I'm contemplating / seeking advise on the Lariat package or King Ranch package, with a kid on the way I'm concerned that spills will happen (who am I kidding they will) and the effects of a spill on the new style KR leather. I'm almost sold now after looking at the black leather/vinyl of the Lariat package over the KR leather for durability and overall ascetics. Money isn't a issue as much as what the back seat will look like in 24 or 36 months with a small child in it the odds of my wife driving the truck after 24 months is very high which means even more abuse. Any thoughts or ideas from the KR and non KR owners out there? Any input on car seats in the 09 F-150s?

I've been checking this seat out, any opinions on which seat works well in a truck?

Safety 1st air seat

Thanks in advance.

 

As an owner of '09 KR and a previous owner of '07 KR, my advice get the Lariat. The KR leather is not protected. The Lariat leather is protected with a layer of plastic making cleaning a breeze and it's considerably more resistant to spills. KR leather is beautiful and softer but in your case, it will look horrible in short time.

 

Agreed . Given your situation I think the leather in a Lariat will hold up much better than that of a KR in the long run. Good luck!

 

Lariat. If I'm not mistaken, Ford says that the rear seating surfaces in any leather-equipped models isn't leather at all, but in fact, vinyl.

Vinyl cleans nicely compared to leather.

 

KR leather cleans up very nicely though however. I realize the KR leather has changed, but if the new stuff is anything at all like Castano I wouldn't worry about it holding up.

 

I had an 06 KR and I will tell you (as you know) the KR leather is awesome. And it's even better leather in the 09's! It just takes a little more effort to keep it nice and clean. If you prefer the KR, by all means get it. You can always get a rear seat cover for added protection.

 

From what I have read, all "leather" seats in the Front of the F150 are Leather/Vinyl combination. In the FX4 and below, all seats in the back are vinyl (the fx4 having the "premium vinyl"). The back seats in the Lariat and above are premium vinyl/leather combination.

And I am having a little girl at the end of October and I got the black leather in hopes of it holding up.

J

 

As a past owner of a 2001 KR and a current owner of a 2005 KR, the leather truly is a labor of love... It is, however, unforgiving. A milk/spill or - even worse - vomit or similar would be pretty devastating on the aniline leather found in both the older (2001-2008 KR) and the newer (2009-2010 KR) as both are uncoated and will soak up the problem. Heck, a heavy rain will leave very light spotting on the leather until the next conditioning.

As was mentioned, the 2001-2008 featured the Castano leather interior. Ford had plenty of problems with this interior but, my personal opinion is that it was due to owner abuse and poor warranty discipline on the dealership level (pull up ebay and look at some of the old Castano interiors -- there are some SERIOUSLY abused interiors). The new KR leather (called Chaparral) will be similarly unforgiving but, the jury is still out on how it'll hold up versus that of the Castano.

That said, when I traded my 2001 in on my 2005, the leather looked just about as good as it did on the day that I rolled it off of the showroom floor. My 2005 isn't in quite as good shape as it was on day one but, it's not bad (btw, the leather thickness and feel dramatically changed from the 2001-2003 to the 2005-2008 --- trust me).

My advice -- if you're willing to utilize a seat cover or something of that nature around the kiddos - go with the KR. It's really a remarkable interior. If you're not willing to keep up with the leather on about a monthly basis (minimum) with a cleaning/conditioning regime plus, your kids are holy terrors on an interior, I'd avoid it at all costs.... this from a guy that's been sitting on KR leather now for about 9 years and currently has a 2-year old (that doesn't ride in daddy's truck more than 6 times per month (just to be totally honest)).

 

Actually, that's true on all of them except for the KR. The KR package brings leather all the way around -- including the backs of the front seats, steering wheel, console cover, etc...

 

I have a 2 year old, my 08 was a king ranch. I personally loved the interior, but wasn't comfortable having my little guy in there, milk and vom do not mix with castano. Since I upgraded to the 09 FX4 (with luxury package leather), my son doesn't like to ride in any vehicle except "dada's truck." I don't worry about the interior on this truck like I did on the KR. I also fish, owning the KR leather and hoping in a truck sweaty, salty, and/or full of rain never felt good and wasn't easy to clean up. The KR is awesome to smell and look at, but not kid/fisherman friendly in my opinion. Other thing to keep in mind, mom might not like you outside treating your leather for hours at a time, not to mention, you might not want to spend as much time with your truck once your little one comes... I know I don't, kids are fun!

 

there's seat proctectors you can buy that sit under the car seat if your are worried, just buy it and it should catch most spills that might occur

 

If you read any child seat safety information and warranties, it will tell you NOT to put ANYTHING between the car seats and the seat itself. From what I read there have been too many issues with this and the car seat manufacturers will not hold to warranty if you "modify" the supposed initial conditions of the car seat/seat combo. Now, if someone could make a baby seat protector that went around the car seat and didnt interfere with it even touching the seat, then I think that would probably not void warranties/give you concern over your childs car seat not working properly during a crash.

 

Ditto - I had read in the OM that all but the KR leather has the protective coating...have you considered a Platinum? It's in the same lux catagory as the KR and has the protective cover on the seat....you can get the black/Sienna brown interior too! I'd definitely go with the darker interior...my '05 Lariat had the tan leather...dirt will show on the lighter colors. Good luck and the F-150 Supercrew should make an excellent SUV/Child hauler - with the convenience of a bed for your Home Depot runs and occaisional hauling I've always been curious why more families don't go with the Supercrew vs the station wagon type SUV (Surburban, Expy, etc.) The truck with a bed is just so much more usable....

 

Don't let you child eat in your truck.....If he/she ends up being spilt up or vomit friendly go with a seat cover. If you want a KR get one, then take the appropriate measures to make sure that your child is not jepordizing the leather.

 

My '04 Lariat had a combo of leather and vinyl seating for rear seat in Screw. I recall vividly, because the two surfaces cleaned up differently. The vinly really shined up awesome, the leather oiled up or whatever with the conditioner, but never looked as shiny as the vinyl (which was the majority of the rear seat, only 6 small sections were leather if I recall correctly (the butt and back parts of the 3 seating areas).

I know nothing about the KR other than I dislike the KR leather color and look very much, doesn't say "luxury" to me, more like "utility". Smells nice, though. I can tell you, the blac/sienna brown interior of the PLAT is amazing! I have yet to have any reason to clean the interior yet though (only had her about 4 months and interior stays perfect) so not sure how she'll clean up, especially re: the rear seat as would be a concern for you in your choice. Perhaps someone else could tell you how the rear seats clean up/materials.

Agreed, although I also hate the look of bed caps on pickups. When I see those, that's when I actually think, "Why didn't they buy an Expedition/Explorer?" Just doesn't look like a pickup with those bed caps, especially those really ugly ones with the extra bump up high on the front, or rear sometimes too which perhaps is even worse, or with the clearance lights all over them. Eh, just my opinion. And yeah, a former friend owned an F-150 '04 with the tan interior, and it was impossible to keep looking clean.