I am a long term subscriber to FOUR WHEELER and PETERSENS 4WHEEL&OFFROAD and I just got the February 2004 4wheel&offroad mag In witch thay do the 4x4 of the year compititon well I opend it up only to find to my dismay that thay to such as FOUR WHEELER had also said thay reported that the 5.4 dose not feel like it has 300hp and FOUR WEELER said that it had a lack of power. I read another form over this and one guy on this site said that the elctronic throttle response system makes it feel as though that you are not getting much power but he said he also test drove one and when you stomp the gas that the MPH needle dose not stop climbing im not shure what to belive I was almost shure that the magizines would lavish the new 5.4 becus last year thay tested the old 2v 5.4 and thay said that it moved the F-150 with athority. Maby this is due to the 5500lb Curb weight.

Any suggjestions would be appreciated

 

I have read what you are talking about as well, and I believe that the "sluggish" feeling is from the fact that the new ford truck is much more isolated from the noise of the motor and outside world, plus a ford truck is setting higher than the GM counterparts. I believe that these two items are responsible for what the writers/testers are complaining about. I know that when the trucks were compared head to head the Ford came out on top of all categories when tested here in the St.Louis area. The new Titan was not included in the test, so that would be the one that could be a better deal. When I test drove a new Ford, I test drove it on a stretch of road that I drive every day, and I can tell you that the new 3Valve has a significant amount of additional power than my 2000 with the 2V 5.4. The size is what is making it hard for me to decide whether I want one or not. They seem very large in comparison to what I am driving now. I am not sure what the differences in dimensions are, but they feel much larger to me. They are definately more refined and quiet than what I am driving now, that much I can swear to.

 

I have driven the 04 150 and the most dissapointing thing is the lack of power or response. I presently drive 02 silverado 5300 and it has more punch and responce than the Ford. I doubt that gas mileage will be as good . The chevy is giving 19mpg on road.
I think this is helped by soft tonneau cover and blend syn oi
I hope that Ford will offer better things in other areas where the Chevy is PUNY.
Caddy 53 Chuck

 

Sorry guys but I failed to mention that I do have a 04 150 on order Should be built 01-12-04.
I do have mixed feelings on this purchase after reading thepost and comments (good bad) on this truck. If I had not put $500 deposit I would possiblie cancel the order. The Chevy ain't that bad.
caddy 53 chuck

 

I think that we are just not getting the "power" clues that we're used to. I thought my 04 F150 5.4 SCab XLT was not doing much acceleration until I paid attention to the speedometer.
There is no tire spin or head snap, but I find myself being pressed back into the seat real nicely.
The front and rear do not rise or squat due to the improved suspension. (The stiffer frame allowed the suspension to be designed to do its job like nobody else's because it does not have to deal with body flex.) There is no big increase in engine noise, like I am used to hearing, because the soundproofing (even on the firewall) only passes one note and blocks the others. The clues are different. We're going to have to get used to looking at the gauges-like pilots-to see how fast the speedometer is rising.
You can also judge acceleration by looking at the outside rear view mirror...to see how wide the Chevy drivers' mouth is open when you drive by. He'll hear his doors rattle, you won't.
We're going to have to look at the gauges and the numbers to judge acceleration and power delivery because the clues that we are used to have been engineered out.
jimmyj

 

My Granddads 04 F-150 5.4 has awefull throttle lag, but when it does catch it accelerates faster than any truck I've ever driven. Even our V10 Van doesn't pass cars as fast as his truck. I'm sure that when aftermarket chips come out for it they will be able to get rid of the lag and people will realize just how much power it has.

 

ya know...motor trend gave it truck of the year for a reason....

 

I am still breaking in my 04, but I think the engine is appropriate and the truck is awesome. I drive all the big three models including !/2 tons to 1 ton standards, Tahoes, Suburbs, Ford and Chevy crews, etc. I really love the new F150 in comparison, so far. Anymore power to the back wheels when I first touch the gas, I would have to be in 4wheel drive all winter. The truck feels solid and you can tell it is heavy because it really breaks loose easy on any ice/snow when you start to move out. It may seem big, but it drives like a sports sedan. I'm use to trucks, so, any minor increase in size will not change the manner in how I must drive. You guys will not be sorry you bought the Ford. There are always trade offs between manufacturers, but I am really really happy with the new F150.

 

I recently drove a 2004 FX4 4x4 ,beautiful truck,leather and lots of options, I was very impressed by the stiffness of the body and the extremely quiet cab. I currently own a 99 f150 4x4, and have owned other ford trucks in the past, and I can honestly say this is the nicest one I have driven, however I feel ford could have done alot more,especially in the engine department, the FX4 had a 5.4 3v , rated at 300 horses, my question is where are the horses? they must be in the pasture cause they sure aren"t in the barn. I dont believe that truck has 300 hp, it didnt really pull till about 40 mph,I thought all the torque was down low, no way. Im not knocking FORD, but why is it that ford always leaves us wanting more? they have spent all this money in developing this new truck and left out the most important part---PERFORMANCE!!!!! . Ford is capable of much more, witness the new Gt supercar, car and driver jan 2004 issue,it blows away much more expensive competition. Im not suggesting that grandpa wants his new F150 to loosen his dentures everytime he hits the gas , but if you really want to get your buying public interested and get your loyal buyers excited than give them a little more than a quirky tailgate, heck give me a kick a$% performing engine and you(ford) can keep the tailgate. Just my 2 cents.

 

I think a few of you have it right. The total isolation from the outside enviroment makes the 04 5.4 feel sleepy but is plenty powerful. I pulled a 22 ft pipe trailer last weekend loaded to about 7000lbs and it handled it easily. That is of course why I bought it. If you need neck snapping acceleration the lightning will be out soon.

 

I have had my 04 Lariat Screw now for two months.
Driving a demo should not be the factor on whether or not there are 300 horses under the hood. Now that my truck is pretty well broken in., I've got to tell you, there is a hell of an engine under the hood.
Feels like a 300 horse engine.

 

I own an '04 F-150 XLT 4x4 tow pkg with 2400 miles on it. My business is RV rentals, including 6 travel trailers weighing from 2800 to 8100 lbs. I tow them all regularly. I previously had a 2002 Dodge 2500 SLT 5.9 and a 2003 F-150 5.4. The '04 tows rings around either one. No truck currently on the market tows or rides as well. I'll gladly give up a couple of miles to the gallon to be driving the best truck in the world!!!!

 

Thanks for the reports, sonnyxlt and jimtracker.

 

At first, it appears that there is no response, but after getting used to the throttle, I can now say that if you punch the petal it will MOVE. My old 5.9 V8 magnum ram could not come close to this Ford engine.

 

Sounds like a lot of the lack of acceleration is the throttle response. I suspect since this is drive-by-wire technology and since Ford has a hard time getting any of their software right early on - the throttle experience will improve soon. Another reflash thing like the PSD's of late? The car magazines have pretty much tested this new F-150 in most variations. The conclusion is the new 5.4 is a bit slow off the line - yes sluggish is not an uncommon phrase. Maybe at some point it tows better once it reaches a certain rev point although the new Titan just keeps coming on irregardless of towing contests. I think the biggest problem is the old automatic transmission. Ford has a new 5-speed close to ready to go or at least reported to be close. Until that happens, the Nissan Titans of the world will win the quickest truck contests with what is apparently a very nice five-speed automatic backing up a strong engine.