The dealership that I pass every day on my way to work finally got a 2004 F-150 FX4 SuperCab in, which they parked out front for all to see.

The "salesman" told me that they had received about half-a-dozen over the weekend and that they all sold except for this one, "probably 'cause it's red!" I didn't tell him that I knew their inventory and that's the only one they're currently scheduled to recieve. However, I did tell him that I drove a red F-150 and pointed it out to him. He didn't say much then, just started talking about features on the new truck. I wish they'd just keep their mouths shut sometimes! He also said they didn't have any 2004 SuperDuties in and I'd just looked at them in the storage lot next door. So, starting out like this probably didn't help matters much.

Anyway, I have to admit that overall I was kind of disappointed in the truck. I like the overall styling, though the cab looks a little short, heighth-wise, because of the higher beltline of the deeper bed.

The interior looked very plain to me and just seemed cheap. It photographs well, but in person it just didn't seem as nice as the pictures I've seen so far. A lot of this probably came from the seats which had the grey fabric and are what I was planning on ordering, but definitely won't be now. They look to me like they're made from polyester.

I was expecting the gauges to look more like the nice ones in the Expeditions, but they looked like they had cheap, plastic "chromed" surrounds rather than metal. The surrounds seemed a bit too heavy and thick for the size of the gauges as well.

The interior door panels looked really bad to me. They just seemed to be made of very low-quality materials and just didn't look very coordinated. The chromed handle for opening the door sure felt and looked like plastic to me. There are also no lighted markers or even just reflectors in the doors.

I, too, noticed the plastic gas filler door and didn't think it looked particularly robust. Time will tell. I also really disliked the third brakelight/bedlight on the back of the cab. It's whitish looking plastic rather than totally clear or red and really clashed and stood out harshly up there, especially in contrast with the deeply tinted windows.

The rear seatback is fixed as far as I could tell and it seemed like there would be some useable storage behind it if it would fold forward a bit. The seatbottom folds up against the back to get out of the way, but there's no tray or anything underneath, just the contours of the floorpan. This truck had the Audiophile system so the subwoofer was there which has a nice flat top that runs all the way across the 60% side of the split. If it had a fold-out tray that extended it forward, it would give you a nice, large, flat cargo area back there. Oh well.

I didn't drive the truck as I'm interested in a SuperCrew, but I guess maybe I was expecting a bit too much. I'm now thinking that I may want to go with a Lariat as opposed to the FX4. I'll have to see.

I do know that a lot of the changes to the trucks are in the handling and powertrain, areas that aren't quite so visible, but can be much more important, so I'll reserve judgement until I see a few more and get to drive the SuperCrew as well.

I have read so much about how the trucks cost more to build and have much nicer interiors, but I just didn't see it. It seemed like everywhere I looked I saw things that lead me to think 'cost reduction item' or 'no one will miss that, let's eliminate it.'

Please don't misunderstand, I do like the trucks and don't want this to sound totally negative. I was just expecting to have a, "Wow! This is AWESOME!" kind of reaction and ended up with more of a, "Hmm, this is okay" kind of thing.

I really wanted a bright yellow FX4, but I'm thinking that a more traditionally colored Lariat might appeal to me more. I'm sure glad that I waited to see the real thing before making a decision, though. Who knows, I may still opt to move up to the SuperDuty as well.

-YMMV-

 

Why the hell would you want those things??

 

I looked at a very similar Red FX4 Supercab... and I loved it! You might have seen on another post, that's what put me over the edge! I ordered on the next day. I also saw two supercab Lariats (both 4X4) and I liked the FX4 better. Now, if I was older and uh... more sophisicated, I would probably dig the Lariat, but I'm just 24 and want a sportier truck.


I'M IN LOOOOOOOOVE!!!!

 

Well, for one thing my current '97 F-150 XLT SuperCab has them. They make the vehicle safer at night by being more visible to other drivers (yes, only when you're stopped with the door open) and they light up the ground around the truck making it easier to enter/exit. I use my truck out in the boonies a significant part of the time and the extra light is really handy.

Other reasons? Well, the FX4 is a more upscale truck than my XLT and it apparently has fewer "luxury" features. Also, take a look at the competition, they've still got 'em!


On another note-

Another dealership called yesterday afternoon as they had just received an XLT SuperCab. I went in and looked at that one and took a closer look at a few things, like the interior door handles on the front doors. They are plastic and you can see the parting lines clearly from the mold halves. They'll probably be durable, but they just don't look as good as real metal handles would. I know that most of my impressions came from small details, but it's the little finishing touches that are the final quality indicator to me and it seems like a lot of corners have been cut on these new, more expensive trucks.

Again, I do like them and I'm sure that they'll continue to grow on me. Ford's gone a long way in making a great truck, it's just a shame that they seem to have stopped a few feet short of the mark, IMHO.