I have a 1999 f 150 and found the windows and some of the details seem to hold together better than the previous OBS gen effort, Is this my imagination or is the 1998 and later cabs a better design quality wise ?


Thanks for the tips.

 

Any help...

 

If Ford or any other automotive manufacturer built less durable vehicles when releasing a new genre when compared to the replaced genre, they'd go out of business.

 

I have an OBS '95 heavy duty and a Super Duty. I have notice the plastic pieces in the super duty are a much more flexible plastic and do not crack as easily where the '95 has brittle plastic that if you tighten the screws too far it breaks the mounting tabs off. Squeeks and rattles, '95 is better. The door design on the super duty is garbage. Rattles over the slightest bumps (cattle guards? Forget it). I have tried the door seal mod no luck, tried new Ford weatherstrips, no luck.

Overall though, I feel like the overall cab design and quality increased between generations especially in plastic quality.

 

Is that what the 6.4 and 6.7 is leading up to?

 

Plastics have been advancing overall, so it's good that Ford is utilizing these improvements - or that added 5 years of age means something.

My problem is sunshine. I have yet to see a plastic stare that stuff in the eye, unaffected. Durability is a huge improvement, but discoloration - not so much.

 

Yeah, UV really ruins plastics both structurally and color fastness. I have always used aerospace 303 with uv blockers, kind of helped but still no match for full exposure.

 

Boeing 303 - one of those miracle chemicals like PB Blaster and brake cleaner.

 

I know the 6.4 is horrible on fuel economy. I haven't heard anything bad about the 6.7. I don't pay attention to them though and try to keep focused on my 7.3.

 

I disagree completely. You probably have worn hinge pins. They don't normally rattle, in fact the whole door is a tank and one of the best doors ever on a truck.

 

I like the '73-'79 doors better than the '99-'16 doors, but I like the '99-'16 doors way better than the '80-'97 (obs) doors.

Unlike the '99-'16 doors that close clamshell on the body, the '73-'79 doors are inlaid, closing into the body. And, the '73-'79 doors are more substantial and aren't as tinny as the '80-'97 doors, which are also inlaid, but the '80-'97 doors do not inspire confidence in the event of a side impact collision.

 

Thanks for the info.

 

This is in interesting topic. While I can't comment on the F150 platform as much, I can between the OBS VS. Super Duty platforms.

This may upset some of the OBS enthusiasts, but as much as I can appreciate them, they do not (to me) have the same overall HD feel as a Super Duty. The OBS feels lighter all around. The most notable thing for me has always been the flex that you feel in the body and frame of an OBS. Yes, I know the famous Ford C channel frame is designed this way and it also carries into the SD. But even that being said, it's just something that I have always noticed a lot more with the OBS trucks and not something I have really picked up on with SD's. Specifically when the suspension is flexing, you can feel the frame and body flexing more whereas the SD just seems a lot heavier and more planted in those types of circumstances. I also am not big on the "dated" interior at all of the OBS compared to the Super Duty either, or, the way they drive. The OBS trucks, overall, don't handle as well IMO.

Another thing that I've noticed on several OBS trucks is the worn steering. Something in the column or the way the steering wheel mounts wears out and eventually makes the wheel itself loose or in some cases even bent. I'm not talking about "loose steering" play but rather a worn part in the column itself. I have seen many OBS steering wheels with a small amount of actual up and down and side to side play- almost giving you the impression they are not fully secured to the column even though they are. You can sort of rock the wheel itself back and forth a little in your hands. I have not ever experienced this before on a SD, even with high mileage.

The door mirrors on an OBS are another thing. The stalks seem to become loose every so often and require attention to be re-tightened, again and again.

The power steering pumps on the OBS trucks (and other Fords of the era) are the loudest I've ever heard even if there is nothing wrong with them. Common Ford trait to an extent, but an observation nonetheless.

Regarding how the interiors hold up between both, it's hard to say as it really depends upon how they were treated. I have noticed the seats were squeaky in some cases with higher mileage OBS trucks though. I think think the dashes in the OBS trucks are more prone to cracking vs the SD. The power door locks and windows seem to hold up well between both generations per my experience. By that I mean the windows roll up and down quickly and all the power locks function well even after many years of hard usage. The A/C systems on both generations have needed work as they get older as well.

I have always liked the OBS trucks, but once you drive a SD, you don't really want to go back if it's a daily driver or work truck. By no means am I degrading the OBS design as I can appreciate them as anyone else can, but those have always been my impressions between the two generations.

Agreed 100%; I thought the same thing. They do feel like tanks- the whole truck does for that matter.

From my experience, the OBS doors begin to sag and or come out of adjustment quicker over time than the SD design.

 

Thanks llllll