Hi Guys. Long time lurker...probably pulling the trigger on a new F150 Limited Crew 4WD 3.5L. The last ford I owned was a 1995 Windstar LX2 with Leather JBL and damper controlled suspension and an 89 Mustang GT. (Moms minivan that turned into the family muIe until it died @ 286K miles) I have been back and forth between this and a Tundra for almost a year. Im 99.9% sure it will be the F-150. Currently we are a BMW Family with a 2011 X5, 2013 135is, and a 2002 M5. I need a truck. I like this one. I know that I will end up having to order it because all of the stealerships only have Platinum's. And Holy ****, why does this truck cost as much as my X5 did?

My First concern is corrosion. How are these things holding up? I know its aluminum but im talking about the actual frames, drive line, exhaust and suspension bits. Driving BMW for the past 15 years, corrosion is something foreign to me. Living in Illinois and the amount of salt they use is insane, I have seen new cars what have already started to corrode.

How're the seats, interior trim, armrests, door handles holding up? Are they showing signs of wear? I wondering this because my husband is brute (Navy Seal) and is not the most gentle person in the world and we have a German Shepherd and a Rottweiler.

Have they figured out how to paint a car yet? Orange peel primarily? Id be getting black....The truck would always be hand washed and taken care of by me. I hate seeing paint blemishes.

Anyone had the clear bra installed or wished they had. (In reference to paint chipping)

How're the dealerships as far as service? Will I be stuck in some POS Focus or get a Truck?

Looking over the maintenance plan...do these things seriously need lube jobs?

Spray in bed liner or plasitc one?

I'm sorry if I sound like a fuss pot but this is completely new territory and I have lived and breathed BMW for almost 2 decades. I can work on them with no problems (I have a Lift in my shop) but I'm just curious as to how much work.

Thanks so much.

 

Welcome to the site. I can't answer your questions as I have a 2007 but, some of the guys that do own the newer trucks will be able to help you.
And thank your husband for being a bad-*** Seal AND you for putting up with all his bad-***'n he has to do!

 

I hope you pull the trigger! A Limited is sweet ride!

Only the body panels are aluminum, critical parts like frame, etc are high strength steel. The aluminum bodies were in testing several years before they were ever released the public. There are zero issues with dissimilar metals, corrosion, etc. Yes, they are bit more expensive to repair body damage, but they are tougher to damage and there are no worries about repairs rusting on down the line. I typically spray bedliner on the frame rails, steps and other bits.

I have had several spray in and drop in bedliners. Overall, I prefer the dropins. I somehow always end up denting the beds, steel or aluminum and/or damaging the spray in liner. The dropins take much more abuse and never show the damage. The only downside is that they don't look as nice and cover the switch/button for the bed lights.

If you are buying a Limited, most dealers would definitely give you a loaner truck. Regardless, you will probably never have to visit them anyway.

I always put a clear bra on immediately. I would definitely do that on a black vehicle. The factory paint jobs are pretty decent, at least mine is. You could always get a ceramic coating applied to help with shine and smoothness.

My trucks never showed much int he way of wear other than when things I should have been more careful with, shifter in the interior scraping some door handles and trim. I simply replaced those low-cost snap on parts.

 

Welcome to the site! If you buy a Limited you'll get a nice truck, don't expect paint quality and fit and finish to be on par with a high end BMW. Also, don't believe what was said in post #3 that you will never see the dealer except for regular services. Take a look around here and you'll see, Ford is the leader in sales and also in recalls, especially when you buy a Limited, Platinum or KR due to all the electronics they have. I speak from experience, had KR and now Platinum. If you want an unbiased opinion take a look at reliability ratings on JD Power or Consumer Report because you will get a biased opinion on any brand specific forum.

 

Check out the dualliner for the bed. It combines the form fit plastic liner with a rubber bed mat. Real good reviews on them and they have the holes molded for the lights and switch. After seeing photos including closeups of the bed lights and switch I will be buying one for my truck.
As for post 4. I don't agree. Look on any forum and most are there to complain about something followed by those looking for advice on mods. As for recalls Ford is quick to do recalls were GM will fight having to recall. They would rather lidigate.

 

I mostly agree with others but don't forget safety. This is one place where there is no doubt Ford comes out ahead of the pack.

 

Well I pulled the trigger on a 2018 XLT SPORT CREW 4X4. The deal was too good to pass up. Now im just waiting for 11/12 for the leather, lift, tint, kicker subwoofer and a few other bits to be installed.

Thanks for all your help!

 

Nice truck. Just got my latest 2 weeks ago and had a Line-X Premium installed along with PPF on all painted surfaces on the front and 18" up the hood & fenders. This is my second truck with PPF and my wife's Escape has it also. I just traded my 2015 and it had no chips whatsoever compared to my 2013 I traded with lots of chips that were fixed with touch up paint and no matter how good I get at it I can still see it. I actually had them apply the paint protection on the PPF. We all spend $40 - $50 dollar for a screen protector on our $1,000 smartphone why not spend $500 for your $50K - $65K truck.

 

Congrats. Now you know why dealers don't stock the Limiteds etc as much as XLTs....Ford has MUCH larger discounts for the XLT than the Lariat and up most of the time.
As a BMW owner, I live a slightly paranoid life, wondering if/when something is going to fail on my M3. I was a caretaker on a 330xi for awhile, Ack, glad thats gone. Ford should be better in that regard. If you get nervous towards the end of the warranty there are aftermarket warranties to consider...

 

I ended up figuring the 150k platinum coverage thing which pretty much picks up after the bumper to bumper is expired. I figured what the heck, its transferrable if I dump the truck before I hit 150k.