I am a new 04 150 owner. I make my living in technology so I frequent the net and read forums like this often. In general, they are a huge help in that I can talk more intelligently with my dealer when issues come up. So far, that has only been one.

However, what tends to be reported here is often the problems, not as much the pleasures. If you read problem after problem, it is easy to start questioning your purchase.

Over the weekend, I started poking around the net at different forums for different trucks. This was a GREAT thing to do for it is clear that ALL manufacturers have their issues. But what was more interesting was to assess the nature of the problems. I came to the following conclusions:

Chevy: Their problems are all over the place to the point where one forum had to dedicate a separate section to problems and then break that up by component (electracial, brakes, engine ...). There were thousands of post in each section.

Dodge: The post there were all over the map with problems. It was hard to think of a part of the truck that was not raised by someone as an issue.

Nissan: A lot like Dodge in that the problems were all over the board. The scarier thing about that forum was that people were commenting on major components (engine oil consumption, tranny ...).

Toyota (The Tundra is almost a truck): In general, Toyota seemed to do pretty well.

Ford: Mostly the vibration and clutch pack issues. If you pull those two out, most other issues were minor or sporadic.

Finally, I watched the entire Ford "The Truth About Trucks" video.

The net affect of this effort was that I walked away extremely happy with my purchase decision. There is no doubt that Ford is really trying to bring the very best truck to market. The challenge is to stretch from being able to work it's *** off towing and hauling to being a comfortable people mover for family and friends to being a race car for sports enthusiast.

The other challenge is Ford itself. Many people have had historically bad experiences with company products (i.e.. sedans). People believe in Toyota or Nissan because they owned a Maxima or a Corolla and it was a great experience. Ford blew this confidence with many and as such all products are questioned ... even the amazingly engineered 04/05 F150.

I finally came to the conclusion that if Ford could get the same attention to detail, quality, performance and versatility in their entire product line they have in the 150, people's default expectation would not be that the product sucks but that the product is fundamentally sound and issues would be manageable.

Sorry about the babble, the bottom line is I think I got a really good truck and made the very best decision with my purchase. This machine is amazing.

Thought I would share my findings.

 

I think Ford is trying. The new 500 and Freestyle reviewed well and seem to be decent vehicles in their intended markets. I'd like to see them redesign the Ranger as significantly as they did the F-150 but I understand that is at least a few years off.

I never considered buying a new Ford but after seeing the F-150 I am fairly certain there is one in my future. That in itself says a lot for Ford's efforts .

 

When our kids were little, we had to buy the obligatory minivan. Went with a '98 Caravan. Also went thru 2 transmissions, a starter, a cooling fan, and several batteries in 65,000 miles. Got rid of it. Could not stand the suspense of another transmission going out (when would it happen, not if!!)

Bought a '00 Ford Windstar. Went through a rear power slider door actuator and, believe it or not, a transmission by 49,000. It just killed itself while going through an EZpass lane on Easter. No fun getting towed over 200 miles. Ford replaced it with a rebuilt, and it lasted until traded in.

Got my '04 F150, and I'm extremely satisfied. It continues to impress me after almost a year and 12,000 miles. The recent 12" snow here was an absolute BLAST in this truck!!

I would never buy Dodge again, and would never consider a Chevy/GMC. I think Ford is really trying to produce quality products throughout their line. Next truck will definitely be Ford!

 

Excellent post. Thank-you. I will continue to be confounded by those who look at forums as an accurate representation of public opinion OVERALL. There is generally a preponderance of unhappy folks who post in forums as an outlet to thier frustration or search for help.

In general, most of the happy folks are out riding in thier Fords.

 

I'm at a Nissan forum daily due to the fact I have a Titan and let me tell you we have not complained about engine or driveline problems...maybe one or two but truefully there are alot of vibrations and engine post here...just whati notice....if you noticed the people that did complain about engine problems with the titan only have 1 or 2 post...hope you know what a troll is...you might be one

 

I am not sure I know what a troll is in the context you are using it ... but I am sure I have been called worse. I was not trying to put down the Titan and yes, the vibration is a real issue for many 150 owners.

 

9900 Miles on my '04 FX4 without any problems mentioned. Remember Ford sales more F series trucks in a month than Nissan Sales in a year. If Nissan or Toyota sales compareed to Ford or GM. I would think their Quality would be worse than Ford, GM and Dodge. IMO

 

Aubrey3-
Excellent post.

jhromy-
What's the opposite of a troll? Whatever it is, that would describe Aubrey3. His post is intelligent, researched and logically thought-out, devoid of the ignorant statements and emotional rants that identify the typical troll. Trolls leave short messages intended to inflame other readers, not the insightful thoughts put forward by Aubrey3. I think you owe him an apology.

 

Aubrey,

Any comments about the attitudes of the owners from the different forums?? How they feel about the problems that they have had with their trucks? I have spent some time on a Tundra forum and they are very forgiving of the problems. Much different than the attitude seen on most ford forums. Just curious. Don't want to hijack your thread too bad.

Karl

 

I won't speak for Aubrey but I've noticed a fairly similar attitude in how people feel about their vehicles problems. The Titantalk forums have some people fuming about their brakes almost as much as F-150 owners fume about the vibration problems. I've also seen people fairly understanding about the problems and just want them fixed so they can go on enjoying their vehicles.

I've also seen some baiting on each forum by people from other brands pretending to have such and such vehicle and experiencing certain problems noone else has seen.

 

I've been a member here for a little over a year, but I usually just read - rather than writing my own posts.

I really appreciate your excellent research! Saturday I traded in my 2002 SuperCrew on a 2005 model. I hope that I like it as well as my last. I've driven nothing but Ford trucks since 1988, and I've rarely found reason to seriously consider anything else. As of today I don't even have 100 miles on the odometer, but I'm confident that my experience will be similar to what I've had in the past.

Good luck with your new truck, and good luck on this forum - some people can be brutal!


Cheers!

 

Karl,

That is a great question / point. I am not sure I am qualified to answer that but will try. Some of this is tainted with personal experiences and bias.

Toyota: I have owned 5 different Toyota products and they are amazingly well built. You expect them to work and when they don't, it is considered an anomaly. That coupled with a dealer network that is known for working with customers toward resolution makes customers very compliant. As you pointed out, this was reflected in the postings. There appeared very little 'flame' content.

Nissan: I currently own two Nissan products, a 95' Maxima and a 99 Infinity. Both have been very good vehicles with a total of ~225k miles between them. At the risk of crawling back under a bridge (Troll), I characterize the Titan forum as follows: They come across as somewhere between Toyota and Ford. The expectations for quality are very high and failings tolerated. At the same time, they are passionate it is the best built, roughest and toughest truck on the market.

This Forum (Ford) is interesting (I am going out on a limb here in that everyone will have a different perspective) in that there seems to be a fundamental expectation of quality problems. I own a 93' Ranger with ~150k miles on it. Of all the vehicles mentioned above, the Ranger has been the most abused (read hard worked) with the fewest repairs. When ever I tell anyone this they either a) don't believe it or b) view it as some strange anomaly or c) choose to ignore it. To me, this forum reads similar to my experiences with the Ranger in that the 150 is a great truck but every wart is exposed and crucified.

Chevy and Dodge are very similar to Ford in that people are EXTREMELY passionate about the truck but frustrated with trips to the dealer to get things right.

Just my read (from under the bridge).

 

Aubrey3, these are the types of reviews/threads regardless of if I agree with it or not I enjoying reading because it's well thought out and put together etc..... On the other hand, jhromy, I concur with 1956MarkII's comments; If you beg to differ with other's comments then do your self a favor and at least carry out a thorough research and package it to your best ability and post your comments intelligently and convincing instead of throwing out lashing elementary liners. Just my 2cents

 

From your lips to Ford's ears. I added the emphasis, because this is the one area where Ford needs the most improvement. Mistakes happen, and no manufacturer is perfect. Many times, it's HOW the manufacturer handles a problem after it's happened that's critical. Ford's ability to turn a deaf ear to its unhappy customers is disheartening, to say the least.

 

I have friends that own EACH brand! We ALL have had a problem here and there with each product. I have the Ford and each buddy now wish they had went Ford. I am not boasting Ford products but seeing friends unsatisfied with their Dodge Rams, GM 2500 and 1500 and a Nissan Titan makes me PROUD to be a FORD Truck man!

I have owned Ford trucks for years and will always own Ford until the day the good Lord takes me away and if I can take it with me I would!