It looks like they’re getting serious again. That’s what I thought when we were driving the new Ford F-150 on Interstate 94 outside of Detroit earlier this week. Seemingly content in the past to rely on trucks to bolster their bottom line, Ford Motor Company under the leadership of Alan Mulally has returned focus to fuel efficient cars as well as products from their European portfolio.
At the same time, they cannot ignore the fact competition in the light truck market has become exceedingly tough, and as new as the new F-150 was, Toyota, GM, and Dodge were nipping at its sub-two ton heels.
Which brings us to the point of why we are back in Detroit to see the next generation of the best selling truck in America.
What is it?
The Ford F-150 is the best selling truck in America, and what some analysts say accounts for more than half of Ford Motor Company profits. Available in Regular, SuperCab and SuperCrew Cab, and with various bed-lengths and drive combinations, there are over 35 different models available carrying the F-150 badge.
What’s it up against?
The F-150 is up against all the other big “playas” in the field, including Toyota’s Tundra, Chevrolet’s Silverado, Dodge’s freshly redesigned Ram, GMC’s Sierra and Nissan’s Titan. There could also be interest in the Hummer H3T.
Any breakthroughs?
Start with an increase in fuel economy across the board. The F-150 features an average of 8-percent across the entire line, through increased engineering enhancements. According to Ford, the F-150 leads the class by its towing capacity of 11,300 pounds and a hauling capacity of 3030 pounds. An assist in towing comes from the Trailer Sway Control and standard Roll Stability Control to help prevent out of control trailer flop and rollover risks, respectively.
Other breakthroughs come through via small points of interest that add up. Features like the Microsoft Sync, a new navigation system, as well as the cable lock cargo security system and a high-zoot Sony audio system. A boxside step, and a tailgate step help to gain access to the bed, while a stowable bed extender and cargo management system help to keep things in place. By themselves, they might appear to be small, but combined they make for a really usable truck.
How does it look?
Evolutionary instead of revolutionary, the F-150 faces the world with a look that instantly reminds viewers of the ‘150s larger brother, the F250 Super Duty. Incorporating a look that cues the three-bar grille design that Ford’s sisterships are carrying, the F-150 features a new more refined appearance that shows technological advances on the sides and the rear.
Back to that grille appearance: Starting with the XL workhorse, you get the base model with the three-bar grille in basic black. Imagine one of the fleet trucks from your local utility. Step up to the STX and FX4 sport models and again you will get basic black, but this time with body colored surrounds as well.
Order the XLT midrange version, and your grille will glow with bright chrome while the Platinum, Lariat and King Ranch models receive a stylized grille with mesh inserts and unique finishes. This final group makes up what Ford calls the “Image buyers.”
The tailgate features design cues that blend from the taillights, and lend to an aerodynamic improvement according to Ford. We are wondering about that, though because without a tonneau cover, air will likely become trapped in the bed, which in turn causes wind drag.
And inside?
Looking at the high-end Platinum interior, it’s clear that change has come. It’s a revision that leaves it more car-like than ever. With newly sculpted, leather covered driver and front passenger seats in place, comfort on long hauls is better than it has been in a long time. The dashboard reminds you of a near-luxury car, which begs the question “Why drive a truck, anyway?” Wood trim accents the brushed aluminum-like finish of the plastic areas around the dashboard.
The Sony audio system, combined with the new voice-activated navigation takes up the top third of the center stack and controls, all of which is easily reachable from the driver’s seat. The interior’s overall width is wide enough to feel like a stick is needed to poke your companion in the passenger seat. But the thing we noticed when driving on a variety of terrain – interstates, temperature-cracked highways and back roads - was how quiet this interior really is.
Rear seat room is as commodious as the back seat of a Rolls Royce. Well, maybe not, but you can stretch the legs forward from the back seat. Rear seat cushions flip up so that the extra-wide opening of the rear doors can accommodate large items that can’t brave the elements that riding in the bed might otherwise expose them to.
The one curious thing that we noticed about this new F-150 was the lack of a grab handle on the driver’s side inside A-pillar. A grip exists on the passenger side, and would seem obvious on the driver’s side, but after receiving numerous inquiries, Ford tells us that they may revisit this omission.
But does it go?
With three engine choices and so much at stake, it sure better! The 5.4-liter, three-valve Triton V8 is back, delivering 320 horsepower and 390 lb-ft. of torque. This revised edition runs on E85, gasoline, or any blend in between, according to Ford. The 4×2 models have achieved EPA ratings of 14-mpg in the city and 20-mpg on the highway. The 4.6-liter three-valve V8 is new to the F-150 lineup. The same powerplant that’s under the hood of a Mustang GT, it puts out 292-horsepower, and 320 lb-ft. of torque in this application. The EPA checks its mileage in at 15-mpg city and 20-mpg highway. Ford attempts to boost mileage by shutting off the fuel flow under deceleration. When the driver lifts off the accelerator, the system shuts off the fuel flow until pressure is again applied to the go pedal.
A new six-speed automatic transmission comes with both engines, and features a tap down function where when brakes are applied on a downhill grade, the tranny will automatically step down so that forward momentum will be kept. We discovered the usefulness of this feature by towing a 7,500-pound trailer at Ford’s Michigan Proving Grounds. The downshift proved to be vital as we rounded a turn and started uphill climb simulating what a driver might encounter somewhere like Tennessee’s mountains.
Also new this year is a new two-valve 4.6-liter V8, delivering 248-horsepower and 294 lb-ft. of torque, with the same fuel economy ratings (14-mpg city/19-mpg highway) as 2008’s V6 engine. Finally, Ford announced that an EcoBoost gas-turbo engine would debut in 2010.
The F-150 rides on a new, lighter, and stronger boxed frame chassis that is hydroformed, and along the way has seen a 10 percent gain in torsional rigidity, and a weight reduction of nearly 100 pounds. Chassis engineers have outfitted it with short- and long-armed double wishbones and coil-overs in front, and outboard-mounted shocks and six-inch longer leaf springs than those found on the 2008 model in the rear. This, in the Platinum model, along with other refinements has resulted in a truck, that Ford’s press material claims “is just ahead of the Lexus LX450 SUV for interior quietness.” We’re not sure why they’d compare the F-150 to a Lexus that has been out of production for about a decade, but we can tell you that it was pretty damn quiet!
While off-roading in the FX4, we tore through the “Fisher” road course, which was a combination of gravel roads, trails, moguls, hills, dips, pits, potholes, and mud bogs. Switching to four-wheel-drive high range while on the fly showed a truck that had extremely responsive steering and felt confident as it wailed over the bumps and terrain throughout the infield of the Michigan Proving Grounds. It was only in the overly sloppy mud bog that we truly bogged down. After two days of vehicles tearing through the bog, not to mention rains compounding the situation, the mud was three-feet-deep, and had the consistency of pea soup. So it was no wonder that we finally had to be towed out of the slop.
Why you would buy it:
Because Fords are all you have ever driven, you’d never think of driving anything else, and you totally dig company pitchman Toby Keith. That, and the fact that Ford has once again raised the bar for light-duty trucks.
Why you wouldn’t:
Because the drunken stupor you’ve been living under has come to the sobering reality that despite cheapening gas prices, you really aren’t an urban cowboy and don’t need a pick ‘em up truck anyway.
2009 Ford F-150base price range, $21,120 - $44,860.
Words and photos by Mark Elias.
10/17, 12:26 AM
posted by:
A4
The new F-150 looks gorgeous
10/17, 12:49 AM
posted by:
cereal
I’d hate to get hit by that thing.
’nuff said.
10/17, 1:41 AM
posted by:
Jordan
except for the platinum model’s overdose of platinum badging (between the tach and speedo, seriously?), i really like this.
10/17, 7:24 AM
posted by:
bigp
wow if i could afford an truck this is what i would have
10/17, 8:02 AM
posted by:
pavlindrom
this is what makes my car’s safety go down. If all cars were small, we wouldn’t worry this much => happier society => better economy. Trucks destroy our economy. Don’t buy them.
10/17, 8:32 AM
posted by:
11secDailyDiesel
that is one amazing truck! looks MUCH better in these picture than even on the Ford site! AWESOME job ford!
10/17, 9:14 AM
posted by:
mayer_ray_nagin
Awesome AWESOME job as far as trucks go. That mileage still is nothing great, however. My 2002 F150 with the 5.4 triton does better than that now.
10/17, 9:37 AM
posted by:
tyler_is_aero_tt
I don’t even know why the Ram is so respected when the 09 F-150 walks all over the Ram.
10/17, 9:55 AM
posted by:
e46Ne90
gmc or chevy over this. i use to like f150 like 10yrs ago when audi/vw’s architecture design was consider modern. now this design philosophy lacks soul and getting old. gmc or chevy is definitely has more soul and much more emotional design than this box with wheels
10/17, 10:50 AM
posted by:
johnnycanuck
Wow. Listening to Roseanne Cash ‘Burn down this town’ while mud bogging in your new F150! Have we lost you Mark? Are you ever coming back? Do we need to send out a search party to Billy Bob’s anytime soon?
10/17, 10:56 AM
posted by:
mayer_ray_nagin
By the way, anyone who drops the 44k msrp on this is out of his/her mind.
There’ll be 5k on the hood of those from day 1, and after 6 months it’ll be 9k.
10/17, 11:06 AM
posted by:
Fromes
Im a GM guy, but wow, this truck looks great…I’ll take mine has an extended cab in black with the off road package
10/17, 11:06 AM
posted by:
melias
JohnnyRCMP,
hahahaha!
Nah, you haven’t lost me. For what it’s worth, my father was born in West Virginia, so I guess there’s a little hillbilly here, but actually I dig listening to Howard Stern, AND Outlaw Country on Sirius while driving my personal car (a Saab 9-3)
10/17, 11:07 AM
posted by:
urmomspanties
PAVLINDROM…. sounds like a disease gay guys pass on to farm pets they have sex with…
A: Its going to be a very nice truck…
B: If you think trucks ruin the planet, I can’t wait to hear your stupidity & opinion on every sports car thats written about that not only takes premium, spews more toxins in the air AND GETS EVEN WORSE GAS MILEAGE THAN THIS TRUCK!!!!
(but your a faggit so it doesn’t really matter what you think)
C: If you’re write Pav-limp-dick, I can’t wait to see my carpenter neighbor fitting all his tools and equipment in a Prius -or- the guy two blocks over with a 40 acre farm in southern Wisconsin driving a Mini with horse & cow feed strapped to his hood -or- the guy who owns a supply warehouse driving a Yaris with 3 rolls of carpet strapped to his roof & caving it in… KEEP YOUR STUPID OPINIONS TO YOURSELF and get back to playing World of Warcraft looser… You have nothing to say because you’re locked up in your grandmas basement hoping that someday you have contact with the oposite sex…
Next time you walk in your front, remember that everything your home, apartent, condo, dog-house that you live in was MORE THAN LIKELY transported in the vehicles you call “DESTROYING OUR ECONOMY”… Wake up!!! Destroying our economy… WTF are you smoking??? Oh thats right, POLE
10/17, 11:11 AM
posted by:
urmomspanties
If you want everyone to drive small economical vehicles, go live in India… While you’re at it, buy a scooter so I can hit you with one of these badass 2009 F-150’s… I hope that ruins your economy!
10/17, 11:45 AM
posted by:
Z06ified
Uh, no interior pics?
If I were in the market for a pickup, it would be a tough choice between this and the new Ram. Both very nice trucks. It’s amazing how quickly the Silverado has been made obsolete in the market. When it came out 3 years ago it was best in class. Now it seems prehistoric compared to the new F-150 and Ram. And I don’t think GM plans to redo it for a long long time.
10/17, 11:54 AM
posted by:
urmomspanties
LEFT LANE: I dream of owning a Lamborghini LP560, A Ferrari F430, Enzo, F430 Scuderia, Maserati MC12, and my pride & joy a Zonda F…
DOES THIS MAKE ME A DIRTY ITALIAN because I love Italian cars that are usually driven by greasy Italians????
I’m not seeing the connection with cowboys & trucks… Does that mean my plumber, carpenter, Mexican lawn service, local township workers, snow plow-service, motorcycle track riders with trailors, large boat owners, electricians, recreational off-roaders, mulch service operators (I can go on for days) REALLY DEEP DOWN INSIDE ONLY WANT TO BE “COWBOYS”?????
Inside-lane, you guys really need better writing… I love the site but come-on, the majority of these vehicles are actually used for their purpose. The culture in this culture is changing faster than you think with the economy tanking and gas still being higher than it needs to be you won’t see truck sales like they used to be. BUT to say that everyone that drives one wants to be a cowboy is STUPID… YeeHaa!!!
10/17, 12:19 PM
posted by:
muttonchops
While I also disagree with the sentiment that all truck owners are cowboys or that trucks are destroying the economy, I can also voice said opinion using proper spelling and grammar.
Hooray for proof reading!!
10/17, 12:20 PM
posted by:
muttonchops
Also, the platinum edition is decked out with tons of actual brushed aluminum trim in the interior, not just aluminum painted plastic.
10/17, 12:34 PM
posted by:
mayer_ray_nagin
In the same vein as momspanties, I’m certainly no cowboy and don’t pretend to be one, and I mentioned above that I have an F150. Do I utilize its truck capabilities 100% of the time? No way. Maybe 3 or 4 times a month. Not in the mud; just transporting stuff I need. The rest of the time it’s just me in there, but still driving it empty 90+ percent of the time is more economical evironmentally, financially, and as a matter of convenience, than arranging a truck whenever I do need it.
So get off the stereotypes, LLN. Either that, or start using stereotypes against asians, mexicans, whites and blacks and see how well that bullcrap goes over.
10/17, 12:38 PM
posted by:
A4
JORDAN, they have to fill up the area between the tach and the speedo with something otherwise there would be a black space because on the lesser models there is a column shifter and the gears are listed where the Platinum logo is. On the more luxurious models the column shifter moves to the center console like it is more commonly found in the majority of vehicles.
10/17, 2:27 PM
posted by:
murderedout
Nice truck! But I would rather own this, http://www.gmc.com/sierra/denali/index.jsp
10/17, 2:49 PM
posted by:
melias
Whoa, Whoa, Whoa!
It’s just that my country tastes run towards Ray Wylie Hubbard, Robert Earl Keen, and the rest of the non-commercial country acts. (More Austin, TX-based)
Z06ified: Please let us know if you are unable to see the interior photos. Could be a server problem.
I like trucks, too. I rely on all of the above (Plumbers, construction workers, Agricultural, and so on) too, who do an amazing job making this country work. Sorry if it went too far on stereotyping.
It was all just in fun.
Elias
10/17, 4:11 PM
posted by:
Ken S2K
There are many, many people in America that legitimately use - need - trucks for work purposes. Whether they are farmers, carpenters, construction workers or who knows what else, they will be thrilled with this vehicle.
There are also many, many people living in suburbia who buy trucks for status, or buy them so that they can sit high above the road while commuting to their desk job. Those folks are making inefficient transportation choices.
Me? I’m one of those sports car-driving, premium-filling convertible owners that still thinks 20mpg on the highway is unacceptable. (I get 20 in the city and 27 highway.) I’d never be in the market for one of these monsters, especially since I’ve found that my S2000 functions surprisingly well as a truck.
Think I’m kidding? Just the other day I took it to Home Depot and picked up (6) 1×10’s and (6) 1×6’s so that I could do some woodworking. Put the top down, and you’d be surprised what will fit inside… You shoulda seen the face of the guy at Sears when I managed to jam a gas grill into the front seat. The box stuck out several feet above the windshield header… It nearly fell out a few times on the way home, but I managed to hang onto it OK.
10/17, 4:55 PM
posted by:
mayer_ray_nagin
Trust me Ken, with my truck I have carried things that, disassembled almost into their smallest components, you could not get in your S2000. By the way, I am more appalled at the poor mileage you get from an S2000 than I am with the 21mpg I AVERAGE with my truck (and I am not the lightest foot).
Elias, I was aware it was all in fun, but since it’s all in fun please do humor us and use the following stereotypes in upcoming reviews. They’ll also fit well in the “why buy it” and “why not” sections:
….. BMW drivers are all idiot secretaries who got easy credit
….. BMW drivers are all egotistical jerks
….. Volvo drivers are all indecisive, hyper cautious, paronoid morons
….. Audi drviers are wannabee Bimmer jerks
….. Benz’s are fine, if you are a geriatric
….. Corvettes are for mid-life crisis sufferers
….. Hyundai drivers are all poor trailer trash slobs
….. Honda drivers are all self-important obamatards
….. Chrysler drivers prefer Colt45 malt liquor and passing the Courvosier
Not trying to be hypersensitive because I really don’t care too much, but all stereotypes get tiring after a bit. The cowboy/C&W one fits that group. I guarantee you I don’t look like a F150 driver, and the wide variety of tunes I listen to don’t fit the part either. And I live in the heart of Hill Country west of Austin where I have access to the best non-commercial music of a wide variety there is.
10/17, 6:51 PM
posted by:
melias
Mayer_Ray_Nagin
Hold on, I am writing those down!!!
I suspect, though, that the BMW line will no longer apply. I have heard they are not going to be giving credit to anybody!
But really, think about it: REK singing about Ford Trucks, rewriting the words to “the Road goes on forever!”
Me
10/17, 9:28 PM
posted by:
jayjc08
Whoo! That is one wicked paint job! I really like the swing out step in the rear, I would imagine that helps out a lot.
10/18, 8:00 PM
posted by:
urmomspanties
muttonchops
TRUE THAT… sorry folks for my ranting and raving but I do get worked up with idiotic comments and ridiculous statements from 3rd sources like LEFTLANE on this subject…
10/19, 9:36 PM
posted by:
eff1Fifty
Cowboys dont have 24″ Chrome wheels…
10/20, 7:39 AM
posted by:
JohnnyBlazE
Hi, I’m a BMW driver (but not really into BMWs much - only older ones, especially the E30 like mine).
I let people out in front of me, I let people overtake me if I’m going too slow for them etc.
However, if someone rides right up my ass, I DO move over, but I belt it so they gotta work to get ahead. ****ends.
Anyway, If I had it my way I’d have a Ford RS Cosworth :$
10/20, 2:35 PM
posted by:
bradleygt
wow, i am glad someone beat me to the post about stereotype truck buyers!
while I am in the auto sales business, selling Acuras now, used to Chevy, I do drive a ‘07 Silverado Classic. Why, since I don’t need it for work? I like it, I feel safe in it, I feel my son is safer riding in it with me, AND when I do drive to or on the beach (as we can here in NE FL) I know I won’t have any issues. Also of the over dozen vehicles I have owned, almost 80% of them have been SUV’s or Trucks. I just like them better and lest time I checked we do still have the freedom to buy what the F we want to here in America. And I will listen to XM Radio while I do; jamming to the Joint, The Rhyme, Top/Big Tracks and the Boneyard while doing it
10/20, 4:04 PM
posted by:
2002tii
I think Ford needs to get a bad ass like Shooter Jennings to pitch their trucks…and besides, he has a real bitchin’ girlfriend — Drea D’Matteo (Adrianna, the girl that Silvio whacked on the Sopranos) She can sound out the word “Oww” into three syllables!