Hi everyone, this is my first post here. I've never owned a Ford and have started to look at F150's. I've gone on a few test rides, and the ones I drive off the lot see to not ride well. Lots of shake. The dealer says, as well as my gut, that the tires just got flat spots and the trucks just need to be driven a while to smoothen out but I feel funny buying a shaky truck hoping that it goes away after a while. Are the Ford F150's mostly smooth riding on the highway? I know you'll read about vibration issues with all makes but hows the 2014 Fords looking for everyone? Seems to be quite a few on the roads. I want a nice smooth driving truck on the highway...it can drive like a truck but not shake and vibrate. Have others bought trucks that were shaky on the highway when off the dealer lot but had them smooth right out? The trucks I drove had GY SRA tires. Chevy and GMC are having widespread vibration issues in their 2014 trucks so I don't want anything to do with widespread issues. Just looking for opinions and advice.

 

Have a 2013 FX4, it rode fine when it had the GY's on it. Changed out for AT3's at 1500 miles, still super smooth. FWIW the FX4 SC 4x4 rides like a cadilac, almost too smooth suspension. I assume it is soft for off road articulation.
Have the dealer put on fresh tires as part for the deal. If it is still shaky then there is something bigger going on.

 

To the OP, welcome to FTE!

Is there another Ford dealer close to your location? If so, I'd drive one of theirs ans see if you have similar issues and if so, will the sales person have the same response.

I have 42K on my 2011, still rolling on OE tires and still smooth as silk.

 

Thankyou for the welcome. I think I'm just a nervous potential new buyer! I did drive another truck at a different dealer and it felt the same shake / wobble on the HW. MY wife and I agreed that it seemed to be getting better by the time we got back to the dealer. I just want a smooth riding truck, and would feel better if it drove really nice right off the lot. Both plaves say they get people asking the question a lot and that they always smooth out after a few hundred miles. Maybe flat spots on the tires from sitting? I just want to avoid buying something with a potential problem!

 

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tirete....jsp?techid=42

Some good info here.

 

Tires that sit for more than a few days will need some heat as the plys can take some shape before they smooth out. It's not uncommon, but typically it'll be gone in 5-10 miles at most.

My '13 rides like a dream 98% of the time. It gets a little unsettled, when unloaded, over choppy pavement, but it glides smoothly on the highway. The Mrs and I took it on a trip from VA to Maine and back in August. 1700 miles in 10 days and it was the best trip we've had to date (we do this trip every summer for vacation).

 

We went through that here. The salesman gave us his truck to try, I noticed a difference. Even the seats seemed a little softer, everything was broken in.

 

The Good Year SRA's are a soft tire, they should ride nice on the highway and city. I never had a shake or vibration, but my truck rarely sits for a whole day.

 

We had the exact same issue as your describing and actually had the service manager come out on a test drive. It got better and better as we kept driving. Come to find out the Truck sat for a ~3 months and once we drove it for 15 minutes or so, all was good. Drove it home ~5 1/2 hours and it was so silky smooth on the highway and no problems since with the vibration. Had to be flat spotted tires in our case.

 

Are you looking at baseline models or the upper end models with lots of insulation and sound dampening material?
I have a 2013 with ecoboost and the cab is as tight as the day I bought it. Rides like a luxury car and is quiet. So quiet in fact that when your sitting at a light idling, if your don't look at the tech, can hardly tell that it's running. Is what you're describing a vibration or a shake? And does it appear at different speeds or just highway.
Welcome to the forum BTW.

 

mine rides like a dream even with low pro 22's.

 

Howdy,
I purchased my 2013 Ford F150 Screw in December of 2013. It was delivered to the dealer in June of 2013. When I test drove the truck it had 3.9 miles. Meaning it sat for a looong time. I drove it for a few weeks and returned to the dealer. It felt like driving over a washboard. It had the GY SRA tires. The dealer replaced the tires and the truck has been smooth ever since.

My A/C is a whole other issue. The A/C never cools the cab when it's 90 degrees outside. Going back for my third A/C service appointment.

Good luck.

 

Did they put new GY SRA tires back on or did they switch you? I ended up buying a 2014 XLT that had been on the lot for a month or more. Great truck, and smoothened out a bit during the test drive but there's still something there that feels like tire wobble at highway speeds. I only have 240 miles on the truck, and this am it seemed a bit better. Ford wants me to wait until 750 miles before they'll road force balance the tires. Hopefully it wont need it after a few more miles. I dont think those GY tires are really anything to brag about but hopefully them smooth out. I'd hate to fork up money for new tires this early in the game. However, so far I REALLY like this truck!

 

Yes they did put different GY SRA's back on my truck.

 

Car and Driver tested a Ford super crew a year or so back and noted it was "floppy". They were speaking of both the ride and the doors, which "flop" when you close them. Coming from a 2006 Tundra double cab into a 2012 157" WB Super Crew, I can't say that I disagree on either one. The 145's may be more connected as far as ride goes. Bad ride....by no means.
My truck has the white letter Michelin's that apparently have tread compound as hard as a rock, which may contribute.