I'm currently considering getting a 2004 to 2008 f-150 for work, where I will be doing a lot of off road driving. It won't be anything extreme like driving through deep mud or anything, but I have to carry several hundred pounds in the bed every day, and have to travel down dirt roads and through fields on a daily basis. My question is, does this generation of f-150 hold up good suspension wise compared to older f-150's? I know that the older f-150's can have suspension and front end problems if they see lots of off road use. The company I work for has had several f-150's in the past and all of them wore out quicker than the 3/4 ton trucks they had..I also know that the 2004 and newer f150's have a different suspension and a tubular frame and i didn't know if that made a difference or not.

 

by "wore out" do you mean ball joints ? 2 or 4 wheel drive ?

 

Sure; you take a highway vehicle and use it for a tractor and its going to break down.

 

4 wheel drive.and yeah like front end components and overall suspension components.

 

all 1/2 ton trucks have smaller ball joints and front end parts compared to the 3/4 ton. I use my 1/2 ton on a 1 mile gravel road every day , then 20 miles of highway. On the weekend, it goes off road, but dirt path, not open rocks. Many farmers use 1/2 ton trucks in the field every day. It cost less to run and maintain a 1/2 ton truck. You will see ball joint and component wear sooner, but the cost to repair is minimal. If a 2006 is better or worse than a 2002 F150, I really cant say.

 

I can say that my opinion is a 2002 F!50 4 x 4 has a much simplier actuator system for the front end than the newer 2004- and on.