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After driving a truck with it and another without it I definitely preferred the feel of the truck without it. Yes it makes low speed maneuvering easier, but that was the only benefit IMO. Forced adaptive steering.....
Low speed maneuvering is where the most ratio change is happening, that is the main selling point of it. You say you preferred the steering of the truck without it, what did you not like about the Adaptive steering?
To me it is one of those things that a buyer has to experience for themselves. Some don't think it's worth it, others love it, some feel it changes the steering effort(it shouldn't) and others find no difference in effort.
I have it on my 19, no complaints whatsoever.
I'm not a fan of forced options either, it would be great if everything was a la carte.
My 21 F350 has it, I haven't had much to compare it with. My 19 F150 did not, but that's quite a different truck. Having just done a 3500 mile round trip, delivering a travel trailer from WI to Mesa, AZ, I can say that my truck tracked very smoothly both ways.
Just yesterday I drove my brother-in-law's 2016 Denali 3500. I could really tell the difference in city cornering between the two trucks. I'm glad I got the Adaptive Steering.
Low speed maneuvering is where the most ratio change is happening, that is the main selling point of it. You say you preferred the steering of the truck without it, what did you not like about the Adaptive steering?
In my back-to-back test drives of a '20 with it and without it, I found the truck with it tended to be a bit dead on-center at highway speeds. Based on what I read of how the system works this seems to be by design... That makes sense to me since most drivers have the bad habit of "milking the cow" rather than just letting a vehicle track straight on its own. I am a big car guy and a HPDE instructor, so I may be more sensitive to steering feel than most, but I didn't like that it seemed to numb my steering inputs. If you could have turned it off I would have considered it, but I suspect they don't allow that for the consistency/safety issue of switching between fixed ratio steering (off) and variable ratio steering (on).
I will say it was definitely noticeable around town and at lower speeds - particularly with the wide track front axle of the 450. If I could have had the low speed benefits without the high speed numbness I would have probably opted for it. That being said not having it means one less thing to break, so I guess that's another positive of not having the system.
We have it on our 20 Platinum, and living around the DC area, I greatly appreciate it for maneuvering in and out of tight parking spots. The other place it really shines is it tightens up the steering in Tow/Haul mode which greatly improves steering wheel feel when pulling our travel trailer. I don't notice much difference on calm days, but on windy days it really makes a difference. A lot of people here say it only changes ratio, but you can watch the seesawing on the wheel stop when towing box trailers in heavy wind as you turn on and off tow/haul, so there is something in there that stiffens up the steering. Overall, I like it, but if it wasn't standard, I'm not convinced I would pay for it.
In my back-to-back test drives of a '20 with it and without it, I found the truck with it tended to be a bit dead on-center at highway speeds. Based on what I read of how the system works this seems to be by design... That makes sense to me since most drivers have the bad habit of "milking the cow" rather than just letting a vehicle track straight on its own. I am a big car guy and a HPDE instructor, so I may be more sensitive to steering feel than most, but I didn't like that it seemed to numb my steering inputs. If you could have turned it off I would have considered it, but I suspect they don't allow that for the consistency/safety issue of switching between fixed ratio steering (off) and variable ratio steering (on).
I will say it was definitely noticeable around town and at lower speeds - particularly with the wide track front axle of the 450. If I could have had the low speed benefits without the high speed numbness I would have probably opted for it. That being said not having it means one less thing to break, so I guess that's another positive of not having the system.
Hello from a fellow HPDE instructor and racer. Perhaps it feels different between the larger 450 and the 250. Based on my test drives I chose not not to get it. Anyhow have fun out there and keep the shiny side up!!
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