I agree. It also helped with the crash test ratings....death rates were cut in half over the previous generation.

 

FYI the platinum series will be replacing the Lincoln Mark LT "truck" line...

 

You aren't the only customer. In fact you aren't one. The higher sides are good for many people, i.e. me. They allow for a tonneau cover to be used on the truck and at the same time load taller items. They also allow for more space in the bed overall. It really isn't bad at all, and with the steps it will be perfect.

 

I agree with Rambo. I love the taller bed sides. I have a tonneau cover as well, and it allows me to fit items a couple inches taller and still keep them dry. It has come in handy on more than one occasion.

 

If they don't make a truck I like the chances are slim I will be one either.

 

I'll throw my support behind this as well. I love the taller sides on my '04, a few weeks back I bought a new table saw and it slid right under the cover with no problem. Lock the tailgate and I could run some other errands and no one knew it was under there. I had an '02 a couple years back as a loaner from the dealer when mine was getting repaired after a minor accident and I just didn't like it, on any level. No offense to the guys with the previous generation but I just felt like it was too small for me. The interior felt cramped and the box sides were just too short. I didn't feel like I was in a 4x4. When I got my '04 back it felt like a truck should, tall and roomy.

 

I'm 6'5", a "serious" truck user and I think the extra height sucks.

One might argue that people running tonneau covers aren't "serious" truck users. You can't load and haul anything with a cover in place that you can't haul in an old Ranchero or El Camino.

The extra 2" in height and 6" in length gain you nothing unless you haul something like gravel or mulch year round.

With my height, I can still load and unload some things over the side with a little difficulty. It just makes for a bunch of nasty scratches that I have to buff out when my shorter buddies are trying to do the same thing.

Ever tried strapping an ATV to the tiedowns while standing in the bed with it loaded because you can't reach over the sides?

 

I have a soft tonneau...I can put anything in mine you can in yours with a 15 second roll-up of the tonneau. My "serious" truck use consists of towing my 27' travel trailer. I haul quite a bit of camping gear, concealed under my tonneau, when on a trip. That extra bit of height comes in really handy for me.

 

Dittoes.

That's fine, but it is 2007, not 1987. You shouldn't have to compromise a truck's ability just because some folks think it isn't user friendly.

 

What does the 2007 not 1987 have to do with anything?



Following that logic, they may as well do away with the truck bed and make it a van.



You can also flip that and say it should be user friendly in lieu of people wanting an extra two inches to squeeze a table saw under a tonneau cover. I would imagine there are a lot more people trying to load over the sides day in and day out than there are with the cover scenario.

That's what they make SUV's for.

 

It was explained to me like this...

Ford engineers do this thing where they, like, talk to people that buy their trucks, and based on what they say, they add features to their trucks.

Whazzit called again?

Market research?

Some people don't like the deeper bed, but you can be sure that a lot more people like it. They just don't feel obligated to come onto a message board and continually tell people how much they like their truck. Lastly, most people load from the rear with the tailgate down; and on the new truck there will be side steps as well as rear steps. Problem solved.

 

Quite the company Kool Aid drinker, aren't you?

Ford engineers do not do "market research".

I am in the industry and do design work on this stuff for a living. If a lot of the internet experts such as yourself knew half of what you were talking about, you might be dangerous.

 

talk about a kool-aid drinker. Most companies DO market research. What company you work for? gm? That I could understand. I love the higher sides on my truck. I do believe most here do. You don't, and that is fine. Your shorter friends would scratch any truck trying to go over the side. Short is short dude.

 

Engineer's don't do market research...they engineer. They leave the market research to the market research group. I'm betting 99.9% of the folks in that group ain't no stinkin engineer.

Not everyone likes the taller sides...there has been several complaints on this forum. I like them, you like them...that's fine. But if I were lifting items over the sides of my truck regularly, I could see where it would be a hassle. I don't as most everything I load goes in the back with the tailgate down.

Now-a-days, it's all about numbers to sell trucks, and if your bed has more volume, you can say you can hold the most (in volume). That gets the public's attention and it may sell a few more trucks. That's what it is all about folks.

 

taller sides = nice

older body style = well, I honestly never would have thought about buying an F-150 in a million years until the 04's came out, the old ones are just ...umm... not cool looking?