Edmunds tested a 4 x 2 Supercab and didn't like the seating nor performance much. One editor stated a preference for the 2009 Dodge Ram.

DDL

2009 Ford F-150 Full Test and Video

 

What I like about the new Ram is the interior. Very much improved. Not cheap-like anymore. But ONLY would consider if Dodge offered those major cash incentives they coughed up on the 08's.

 

It's nice to see different opinions from different reporting sources. They didn't really mention build quality or other ratings that make the truck a stand out.

Tim

 

They didn't seem to like it much. Did you all see the 0-60 time of 7.8 sec? This is much better than what I was expecting, but then again the truck they tested was a 4X2. I'd imagine a 4X4 doing it in the low 8's.

 

I din't know for used the 3.15-1 gears to achieve their MPG ratings. That's pretty sneaky. I bet the 3.73's get much worse than listed as noted in the article.

Everyone except Ford knows the F150 needs a new engine.

 

If it has a 6 speed, I bet that 3.73 gears would get better mileage. It could be that 3.55 is a better choice. The 3.15 gears would just make the engine lug. I don't know why they would even choose that ratio. Thats a joke.

Even if it was a 4 speed auto overdrive or a 5 speed, 3.15 is a lousy gear ratio. That would only make sense if it had a 3 speed non overdrive transmission.

The tail lights on the new F150 suck. They look rediculous and more of the lense faces the side than the back. Don't you want more red light aimed to the back?

 

One would think, huh? I'm not a fan of the new tails either, they way they wrap around and also that they are chrome trimmed. You think they could have at least changed them for the FX4, which has NO chrome on it, yet still have dumb looking chrome-rimmed tail lights. What the hell are these designers thinking?

 

Boy, I just LOVE all of the armchair engineers at this site!

I mean...the folks at Ford seem to think that it'll help...and hey...come to think about it...the EPA fuel economy tests seem to believe that, too!

On edit:

 

Well i think that each of the new 1/2 ton trucks are very good. Every publication seems to be coming up with different results. What that tells me is that there is a seat for every *** and personal preference is most likely the deciding factor. Truck trend/ motortrend seem to like the chevy the best. Popular mechanics and pickuptruck.com seem to like the f150 the best. Edmunds and the canadian automotive journalists seem to like the ram the best. The people of Texas just couldn't make up their mind so they gave awards to both ford and dodge. If one truck was truly head and shoulders better than the rest then i don't believe we would be seeing such mixed results. Bottom line, we can all be proud of the truck we chose and we should be thankfull that we don't all like or need the same thing. Would be kind of boring if everyone was driving around in a f150 or ram etc.

 

that's weird they got that low, pickuptrucks.com got 16.8 with a screw 4x4 and 3.73s

 

"...but this truck's Lariat trim includes a shorter 3.55:1 rear end."

Driving habits, fuel, terrain, etc...

 

winter fuel maybe?

 

Your point?

The 2009 Ford F-150's impressive fuel-economy ratings were earned by the 5.4-liter V8 paired with the standard 3.15:1 axle ratio.

 

Mod motors aren't affected by rear end gears as much as everyone claims... in some cases, makes it even better. On the mustang going from 3.55s to 4.30s, i gained mpg around town due to being able to use higher gears for cruising at 50mph, and the engine pulling off much easier from the light. in a heavy truck, this would only be amplified... These aren't the carburator days anymore; the engine is fed just enough gas to counter the load put on it. bigger gears = lesser load; esp when more tranny gears to spread the load around (crazy, don't go there) are involved.

 

Truck trend liked the GM better only because of the 6.2L 403HP motor that they brought to the test. With that engine option, only the 3.42.1 gear is available. The GM 6.2L grossly outpowered the 5.4L in all aspects of the testing. Whereas, the other larger engines (dodge, Toy, Nissan) only slightly outperformed the 5.4L.

Tim