2004 Ford F-150
Hi, I've been looking for the 2004 F150 discussion board but cannot seem to find it. When I click the consumer discussion board link in the 04 F150 truck info page it links to 2003 Chevy Silverado. Can you please investigate? Thanks,
David
David
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Meanwhile, I'll investigate the bad link.
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I did read that there was a large media test drive of new Ford F-150's recently in Arizona at the Ford proving grounds. There were trucks from the other manufacturers to compare the Ford with.
As I understand it the media cannot release any information till July 1 2003 on their impressions of the test drives.
I remember reading that a reporter/test driver was there from Edmunds.com
The first new pickup which was a red F150 SuperCab Lariat, also contained the 100,000,000th V-8 engine in Ford's history. The 5.4L 3V Triton engine was built at the Essex Engine Plant in Windsor.
Source: Ford Media.
http://media.ford.com/products/press_article_display.cfm?article_- id=15804&vehicle_id=857&make_id=92
what can you get with this diesel???? i here the new 6.0 rocks and is better than the 7.2
The 6.0L is only available on the heavy duty F-series trucks. No word yet on having such an engine on the F-150, originally an aborted 4.5L version of that engine, was to make the F-150, but because of emmissions phase-in, it was aborted. Therefore do not expect the 6.0L on the F-150 anytime soon.
https://web.msslib2.dealerconnection.com/RightSite/getcontent/myf- ile.pdf?DMW_OBJECTID=09000c58803913ac
Ford has one new gas engine and one new diesel, the 6.0L, to finish debugging - and that inevitably takes a couple of years. There's supposed to be a V-6 gas engine in the works for the F-150, presumably a truncated version of the 3-valve gas engine (which is getting very good reviews). That's a lot of money and engineer time tied up right there. How many can you do at once?
moj1 "Bye, Bye Bird?" Aug 2, 2003 10:05pm
The V-6 engine the F-150 might receive, is from the enlarged Duratec engine family 3.0L to a bored out 3.5L V-6, and will feature Dual Overhead Cams, as well as Variable Valve Timing. The 3Valve engines are only for the Triton V8/V10. So far the next engine to receive the 3Valve treatment will be the 4.6L V8. This will allow it to attain higher Horsepower levels, so the 3.5L V6 can be introduced (which will have almost, if not better HP than the current 4.6L).
Pity, it's another year away, and then two years for complete debugging. I don't know if my 1993 Explorer will go that long, but it might; v-6 seems sound at 160K, no body rust worth mentioning. On the other hand, we're reading a lot about how much stiffer the 150 frame has become. Perhaps it WOULD accomodate a diesel, though I haven't read that one if in the works, or even in the plans, at this time.... If a V-6, then an inline 6 would probably fit, and deliver better torque at ordinary speeds. Has Ford had an I-6 in production within the past 10-15 years?
Actually Ford's Triton 4.6L, 5.4L have one upped every other mainstream manufacturer's V8's (I'm mentioning mainstream since I will not compare the techonology of a Mercedes Benz S600 Super luzury sedan, to something that's on a mainstream product like the F-150 and such).
Remember, Toyota doesn't have much of a history with V8 engines. It's not till the introduction of the Ls400 in 90's, that they needed to jump on the wagon. And from that, their advancements led to the 4.7L V8. All those years, the hefty Land Cruiser had to do it's work with a 6 cylinders.
Fords V-8 have received for 5 out of 6 years, Wards Automotive (Best 10 Engines) awards, and the new improvements to the 5.4L will surely make it into this years 10 Best again. Why? (As they and others state) is the ability to produce good power, at low RPM. For years (mainly 90's) OHC and DOHC engines were critisized because their power was achieved mainly by smashing the throttle, and making the tach needle jump high to extract power. But as techonology progressed (and Fords) they were able to prove, this wasn't the case.
Previous argument (At least GM's was) well our engines make more torque... But what good might it be if you must hit 4200-4500 RPM to extra it. For trucks, you need the power download. And Ford V8's have usually made 80% of their torque from 1200-1800 RPM's.
The VCT system on the 5.4L allows it to extract extra power, along a broader band, not to mention it's flexible as well, and will be used in 4V variety, as well as supercharged, in case of the lightning. During this time, we have Toyota's 4.7L which is good, but it's nothing orgasmic considering Ford can extra the same, if not extra power from their 2V 4.6L at that. (Which will receive the 3V treatment as well after the 5.4, so will the 6.8L V-10).
As for the 3.5L, it's an enlarged version of the 3.0L Duratec. And just like the 2.5L, grew into the 3.0L, they weren't prone to have any bugs upon their introduction. It's actually quite a good engine overall, and quite reliable overall. So the 3.5L shouldn't have any bugs once it's introduced. I'm more concerned about the 100,000 other problems a vehicle can have, than the engine itself which might be just constitute 5% of the overall potential of problems.
Ford does have a current I-6, but it's not really Fords... it's the 2.9L I-6 in the. Ford did have plans for an Inline 5 cylinder engine, stemming and possible I-6 stemming from the 2.3L I-4, now in the Mazda6, and Focus. It was a 2.8L and 3.XL, But that has changed. Ford will Focus on just 3-4 engine families.
I-6 have a practical purpose, if it depends on packaging, and in some ways is efficient, and wear much less than typical V engines, but now a days, with all the techonology overkill in vehicles nowadays, such issues aren't much of a concern.
A year to allow for necessary customer debugging, and then I'll take a harder look.
I also read at the blue oval news group that there has been some type of frame problem that stoppped production. Any others hear this??
I've seen that too. It's mentioned in the forums, and on some other Ford-related sites as well. One person had pics of a HUGE field FULL of new F150s which were allegedly being held for repairs.
-Andrew L
MercedesBenz does use 3V's which they use on their 3.2L OHC V6. Although they kept the output pretty much the same, over the previous 3.2L unit, torque output was increased through-out the whole RPM range. Something Variable Valve Timing can do now, much more efficiently. Ford has gone the extra step, and done both of the above mentioned, which is why we are seeing higher overall HP and TQ, in it's similar displacement.
On the opposite extreme, VW/Audi's have 5V's in their 1.8L engines. With the above mentioned engines, Ford succeeds in that it qill require regular grade fuel, whereas VW's/MB require premium.
Next possible question: If Ford used premium fuel VERSION on their new 3V 5.4L's, would they make more power overall? Yes certainly, BUT ONLY if SUCH a version were to be made, and compression would be altered to benefit from premium fuel, where gains in HP and TQ would be attained. (look for 4V to keep using Premium)
I got my wife behind the wheel of an '04 F-150 last weekend. She took it for a drive around a parking lot, couldn't work up the nerve to leave it ... she liked it. She liked the interior, liked the design WAAY better then a Ram, was struck by the quiet within the cab and by the easy steering .... helps to take a test drive, it really does. I think that if the build quality doesn't open a door for the Titan and the 2005/06 Toyota truck, the new F-150 will be fine. The weight is a concern... somewhat. However, the V-10 is going to get the same 3-valve remake as the 5.4 got, and I wonder if the stiffer 150 frame might not accommodate it. In the alternative, I see no reason why a work truck shouldn't have aluminum paneling, or plastic if it come to that: if you take it on a job site, it's gonna get dented, and I don't care WHAT it's made of - dents happen. The longer frame on the Titan will either weigh as much, or flex more: you pays you money and you takes you choice.
Pros:
Air Filter sits on top of engine and can be replaced in seconds.
Grill goes up with the hood making it easy to wash bugs out of the radiator, yet is a seperate piece to keep repair cost reasonable.
Fit and finish at first glance are light years ahead of previous fords and the current crop of domestics.
Cons,
This was supposed to be the top to the line but had no power passenger seat or power sliding rear window.
The fake wood trim looks cheesy IMO. I liked the dash in the XLT, FX4 and even the base model better.
No 20" wheels offered even as an option.
They had 6 trucks to look at in various trim levels with no supercrews expected for two weeks. IMO all of the wheels they offer are ugly. They need to take a hard look at the nice 20" chrome rims dodge offers.
I'll hold off on a test drive until the Titan and Tundra Double Cab are out and then drive them all.
Bob2loud
For me the 2003 F-150 was a bit of stretch in size. The 2004 is taller and seems overall bigger.
Does anyone else think the 2004 are too big?