Jaystn62

New member. Been looking at new 2017 and 2018 F-150 XLTs the last few weeks. Looked at a 2018 XLT today with the 3.5 EB and max tow package. Took it for a test drive and the wife absolutely hated the ride. I've read and researched a lot on the newer trucks and pretty much expected the rough ride. I've read about the Bilstien 5100 shocks and people seem to swear by these. Will these help this vehicle have a more acceptable ride that my ole lady won't be constantly complaining about? I tow quite a bit and plan on getting a travel trailer early next year so want to stick with this package. Any help or advice will be greatly appreciated.

gleytch

I had a non-Max Tow 2018 Lariat SuperCrew 4X4 for a month and have had a 2018 Max Tow Lariat SuperCrew 4X4 for a few days after the dealer swapped out the first one because of a paint issue. After driving both enough to experience the ride, I can say with certainty that the Max Tow package doesn't change the ride to any noticeable degree. With the exception of the sway bar, I don't think the suspension parts are any different between the two. Both of my trucks had/have a 7000 lb GVWR and the Max Tow has a 16 lb smaller cargo capacity (1642 vs 1626), presumably to account for the added weight of the heavier rear bumper and the weight of the parts for Pro Trailer Backup Assist and the Integrated Brake Controller. Both trucks ride great. Much better than most cars.

If you are experiencing a rough ride, check the tire pressure and the gas gauge. Every new truck I've ever test driven has the tires filled far past the recommended pressure and had a nearly empty gas tank. The two things together will give you a rougher ride than you would normally get with a vehicle you own. See if you can get the dealer to set the pressure to exactly the recommended pressure and maybe even throw a hundred pounds of ballast (weight equivalent to 15 gallons of gas) into the bed to give you a better feel for how it really rides.

Jaystn62

That makes sense. The low fuel alarm was on while doing the test drive. Didn't even think about tire pressure. I'm sure the 20" rims and tires don't help. Thanks.

tuckr2

Just pulled the trigger selling my 2011 F150 screw 5.0 for a 2018 screw 3.5L lwb, max tow, FX4, 4x4. I admit to being slightly surprised at the stiffer ride between the two. I think I can attribute some to the heavy duty max tow package. I will say driving it off road today mainly on gravel roads it rides comfortably. I too tow a 25 foot Rockwood TT and this is exactly what I want. I may yet swap out the rear shocks for Monroe spring assist load levelers depending on how it handles. These are what I had in the 2011 and they really helped without sacrificing ride quality.
The seats in the new truck are also a bit stiffer which may attribute in part to the ride.

Jaystn62

I myself love the truck but I have to give the ole lady some consideration since we plan to use truck for long distant trips without towing. I'm hoping some shock changes and break in period will help. We go back Monday to pick up truck if financing goes through as hoped.

denton

I just bought Screw Lariat 4x4 with max tow and also plan to take long road trips with and without a travel trailer. I made sure NOT to get the 20" wheels tho. I live in NYC and made the mistake of getting big rims on my last car, a BMW 328xi. Now you can take everything I say with a grain of salt since this is my first pickup, I have driven small sports sedans my whole life. But I am frankly surprised to hear your lady's complaint. On the thruway upstate, we found the ride to be smooth as glass, my wife even commented how smooth it was compared to our car. In the city, with a lot of rubber, the ride is smoother than our car was. And now we just drive over everything, while in the car we constantly had to watch out we didn't damage our rims. Yes if we drive over a BIG mess in the road the truck will porpoise but if I wasn't having so much fun I could drive smoother.

i would take the advice about tire pressure but also maybe drive a truck with 18" rims and see if that makes a difference. What kinds of roads are you driving on?

We bought this truck specifically to tow but also to have a large comfortable vehicle to travel in when not towing. My wife and I are both very happy about the comfort level (which includes ride quality) of our truck.

5.0 Probie

We went from a 2016 XLT Sport without the Max tow to a 2018 Lariat with the Max tow and my wife and I are flabbergasted on how much better the Lariat "Rides". That said, "Driving" it, is much more truck like in the Lariat and it needs a bigger rear anti sway bar or something because the XLT Sport was able to cut the curves much better than this Lariat does.

Both had/have 18" rims.

When we test drove we could definitely tell the difference from the FX4's and Sports to the standard Lariat or XLT rides.

We had a 2010 Lariat with 20" and decided we did not care for the rougher ride unless we had been willing to change the shocks to create a better "Ride".

And as others have suggested, air pressure and vehicle weight does a lot for he ride.

To be frank... Nearly every 1/2 ton on the market smokes how these trucks drove/road 10+ years ago. They are very SUV like.

Good luck in your search!

zx12-iowa

nope new shocks will not change ride. they will just partially soften the rear jumping on large bumps. sounds like the wife likes luxury cars - u sure she would like camping and not a hotel room? most women would rather drive their lexus to the ritz. Otherwise what u are looking at is the most capable and best riding truck sold (for its payload/towing) but it comes at the price of a smooth ride

Jaystn62

The truck I test drove does have the 20" rims. We are looking for something larger for longer trips also. Her car is a 2014 Buick Encore. It's very nicely equipped but lacks the room I like to move around. The truck we test drove has about anything I want on a truck. It even has the twin moon roof which I was not aware was available on a XLT. We talked long and hard about it last night. If we do get the truck tomorrow I am going to try swapping out shocks at all four corners first and see how that does. Thanks for the replies guys.

Jaystn62

After a lot of debating and considering what I actually need I pulled the trigger on this truck earlier this afternoon. 2018 KLT 2.7 EB. Has 302a luxury package and XLT Sport appearance package. Standard towing package. It rides like a dream compared to last truck I test drove. Absolutely loving it so far. Thanks for all the input. Pondering now what I need to do to make it mine.