2004 Ford F-150

Ford is celebrating one hundred years of business this year, and while the prolific Model T made the company's reputation in its first quarter century, the F-150 pickup is their all-time bestseller. Ford built over 16 million Model Ts, but they've sold some 26 million F-Series full-size pickups. Since 1982, the F-150 has been America's top-selling vehicle—period—and Ford is determined to keep its leadership crown. The completely redesigned 2004 F-150 is everything Ford needs to stay on top in the truck game. Stated simply, the F-150 is the best all-around full-sized truck on the market—once again. Ford's engineers had to ensure that the new truck's features were equal to or best in class in every important way. Ford knows truck buyers and, thanks to extensive research and dealer feedback, they've built the F-150 the way serious buyers will want it.

The 2004 F-150 is a lot more rugged-looking than its predecessor, starting with a more massive grille, and enhanced by a dramatically raised beltline

They started by increasing the wheelbase six inches, which spawned a "first-in-class" set of thin rear, opposed-hinge doors on the regular cab model for better storage-space access behind the seats. It also means there's more legroom in SuperCab and four-door SuperCrew models. Ford leads the space race in the bed area as well. Cleverly, they've raised the top edges of each pickup box by 2.3 inches. The result yields more volume and enhances the visual mass of the new truck.


Borrowing liberally from Ford's Tonka show truck, the new F-150 is a lot more rugged-looking than its curvy predecessor. The new look starts with a more massive grille and is enhanced by a dramatically raised beltline, The widest model range in the industry assures Ford's huge volume. Right now, there are five trim levels: the base XL, sporty STX, family-oriented XLT, off-road FX4 and premium Lariat. King Ranch, Harley-Davidson and high-performance, 500-hp supercharged Lightning versions are in the works.


You'd expect Ford would pay close attention to powerplants and you'd be right. The F-150s we drove all had the improved Triton 5.4-liter, 300-bhp SOHC V-8. Interestingly, this engine features new aluminum heads with three-valves per cylinder-two intakes and one exhaust—a setup pioneered by Bugatti over 75 years ago, and currently popular on Mercedes-Benzes. Horsepower is up by 40 hp from last year and there's 365 lb.-ft. of torque available over a wider range. The F-150's thoroughly modern motor offers variable valve timing, and electronic throttle control, along with fuel consumption that's 5-percent better than last year. Base buyers can get a 231-hp, 16-valve, 4.6-liter V-6; these were not available for testing. At this time, only upgraded 4-speed automatics are available. Current Super Duty models have a new 5-speed, so we'd guess that improvement is also under development. In the off-road drills, Ford's electronic, shift-on-the-fly transfer case ensured beau coup grip when needed. It will prove a popular option, we suspect.

Inside, Ford has pulled out all the stops, upgrading F-150 interiors to a level beyond traditional truck expectations and more reminiscent of a top-line Lincoln.

Inside, Ford has pulled out all the stops, upgrading F-150 interiors to a level beyond traditional truck expectations and more reminiscent of a top-line Lincoln. The workhorse SL is still a hose-it-out Spartan job, but both the FX4 and Lariat interiors are reminiscent of those in European sports sedans. They're replete with chrome, bright metal trim on instruments and vents, rich leather and a choice of floor-shifters or column shifts. Interiors vary model-to-model with a choice of seats, consoles trim and colors. There are tons of options like captain's chairs, the "flow-through" console with floor shifter, an overhead rail storage system, and DVD rear seat entertainment, to name a few.