Manual Transmision

2006 Ford F 150 Review

Over the last several decades, Fords F-Series truck has gone from farm implement to fashionably hip, bringing home numerous sales records and big profits in the process. With total sales each year approaching 1 million units, its hardly a stretch to call Fords big pickup the single most important model it makes, and when it comes time for a redesign, theres little room for error.




In years past, maintaining the F-150s top sales spot was largely a matter of fending off the Chevrolet/GMC twins from General Motors, but a revitalized Dodge and full-size entries from Nissan and Toyota have turned up the heat considerably. To keep these competitors at bay, Ford gathered its best engineers, cranked up the focus groups and set out to design the most advanced F-Series ever built. The result was the 2004 F-150, a thoroughly modern pickup with a cleaner-burning and more powerful V8, increased passenger and cargo room and broad-shouldered bodywork that looked the part of an all-American pickup.


New features were added throughout the vehicle, many of which were firsts in the segment. All body styles had four doors; extended cabs (SuperCabs in Ford terminology) could be had with a shorter bed for easier fits in tight garages and crew cabs (SuperCrews) provided more passenger room than ever before. This recipe proved quite successful for Ford, and the F-150 carries on this year with minimal changes.

Get inside one of these half-tons and youll barely know youre in a truck thanks to a modern interior design that effectively blends functionality and style. Multiple trim grades allow you to choose work-truck simplicity or luxury carlike pampering. A fully boxed frame not only adds stiffness, it allows for a more precisely tuned suspension and a smoother ride, versus previous-generation F-150s. Whether you use your truck like another trusty tool on the job, or you just need a versatile vehicle that can haul the family and a load of lumber, the F-150 is sure to have what youre looking for.

Body Styles, Trim Levels and Options:

The F-150 is available in three body styles (regular cab, extended cab and crew cab), three bed lengths (5.5-foot, 6.5-foot and 8-foot) and five different trim levels (XL, STX, XLT, FX4 and Lariat). Both regular and extended-cab trucks come standard with reverse-opening rear doors for easier cab access. The base XL is your standard work truck with a vinyl or cloth interior and minimal amenities.

The STX is similarly equipped but adds body-colored bumpers, sportier wheels and a few additional features, such as a split bench seat and an upgraded sound system. The volume leader in the lineup is the midgrade XLT, as it offers the widest array of available options, as well as an upgraded interior, chrome trim, and power locks and windows.

The FX4 is geared toward off-road enthusiasts as it includes underbody skid plates, retuned springs and heavy-duty shocks, as well as 18-inch wheels and an upgraded interior. Top-of-the-line Lariat models cater to buyers looking for an upscale look and feel with interior features like brushed aluminum and wood highlights, leather seats, a trip computer, 18-inch alloy wheels and automatic climate control. The King Ranch package adds unique interior and exterior trim, exclusive leather seating and wood grain interior accents. The Harley-Davidson package includes monochromatic paint, 22-inch alloy wheels, unique trim and black aniline leather seating.

Powertrains and Performance:

There are three engine choices: the standard 4.2-liter V6, a 4.6-liter V8 and an optional 5.4-liter V8. The 4.2-liter V6 makes 202 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque. The 4.6-liter engine provides 231 hp and 293 lb-ft of torque, while the 5.4-liter V8 produces 300 hp and 365 lb-ft of torque. Both V8 engines are matched to four-speed automatic transmissions. The V6 gets a standard five-speed manual. Properly equipped, the F-150 can tow up to 9,900 pounds and carry 3,020-pound payloads.

Safety:

Four-wheel antilock disc brakes are standard across the board, and traction control is optional on 2WD V8 models. Unlike some of its competitors, the F-150 does not offer side airbags or stability control. Frontal-impact testing by the NHTSA resulted in a perfect five-star rating. In frontal-offset crash testing conducted by the IIHS, the F-150 earned a rating of "Good," the highest available, and a "Best Pick" designation.

Interior Design and Special Features:

FX4 and Lariat models with bucket seats use a floor-mounted shifter, while all other configurations have a standard column shifter. An optional overhead console uses interchangeable modules so owners can add whatever features they find most useful. Regular cab models have handy reverse-opening access doors for getting to the storage area behind the seat.

Driving Impressions

The Ford F-150 offers a ride thats smooth and firm, with a minimum of body roll in corners, and a nice, plush ride over cobbled pavement, rutted dirt roads, and freeway slabs. We found this to be true in all the models we drove. Among them: an XLT SuperCab 4WD, a Lariat SuperCab 2WD Styleside with a 6.5-foot bed, an XL with a standard cab, and an FX4 SuperCrew. We were delighted by the ride of the FX4. It seems smoother than most off-road pickups. It offered a firm but comfortable ride around Los Angeles even with no weight in the bed to pre-load the rear suspension.

The power rack-and-pinion steering in the F-150 is exemplary. Its responsive, without hesitation or delay, and without being darty or overly quick or nervous. The truck tracks like a laser beam, turns in quickly, and recovers quickly even with no load in the bed.

The F-150s excellent ride and handling are benefits of a frame thats fully boxed with hydroformed front rails. The seven-crossmember skeleton is stronger, stiffer and heavier than any previous Ford pickup frame. The current frame is nine times more resistant to twisting and 50 percent more resistant to bending than the C-channel frame used up through 2003.

The front suspension is a double-wishbone setup for both 2WD and 4WD models. The rear suspension has outboard shock absorbers to control rear-end motions better in quick maneuvers. The outboard shock position provides better control on washboard surfaces, reducing the tendency to skate around in bumpy corners. The rear leaf springs are three inches wide. Liquid-filled motor mounts and a long list of other measures keep vibration and noise to a bare minimum.

Braking is smooth and responsive. They start slowing the truck just a little way into the pedal travel, and the more you push the pedal, the more acute the braking becomes; the absence of dead space in the pedal travel is a welcome relief from typical truck practice. All F-150s come with four-wheel vented disc brakes and ABS.

We found the big 5.4-liter V8 smooth and quiet. Rated at 300 horsepower and 365 pound-feet of torque, it delivers quick acceleration, although it doesnt seem as responsive as the 5.6-liter V8 in the Nissan Titan. The F-150s 5.4-liter V8 is part of Fords Triton engine series, and features a single overhead camshaft per cylinder bank, three valves per cylinder, and variable valve timing. EPA estimates for a 5.4-liter F-150 with 2WD are 15/19 mpg City/Highway. A flexible-fuel (gasoline/ethanol) version of the 5.4 is also available for the 2006 model year. The high-capacity 4R75E four-speed automatic transmission that comes with the 5.4 is smooth and responsive, downshifting quickly and crisply when you punch it, and shifting almost seamlessly when cruising.

The 4.6-liter Triton V8 also features aluminum overhead-cam heads, but with a more conventional two valves per cylinder. Rated at 231 horsepower and 293 pound-feet of torque, it offers a broad torque band, with 90 percent of its peak torque available at just 2000 rpm for strong towing performance and solid acceleration when hauling heavy loads. The 4.6-liter is also rated 15/19 mpg.

The 4.2-liter V6 is an attractive option for work trucks. Its a nice, smooth engine of the traditional pushrod-overhead-valve kind, and we liked the XL model we drove with it, though performance is sluggish by modern standards. The V6 is rated at 202 horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque. A V6 2WD automatic rates 16/20 mpg; with a five-speed manual transmission, city mileage actually drops to 15 mpg.

The Harley-Davidson edition comes with a suspension biased further toward precision handling. The 5.4-liter V8 comes with a unique exhaust tuned for more hot-rod rumble. The available all-wheel-drive (AWD) system is electronically controlled and continuously monitors throttle position and wheel speeds to determine how much power to shift from the rear wheels to the front.