I'm looking to buy a 2010 KR after the first of the year. I've read and heard all the pros and cons about the durability of the leather. I believe KR has been around since around '97. I would like to see some pics of the oldest interiors on the forum and see how they look. Also include how well you've maintained them with oils etc.. just curious.

 

2001 was the first year of the King Ranch.


I don't have interior pics,however it's still holding up very well since buying it in '05.
The KR interior is just like any other vehicle,take care of it,DON'T thrash on it and it will last a long time.

 

Yes indeed...2001 was the first year the Castano Leather was available in the King Ranch designation.

I was very fortunate to not only be in the United States but to be at a Ford Dealership in South Texas the day they took delivery of the first KR they had ever seen.
I wasn't even thinking of buying a truck, but of course as soon as I saw it I took the plunge.

There are several of us who wish we had never let that first model go.
However we were seduced by the new model years as they came out and gradually upgraded (If it was indeed an upgrade!). Some of us even migrated to the KR Expedition. (Well one of us did!)
Anyway for that reason there may not be too many of our forum members who would still own an early KR that would have been properly looked after.

There are a couple though who may wish to show you the leather after what is getting on for 9 years of use.

Do bear in mind though that these are interested forum members who will have looked after their leather correctly...presumably as you will wish to do.

 

I went to the King Ranch website and it said that the ford king ranch was introduced in 1997. I didn't think it had been that long ago. Sorry about the mistake.

 

i will post pics of my 03 later this evening, 7 years and it still looks pretty good in my opinion

 

I have not had luck trying to post pics on here, but go to my albums, and there is a pic of my 2002 SuperCab King Ranch interior after 55,075 miles.

 

The best (and easiest)way I've found in posting pics on any forum is through photobucket.
You can "resize" the pics at upload or after.
I upload mine to the 1 meg size and then either post the thumbnail or resize it to a 1024x768 size.
When you go to post a pic in this forum,use the "img thumb" code and it will look like this;

(click on pic for large size)


Also,if you notice the front plate is distorted,you can do that with p-bucket.

 

You could be talking Greek for all I know. It's not that much of a problem to look in my photo albums...I don't know **** about these computers, and I really don't need to, I've got much more to occupy my time than being on here all the time.

 

Timberdoodles, your interior does look great. You obviously take good care of it. Next question. I've noticed that the new interior is more of a dark red than the older ones. Is it a different leather, color or what? Is the care the same?

 

King Ranch ineriors are indeed now a darker color...mainly we think because Ford had too many problems with people not caring correctly for their Castano leather, then making unwarranted warranty claims !!
Chek out previous posts on the subject.

Some of us 'oldies' still prefer the original leather though !!

 

Absolutely!!! The leather used now is called "Chaparral" instead of "Castano", and is definitely alot more "Red" than the Castano was/is. I think they still put the little card in the truck telling people to use the KR Conditioner, but I'm sure it's like the "Owner's Manual"...how many people really read it? People are NOT used to having to take care of their interior, like we KR owners do, (or should). The leather in a Lariat does not need any care, since it's coated, a simple wipe with a damp cloth and you're good to go.

 

Here is the link to my gallery (2001 King Ranch) - https://www.f150online.com/galleries....cfm?gnum=4479. The seats look as good today as when these pics were posted. As others have said, proper care and being a bit A-N-A-L about the leather and they can keep looking good for many years. I've got 101,915 miles on her now and the studded tires for the winter up here in Oregon. CPR.

 

I haven't been here for years but i'm having an issue for the first time in years with my truck and came looking to see if it was an issue with others.
But to this topic about how the leather looks and how it's holding up. I took delivery of my King Ranch Supercrew in March of 01. I have driven it everyday to and from work, weekend getaways, ski weekends to NH, VT., and ME. and have racked up 216,000 miles in 9 years. I just had it in the body shop to have the rockers replaced as well as the the hood repainted from years of stone chips from the highway driving. It looks like new again. Over the years I've used the King Ranch conditioner but when it didn't seem to do as good of a job as when the seats were newer I discovered Leather CPR and haven't looked back. Now understand I might use it once or twice a year. I'm a busy guy and don't hand wash and wax, Ever. So to say that it's been a good test case is an understatement. There are no tears in the leather, nor any issues with the stitching. I do have the issues that were inherent with the original seats such as the saddlebags magnets not aligning/ not being strong enough magnetically, the seat backs seperating because of the two plastic "slides" coming apart. Easy enough to fix. Only other issue with the drivers seat is the lumbar support busted and the heater stopped working. Both will be fixed as soon as i can get away on vacation and can put the truck in the shop.
When I do use the CPR it does make the leather almost like new. I agree with others opinions on the new leather not looking as nice as the original leather. I like the "baseball glove" look of the original leather compared to the red dyed look of the newer leather. So I have to say that I would not be concerned about the look or durability of the seats in the earlier King Ranches.
Good luck

 

I have an '02 F-150 King Ranch with 176,000 miles. I also have a 12 year old son and a 4 year old daughter who have been riding in this truck for a long time (car seats, spilled drinks, throw up, etc....). I have conditioned the seats every 6 months using mainly 4-way conditioner from Tractor Supply. All 4 seats look pretty much as good as the day I bought the truck. Now the steering wheel and console lid are a different story (cracking).