Hi everybody. I've been reading these forums for a few years and am now a first time poster. I traded up from my 1998 XLT (single cab, 4.2l, 5 speed, 165k miles) to a 2009 FX4 nicely loaded on the 4th of July . I loved my '98, but I also have two kids, and it was definitely not a family vehicle. Here's my review of the truck so far:

The Good
Man, I love this new truck! It's tough to come by an FX4 out there in California that is a supercrew with the 6 and a half foot bed, new or used. I would have loved an Ecoboost, but a newer truck just wasn't in my budget at this point. I have to say that with the 6 speed transmission, the 5.4l feels a lot more peppy than it did with the 4 speed.

The truck has options that I would not have chosen if I were to order a new truck, including navigation, moonroof, and tow package. That having been said, I love those options! A lot of people aren't a fan, but I really like the Sony 700 watt system. The tow mirrors make it much easier to drive that size of a truck. My wife came up with the name Dumbo for the truck because it looks like it has huge ears.

The Bad
I honestly didn't expect the size difference between my old truck and the new one to be too drastic, but it feels like it's huge in comparison! If I pull it in the driveway and get within about 4 inches of the garage door, it will just fit in the driveway (already hit the garage door once). I'm thinking it will be easier to back in on a regular basis so I have the reverse sensing to give me a better idea of how far I am from the door.

Also, nobody posts about how hard it is to wash the damn roof on these things!! I'm 6'1", and even with the step bars I can barely wash the front of the cab!

The Ugly
Since I've been visiting this site for a few years, I knew of the potential for the truck to have the slip yoke issue with the two piece drive shaft. Sure enough, I could tell right away when I started test driving the truck, there was a minor bump when taking off and slowly coming to a stop. The truck is still under warranty, so I decided that shouldn't stop me from purchasing the truck. I'm hoping the Ford dealership doesn't give me too much trouble with the issue. Any advice from those who have gotten this issue fixed on their trucks would be welcome and appreciated.

Overall, I am so happy with the truck! It is better in every way than my '98. My mod list is pretty light. I plan to get a bed liner (sounds like LineX is the preferred choice of most), bed cover (looking at the Retrax Pro), dual exhaust, and tune once the warranty is expired.

As soon as I figure out how to insert pictures (I know there are instructions on here), I'll post post pictures of both trucks.

 

1998 XLT



2009 FX4

 

Sweet looking rig dumbo! Love the silver. I have the 5.5 box and had the bump. I had the rear seal replaced when it started to leak. Since having that work done and having it tuned I have not experienced any bumping or jerking when coming up to a stop.

Those tow mirrors look great on that 6.5 box, looks proportionate.

Enjoy

 

Nice looking truck hope it will treat you well

4 door 6 1/2 ft bed is exacly what i want next time and in silver also nice color

 

Nice truck Dumbo! I am sure it will not disappoint! 6.5' bed is the only way to go IMO!

 

Thanks guys. I absolutely love it so far. I agree with the 6 and a half foot bed. My dad has a 2002 with the shorter bed, and he borrowed my truck all the time when hauling bigger stuff. Amazing how much of a difference that extra foot makes!

My preference would have been Blue Flame, but I do think the silver looks good. It also has the lighter ("stone" I believe) leather, which works out great since we don't get cooled seats for 2009.

I'm not sure on the 20's. They look fine I guess, but I think they will look better with more aggressive tires. It looks like some guys have put on BF Goodrich All Terain T/A's, but I'll have to look at whether or not those will fit (I think the smallest tires for the 20's are 33.4 inches or so) without a level, and what I can do about recalibrating the speedometer/odometer without voiding the warranty. Certain all of that info is on the site, so I'll look through when it is time for tires.

 

Looks gr8
Congrats !!!!!

 

Awesome truck, man! Hope you have plenty of good miles with it--I know you'll enjoy the SuperCrew alot, versus putting groceries or big ticket items in the bed or a regular can pickup.

Be sure to post pics of all yer mods as you do them--we like pics

 

I love the blue color of your 98 XLT, although I bet it was a bitch to get it unstuck from that sand. Looks buried to the axles! Your silver truck looks nice.

I have the same mirrors on my 2010 Lariat Supercrew, I like the added visibility they give.

I'm also adjusting to the feel of the much bigger truck! I moved up from a 2004 Chevy SSR last month and the Lariat feels like a behemoth by comparison. I still look like a dork trying to park it, now I understand why so many of you guys back into parking spaces. It's so much easier!

 

Thanks! Yeah, I loved that 1998. Had a limited slip put in when the rear end gave out, so I was able to take it to the Pismo dunes in college. As you can see I couldn't quite keep up with the big boys. No problem at all on the wet sand, but it took a special touch to keep it going on the soft stuff. Luckily, I was always out there with my buddies (4x4 Ram, 4x4 Centurion F-350/Bronco which was awesome, and 4x4 Suburban), so they would let me drive it as far out as I could and then tow me the rest of the way.

Definitely loving the 2009 so far though! Every morning when I climb in, I'm still shocked about what an upgrade it is. Taking it in on Friday to get the TSB issues taken care of (slip yoke and transmission), and other than that, there are a few minor things that are bugging me, including a squeak in the bed that just started, but I'm sure nothing that can't be fixed.

I'll be looking into installing an OEM backup camera at some point. Definitely not a necessity, but on a truck that size, it sure would help!

 

Good looking truck. How many miles does the new on have on it ?

 

Bought it with 43k miles, so I still have a little bit of time on the powertrain warranty. Hoping not to need it after these first few issues are taken care of.

 

Dumbo - about washing it - open the front door on the side you're washing, and lift your wash mit around on the hood side of the door, so you don't drip on the interior. Wash with your mit from front to back, staying a couple inches away from the side edge of the cab (where your open door is). You can step on the sill plates (my 2011 has black plastic "diamond plate" textured sills, yours may be different) to get the reach you need.

Once you're done, close that door and go on to the next one. This is how I wash the windshield and front of the roof of my Scab.

For the base of the windshield, I use the same technique, only leaning towards the front. I'm only 5'8", and this technique has helped tremendously.

Nice truck, btw!

-John

 

Nice truck man! I'm a fan of the 6.5' bed!

I like that stuck pic. /innocent wave at the camera/ LOL