 8' (not available on SuperCrew)
Body Style: Two: Flareside and Styleside; availability dependent on both cab configuration and bed length.
Whew! I think that makes forty-seven different combinations, but I lost count somewhere in the bed lengths.
Those are just the basics - of course Ford offers the truck in eleven different colors and with two different standard engines and two transmissions. You can also purchase special towing packages (including an obstacle-sensing "radar" system for the rear) and a snow-plow package for your 4x4. This vehicle is in no way a purchase for the decision-challenged person! Me, I just took the first truck I happened upon in the dealer's lot, an STX 2WD SuperCab with the standard 4.6L engine and a couple of options (cruise control and the towing package). For those of you keeping track, it was black with a gray (technically, "medium flint") interior.
Looks Count For Something
Face it. A truck is a truck is a truck. From the outside, at least, a pickup is just a naked box on wheels with a bit of covered space where a driver can sit. Except for the badging and taillight shapes, pickups are fairly hard to tell apart in silhouette - though from the front, the grille shape quickly gives 'em away. Still, Ford has managed to apply some cosmetic changes to the previous version, resulting in a model that's distinguishable even to one who's not a Ford enthusiast.
Compared to the previous model, a walkaround will show that Ford has dumped the raked, streamlined shape of the front end that was so reminiscent of early Taurus models. Instead, they've essentially recreated the body style of the F-150's beefier siblings, the F-250 and F-350. Up front the headlights are more squared, and that grinning grille takes a bite out of the leading edge of the hood. In fact, the hood now includes the grille, which may come as a painful surprise for tall owners the first few times they check their crankcase oil. Stroll down the length of the body, and you'll note that all F-150s now have a notched front window like the big guys, and the door handles aren't the old Ford ovals but beefy-looking square pads with wraparound handles. Further back, flares on the rear fenders have a flat strip integrated at their outer edge instead of the smooth curve of last year's F-150. This latter is very noticeable on the flareside, which is pretty much the same idea as Chevy's stepside bed.
Naturally, the tail end has undergone a little change, too - mostly in the shape of the taillights. They're slightly shorter and wider than in the previous design, and the hideous teardrop-shaped lenses on the flareside have been dropped in favor of the same light housings used on the styleside. BTW, while I once called the flareside's taillights the ugliest ever mounted on a pickup truck, that was before I saw the lights on a Tundra "stepside." All tailgates are removable and locking, and I found them surprisingly light for a hunk of metal that large (this may be the "tailgate assist" feature, which no salesman could explain). By the way, the cargo boxes are now two inches deeper than before - the side rails are a whopping 54 inches off the ground.
Now, go back toward the front and open the doors. And keep opening doors. In a definite coup for Ford, every last F-150, regardless of cab configuration or trim level, has four doors. Even a Regular Cab boasts a pair of skinny rearward-opening doors for improved access to the enlarged cubby behind the front seat(s).
Did Ford do the job? Yes to the four doors, no to the body "redesign" (cheaters!)
Notes From the Interior
Ford lavished more attention to the interior of the F-150. With as much landscape as is available there - what, an acre or two? they had plenty of room to play. All basic amenities are present: standard AC, dash-mounted cupholders (with more in the flip-down console for bench seats), a pair of power points (one on the passenger side of the dash), and a surprisingly puny glove compartment. Map pockets are incised into all doors, with integrated cutouts in the front doors for bottle holders. Where Ford seems to have paid the most attention is not in design (although it's certainly changed) but in materials. While lower-end models (like the 2003 STX Sport I drove last month) were once slathered with cheesy-looking plastics, the materials in the 2004 have a more solid look. They feel solid, too; and the model I drove had even better build quality than that 2003 - already good.
Power windows in both the front and rear (for SuperCrew and SuperCab) are standard in XLT, FX4, and Lariat trims but in the XL and STX trims the rear windows are fixed; they don't even tilt out. The cab's rear window can be ordered as a slider in any cab and trim; a powered slider is optional in the top three.
XLT, FX4, and Lariat trims offer a nifty optional "Overhead Rail" system that lets ceiling-mounted storage and A-V goodies move front-to-back (it's unavailable on the XL or my STX). The rails, which include transmission of power for a DVD screen or speaker and climate controls, are finished in brushed aluminum - they're incompatible, however, with the optional power moonroof.
Did Ford do the job? No question about it, yes.
Driving Interface
Oh, yeah: the cab is about an acre in area - large enough that for average-sized me, reaching some controls even in the center of the dashboard was a bit of a stretch. If a potential driver is on the short side, you may wish to spring for the optional power adjustable pedal cluster (standard on Lariat).
All trims and cabs have tilt steering, an instrument panel with speedometer + odometer + fuel / voltmeter / temperature gauges, and manual lumbar support. The breakover point for cushiness appears to be between the STX and the XLT: the upper three trims have a standard tach, power front and rear windows, and cruise control; the two lower trims have optional cruise control.
Climbing into the cab is made a bit easier by a pair of grab handles, though I found them located awkwardly far to the front. Once seated high above the madding crowd in the cab, you'll find that for the most part the instrument panel is well laid out and intuitive. I found the standard bench seat a bit deep, and it could use a little more contouring to the average posterior shape, as it's rather flat. The large steering wheel makes reaching left-hand controls and the ignition a little tough, occluding both wiper and light controls. The sound system controls are high on the dash (keep your eyes on the road, bud!) and seem marginally larger than those of the previous year. Climate control knobs and buttons face directly rearward at the center of the dashboard; potentially a stretch for short-armed drivers. Unless you spring for the pricey captain's chairs and floor-mounted shifter, the column-mounted shifter makes access to the ignition a bit awkward. Buttons for the optional cruise control are on the face of the steering wheel, always a plus in my book.
The white-on-black instrument panel is clear and easy to read; note that Lariat trims have a ritzier black-on-offwhite look. Besides the gauges, there's also a set of idiot lights for all the usual warnings. Lariat drivers will find one of those ultra-cool (and occasionally distracting) information centers with readouts of time, distance, fuel economy, etc., tucked beneath the voltmeter and oil pressure gauge.
Did Ford do the job? Ummm, not really - it's pretty much the same layout and interface as the 2003, with a continuation of reach and access problems, especially for smaller drivers.
Time for the Driving Experience
Ford must've listened to me last time around - they've dumped the underpowered V6 engine that was standard in the last model run. Rumors say it will return next year, but I'll bet it's no longer a wimpy 202 hp. Mind you, they haven't offered a new standard engine, just dropped the little one. Now standard is the 4.6L Triton SOHC V8 that was optional last year, which generates 231 hp and 293 lb-ft of torque. Last year's 5.4L V8 has undergone a major workover, bulking up to 300 hp and 365 lb-ft. Much of the work on this engine - introducing variable valve timing and three valves per cylinder - was intended to boost both power and torque low in the RPM range. Ford claims that the engine delivers over 290 lb-ft of torque at 1000 RPM, just barely above an idle. Comparison of last year's model specs with this year's, though, shows that the 2004s are are about a five inches longer and 300-500 pounds heavier across the board, which tends to dampen my enthusiasm for any increases in power.
Manual transmissions went the way of the V6 engine; no word on whether they'll return. For 2004, Ford bought out a new 4-speed electronic overdrive automatic, the only tranny available. Errr, excuse me, Ford, but how come you haven't been able to come up with a 5-speed? I thought you were working on "innnovation"?
But the proof is in the driving, and to tell the truth, it's bit tough to tell that anything's been updated in some arenas. Acceleration isn't particularly impressive (try comparing it to a similar-sized SUV, like the Chevy Suburban), although it's admittedly better than the sluggish V6. Handling is somewhat improved, though still decidedly truck-like. Although Ford brags that they refined the rear suspension - mostly by mounting the rear shocks outboard of the leaf springs and stiffening the frame rails - the truck still has a jittery ride and lots of side-to-side motion when empty. Ride quality will most certainly increase when some payload is added, however, as is normal for pickups. Steering has been improved by introduction of a power rack-and-pinion system. In a departure from previous steering, the driver maintains a good "road feel" even through the power steering system, and that certainly helps. For a truck this size (minimum length 211", maximum 249"), handling is relatively sprightly - but beware the huge turning radius when it's time for parking.
Handling is better for this vehicle than others I've driven in its class, although I'm waiting to get my hands on a 2004 Tundra and have yet to drive the latest version of the Ram. I'll let you know. Still and all, the ride is certainly an improvement over the punishing, kidney-bashing ride of even ten years ago. Looks like the influx of drugstore cowboys seeking that "cool" pickup truck look has had an upside after all.
Sound-wise, this F150 is about the same as last year's: minor engine noise and low to moderate wind and road noise.
Did Ford do the job? A qualified "maybe": they dumped the wimpy V6 and improved the suspension and steering - but I'm unvconvinced that the improvement is enough to leapfrog the competition. I also miss manual trannies.
Safety
All F-150s come with two dual-stage front airbags (a passenger-side deactivation switch is provided for Regular Cabs). Front seatbelts, which are integrated into the body of the seat, are equipped with pretensioners and an energy management system; all outboard seating positions have three-point harnesses as does the rear center position in SuperCrews and SuperCabs.
LATCH points are standard.
All configurations have standard four-wheel disc brakes with ABS, and side-intrusion door beams.
Side airbags are not available even as an option, neither is a side-curtain system. This is troubling, since Ford certainly knows how to install them in their other vehicles, including the Excursion and an optional canopy system offered in theExpedition. Go figure.
Did Ford do the job? No. Where are the side airbags, the traction control?
Line at the Bottom
To sum up, Ford has indeed touched on every major system in the new F-150: frame, suspension, transmission, engine (they cheated a bit there), and interior and exterior design. Where they've done best is in the cosmetics, especially the amount of attention lavished on the interior and in the across-the-board inclusion of four doors on the cab. They were smart to drop the V6, but (I think) dumb to drop the manual tranny; the updated automatic transmission may be an improvement but it's not particularly noticeable.
A couple of points stand out in my overview of the model update: first, how come Ford can't seem to come up with a broader range of powertrain options? Only two engines and one transmission is about what they offer in their bottom-of-the-line compacts. And second, why do they steadfastly refuse to even offer optional side airbags or a canopy system? we know thay have one from their SUVs.
It's my feeling that Ford just didn't quite leap far enough forward with the update. Sure, they've stayed ahead of or even with the GMC and Dodge offerings, but those footsteps with a Japanese accent are sounding just as loud as before. I'm gonna say that the improvement wasn't enough to bring the F-150 up to five stars. I'll let you know for sure after I've finished testing a new Tundra, but right now, I'm not overly impressed by the model change. At the moment 2003s are selling at $5000-$7000 discounts, and you'll get a darned good truck for that price. Hurry, though, 'cause the selections are dwindling.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 27535
Condition: New
Model Year: 2003
Model and Options: STX 2WD SuperCrew, Auto 4.6L V8
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