I presently own a 2001Kr. I love my kr but its time to upgrade!I am ready to take the 2005 step. I would like opinions on ordering the optional tires, audophile sliding rear window, reverse sensing and 3.73 limited slip. Does anyone know when sirius will be avaiable as an option? I also just received my monthly consumers on autos/trucks and 2005 f150 is predicated to have poor reliaibilty . Whats that all about? Its a problem in the drivetrain on 2004How is everyones 05 doing?

 

My opinion only - your 2001 KR is a better performing / more reliable truck than the 2005 KR. Granted Ford makes the best trucks available, the new King Ranch looks fantastic but needs a full model year before I would consider upgrading. The "bugs" need to be discovered (owner feedback) and adjustments or modifications incorporated by Ford.

As I said - my opinion only. Current 2005 KR owners will surely post their assessments of the truck and "from the horse's mouth" applies more to your question.

It sure is a fine looking vehicle.

Regards.

 

The full model year to work out the bugs was 2004... granted that they didn't make a 2004 KR, the truck, the frame, the motor, the everything is the same; minus the interior perks.

I have very very little to gripe about on my 05'. The ride quality is light years ahead of the my late 01' and the overall feel of the truck is on a much different level. The ammenities that they've put into the 05' really set it apart from the rest in my opinion.

I loved my 01' (absolutely loved it) but, it doesn't hold a match to the 05' in my honest opinon...

As for Sirius, who knows? Ford has been tinkering with this for nearly a year now and we still haven't seen it. Heck, they only started putting the MP3 option into the trucks recently with audiophile (mine's an early build and doesn't have mp3 although I have audiophile).

Opinions on the options you asked about:

Sirius: see above

Reverse Sensing: A must have in my opinion. The tailgate on the new body style is very tall and thus, I found myself guessing how much room I had back there when I rented several 2004's (for work). The reverse sensing puts all of that to rest. Again, in my opinion, a must have.

Optional Tires: Just me, but I didn't see a necessity in my case. Most all of my miles are highway and the less I spend on rubber, the better in my opinion.

Sliding Rear Window: Another must. I added one to my 2001 and knew I had to have one on this truck. As you know on your 01, there's absolutely no way to reach back there and slide it open when you're sitting up front and, if you're like me, you enjoy dropping all of the windows and sucking in some air on a nice sunny 75 degree day. The moonroof popped and rear glass open is a killer combo!

3.73LS: I've got it but, not certain I've ever needed it. We did have some serious inclimate weather where I'm sure I was thankful that I had it but, honestly, I didn't notice.

Consumer Report has rocked the F-150 since conception. Mind you, they knocked the 2001 SuperCrew as well. My recommendation to you is to really read into the 2004/05 forum. You're going to see numerous posts about vibrations on the 04 but nearly none on the 05'. I have a very slight vibe at 72 mph but, I'm 99% sure it's a tire out of balance/alignment (massive pothole correlation from days before noticing the vibe). Other than that, you're going to see a few 'hit and miss' things with very little following with replies like "mine does that too!" or "same problem...". Trust me, this truck is smooth as silk.

It is mass manufacturing and thus, you're going to get a lemon in the bunch on occasion. Further, there's going to be a lemon part or two in the bunch. Unavoidable. As you know, people will bitch much more than they'll praise.

Feel free to ask any other questions that you may have...

I have ZERO regrets about moving forward with the 05'... although I do hate seeing my old 2001 driving around this area in ultra-dirty shape (saw it two days ago, didn't look like it'd been washed all winter...that was a bummer).

Take care...

RP

 

As Rockpick said....the 05 is way different then the 01. I too had a 01 KR that I traded for the 05.

The ride is better and the interior appointments are way ahead of the 01. With radio, a/c and cruise on the wheel it's easier of to drive.

The power is better too.

The Audiophile is a far better set up then the 01.

I have 3.55 limited slip, which has been fine with everything I've needed.

I do wish I had the rear sensing system, sure could use that. I hear it can be added aftermarket. I'll have to find out about that.

The Sunroof.......well I don't use it and wish I didn't have one. Now the power rear slider is COOL and works great.

Most of my friends still can't believe I go rid of the 01. But the 05 is a much better truck.

 

I had, up till Tuesday, a '03. I don't realy now alot about the other year models. What differerences do ya'll know of between the 03 and 05? And how long dose it take to get used to the new interier? I was realy disapointed when I saw it on the 04s. It just seemed to me that they had taken the truck feel out of it.

 

I have owned two Chevy pickup trucks and one Dodge Dakota pickup and the new interior on the F-150 is why I ordered one. Everyone has different tastes but I think the new interior is spectacular. I have looked at the new Chevy, Dodge, and Nissan but none compare when it comes to the plush interior of the F-150. I put a lot of miles on my trucks and I want to be in a comfortable space for those long trips.

I can't imagine anyone having a hard time adjusting to the interior of the new F-150. It might be hard to live without it though......

 

When I first saw the new interior of the 04 the only thing I thought was, "thank god i got an 03." It just did'nt seem to fit what I thought a truck interior should look like. That said, when the first supercrews came out I wondered, "who the hell would want a truck with such a short bed?". Well a few years later I was the one who wanted a supercrew. It just took time for the new design to grow on me. I'm sure the new interior will grow on me also. But, my wife has another knock on the 04-05 interior. She is a manager of a car rental company and says that she is always having to order new air vents because they break so easily. In fact, we were at a Ford dealer on Tuesday and he said the same thing without any prompting.

By the way, I think the exterior of the 04-05's look awsome. It is by far the best looking truck out there today.

 

I would like to get a King Rance for my next truck, but from what I can tell, you can only get them in the old fogey 4-door SuperCrew. Is that correct?

Jim

 

I think he just called everyone here "old fogeys".

No, you can get them in an Expedition. In the F150, however, they only come in a supercrew.

(By the way, I'm 27, so I have a feeling I'm far from an "old fogey")

 

Sorry...just rattling cages. To me, anything that even resembles a 4 door sedan shreaks "old coot."

Cherry '57 Chev Bel Air 2 door = $25,0000

Cherry '57 Chev Bel Air 4 Door = $900.00

;-)

Jim

 

25 year old "old fogey" here!

 

I went from a 2002 lariat to the 2004 lariat. The 04s and up are way ahead of the 97-03.


The audiophile is a good factory system in a truck I would call that one a must.

At what you can order the optional goodyear tires from the factory its a bargain, I think they are a much better tire when compared to the bfgs in heavy rain and snow conditions.

Like RP said the tailgates are higher on the new models and the reverse sensing helps out with that.

The ls rearend would be up to you. If you tow a boat I would suggest it because it helps on the slick ramps.

I have the power slider on my truck and have maybe used it 4 or 5 times in a year.

I have had no issues with my truck other than regreasing the slipyoke, and my ebrake stuck. Which ford replaced and put all new pads on my truck. No shakes, vibes, etc.

Goodluck on your decision.

 

36 year old ol' fogey here

Nickyd - I don't actually have mine as yet as it was just ordered yesterday, but a couple thoughts:

- LT tires - for me this was a must - it's a truck after all. I did some research on travel trailer chat boards, and the concensus was that the LT tire provides much greater stability when towing. If you are going to be on gravel roads at all, I think it is worth the upgrade as well - a guy I work with got a new company truck last year, and it came with P rated tires. 3 of them lasted no more than 2 weeks on the bush roads in our area - the truck has LT rated tires on it now.

- Audiophile - I'm not a sound junky by any stretch, but I think it was a reasonably priced option over the standard 6 cd set up. As a side note, it appears that originally when you upgraded to the audiophile, you lost MP3 playback capability - that has been changed recently and the audiophile system now includes MP3 playback, in addition to the 6 cd in dash set up. You do lose some minor space on the back floor under the passenger seat - the amp is a bit in the way when the seat is flipped up.

- rear slider - I chose the power one, but bear in mind you lose the defog on the rear window if you choose a slider.

- reverse sensing - a great option that appears to be fast becoming a regular option on certain vehicles, and with the added bed wall height, it seems to be a good option, especially with little ones running around.

- 3.73 limited slip - again I chose this option as well - reasonably priced from the factory, and the lower gearing will be a favourable upgrade for towing and hilly terrain (which there is a lot of around here). This truck is a bit of a move away from what I have driven for the last few years - I haven't been without a locking rear differential for 8 years now, but being realistic that would be overkill for what I'd be using this truck for. The limited slip I think will be a welcome addition in winter conditions, as well as some else mentioned for boat ramps, etc.

As for reliability, I'm about to find out. It would appear that the bulk of the bugs have been worked out through the 04 model year - the percentage of complaints on the 04 - 05 F150 board is significantly lower from 05 owners......

Good luck!

 

I have about 2200 miles on my 05 KR and to date I have but one complaint, the annoying knocking sound. it only happens after the engine is hot / warm. Took it in once for the cam pulley / phaser (whatever they did) and it did not fix it. I still wouldn't not get the KR or an 05 for that simple reason.

as for options:
Audiophile - a must!

Rear Slider - another must!

Rear sensing - you guessed it!

Moonroof - I wish I would have got the DVD / interchangeable rail system.

I wish Ford would have put 20" rims on the KR as an added extra vs the Lariats.

As for performance, personally, it is pretty weak unless you pump some money into an exhaust system, air kit, etc. That all can add up too$$$! But the ride and interior makes this truck. I drove the Denali 4 door truck and I chose the KR only because the ride and interior. The Denali is SMOKIN' fast!!

In a nut shell, if I had to do it over, I would still pick the 05 KR.......oh yeah, in copper metallic too!!