On my way home from work there were some pretty bad storms with some flooding. However, the F150 was rock solid and would basically go through anything without any hydroplaning. I have also noticed on prior occasions that the F150 is very solid and doesn't move around when hitting puddles. Is this a function of the vehicles weight or the type of tires? I was just surprised by how good the F150 was in the wet.

 

Combination of an extremely heavy truck, traction control, and tires.

 

Tires. Which ones do you have and how many miles on them?

 

I have the Firestone Destination ATs. They are at about 50% tread.

The other thing I noticed is that the F150 seems to spray the water out in front of the truck which then hits the windshield. Other vehicles I have had seem to spray the water more to the side.

 

take a look at where your tires are in relation to the front of the vehicle, compared to others you've driven in the past.

truck tires are further forward, so the water that isn't displaced to the sides, are pushed forward, and since it doesn't have far to travel to get ahead of the bumper it goes up. on many cars, it simply driven into the engine compartment.

as for why the truck doesn't hydroplane... weight, "plane" and simple. tires play a small part, but it's not easy to withstand the driving force of 6000lbs moving @ speed through water, as opposed to onto of it.

 

If you mean the water is going over your hood and hitting the windshield you are going waaay too fast thought the water. If you drive though deep water you can submerge breather tubes and damage vital components.

 

I don't care how heavy your vehicle is. If your tires are bald and lack siping, and hit the right speed, you are going to hydroplane.( from wiki: Tire tread block shapes, groove configurations, and sipes affect tire noise pattern and traction characteristics) It's speed that determines when you start hydroplaning at that point. It's a sickening feeling when your front tires get up "on plane" when you are driving on a ponded or heavily puddled road. Only thing to do is lift off the throttle and get the tires to regain contact with the old terra firma.

 

Where are you located at ronin? We had some flooding in the Tiffin, OH area today. There was water in places I have never seen before. While I normally don't drive through standing water, there was no other way around to get where I was going. The truck did very well going through it. It was maybe a foot deep at its deepest.

 

I can say with certainty that it IS possible to hydroplane an F-150.
2010 5.4 SCREW with 30,000 miles on the original Wranglers. 78 mph in a torrential downpour --- truck began to feel "greasy" -- almost like a cross wind when I was towing....scared the living @%@P out of me. Slowed down to sane speeds and it was fine again.
I am sure that the tread depth on the slightly worn Goodyears had a lot to do with it.....still --- made me a believer!!!

 

DISCLAIMER;
if you are/were driving with bald or near bald tires,
if you were speeding excessively,
then yes it is certainly possible for "anything" within reason, to hydroplane.



Driving normal/safe speeds (for the weather, or the environment) with proper tires (read: not bald) you will have a tough time hydroplaning these trucks.
It can be done, but I would then suggest you adjust your speed accordingly and realize you were not doing step A (safe speed)

All that said, toss a set of 38.5" Super Swamper TSL's with 3/4" of tread depth @ a large water puddle @ speed and you'll most certainly hydroplane them a bit, regardless of vehicle weight... and it will scare the **** out of me... I mean you... and whoever else was in the Jeep with me... I mean you.