Hey guys and gals. I figured that I'd make my first post here as it is about this gen F150.

I've been doing research as to what my next truck will be(currently driving a 91 s10 xcab pickup) and after many webforums(full sized trucks, mid sized truck and the cross breed trucks like the sport tracs and ridgelines). I've decided on 2 trucks. F150 and the bowtie equivalent. Having owned both brands and having family that has owned both I'm fully aware that both brands have their pros and cons.

Now to what I'd like help with. I'll be looking for an extended cab truck with the 4 doors(not a Screw) 4x4 with the small v8(tired of v6's) and an auto trans.

Im looking for pics of storage cubbys, if any, behind and under the rear seat.

This one apply's to those with kids. I have an 4 year old boy and a 19 month old daughter, both are in forward facing car seats. Again Id like to get pics of a forward facing seat in the back seat.

Also looking for MPG info. I do mostly all city driving in a fairly flat town and would like a real world guesstimate on what I should expect with both V8s.

Last question I have(for now at least :p) is on trim lines. What trim line should I look for to get bucket seats and a center console(these, 4x4 and an auto trans are must haves for me)?

I know a few of my questions are easily answered with a trip to a used dealer ship. But most the ones here really hate tire kickers and tend to lie like a politician on questions.

Thanks for your time!

 

To be honest, its going to be tough to get a baby seat in the back of a supercab(ext. cab) with 4 doors. I have a 4 year old nephew and a 1 year old niece and my knees touch the front dash when they are in the back. Its really uncomfortable when they are in the back and the seat is all the way up.

Highway mileage could range from 12-17 on our generations. Honestly the Chevy is a better highway truck. The 5.3L in those trucks are mainly highway engines and geared for highway mileage.

XLT is equivalent to an older style LS.
Larait and leather trim package is equivalent to an LT.

 

I own a supercab, and ibd is right. If you plan having your kids back there, get a s.crew. there is near no room in the back of a s.cab. I use it for storage mostly, and sometimes carrying around my friends, who are always cramped back there... I love the truck, but I wouldn't mind having 4 full doors.

Having front buckets is just by luck. I have buckets on mine, and mine is just an XLT with the 4.2. I can take a few pics of my interior if you like, so that you can get an idea on how much space you're going to have. Just let me know.

One more thing... I usually average about the mid 14's in my truck, but that is 100% city driving. I drive 50 miles on the highway, I get over 15 easily.

 

I fully expect a tightish fit with the kiddos. I'm not too worried about it as the 4yr old is at the height and weight where he could move to a shoulder belt booster soon, and this wouldn't be our family ride(my wife's 96 Explorer gets that duty). At most all 4 of us would rarely be in it(home improvement supply runs and camping trips).

Can I ask how tall you are? I'm 5ft 9 my wife is 5ft 6 and as is neither of us need the seats all the way back on either of our rides.

One more question crossed my mind. The 4.6 V8, same one as the Mustangs? Or at least bolt on proformance compatible?

 

You can fit it back there, it was just problematic for me. I am 6'0ft 220lbs.
Also, I have 2/3 bench seat, so with captain chairs you should be able to adjust it to fit two child safety seats.

I have the 5.4L. The 4.6L is basically the mustang engine but put together different for truck applications and more torque/less hp.

 

I'm about 5' 9" to 5' 10". I slide the seat all the way back, then straighten the back of it. Comfortable for me, at least.

 

To get buckets in front, you would need at least an XLT or a Lightning. There really wasn't a lot of pickups made with bucket seats, unless they were ordered specially. The 60-40 seat was the most common. The straight bench, mostly only in worktrucks and XL series. Of course KR's and other specialty models have buckets, but in general, most XLT have the 60/40's. Lariats.....Leather.

Most of the buckets in our trucks have come from Expeditions. It's a simple switch out. I just bought a set for that very swap. I got both bucket seats, (drivers power) and the Expy console. I removed the factory drivers bucket (40) and the passenger half (60) to install these. I had to tap two holes for the right side inner track into the floorboards. Other than that, there were little to no major obstacles to the swap out. The electric for the seat was 2 wires (hot and ground) so I went to the fuse box for power. Very easy, simple swap. The console requires 2 pieces of carpet to be cut to mount the retainer plates, but otherwise, no major changes their either. I enjoy the armrests (captain chair style in the 97-99 Expy's). The later 2000's didn't have armrests, so the console was wider between the seats only. It was a nice improvement to my Scab, and find it more comfortable, with the power drivers side seat.

My 4.6 auto gets about 17 on the highway at 65 or just under, while it does about 14 in city driving. I have 3:55's for gears. It doesn't seem to matter the weight in the truck, it gets the same mpg with load or not. The only time it goes way down, is loaded on the hills. There, we don't want to talk about gas mileage. Pulling my boat is about 15.7 highway. I learned to turn off o/d when towing in the hills or the damn thing goes in and out like a gopher into his hole. All in all, I might of liked the 5.4 a bit more for towing, but the 4.6 is more than sufficient. I'm glad I didn't buy the 5.3 Chevrolet. (I worked for Chev in the 80's to 00, in parts, so I'm really against Chev's of this vintage) Way too many warranty problems. That and not being able to keep a damn transmission in them. The 4L60E is a piece of true GM garbage.

 

I expect a tight fit with the kiddos. A S.crew would be awesome and if they drop to my price range next year I'll look for one. Mileage your posting is about what I get in my V6 s10

So its kinda like the 5.0s that were in the 90's broncos?

Hmm. Hmm. Ill drop buckets off my must have list and plan to budget for a seat swap. swap. Thanks a bunch for the info on seats, next time I'm at the junk yard hunting parts I'll take a look(and a seat) at the Expeditions and their seat options.

Are the Expeditions fairly close to parts when it comes to swaps. With the S10 pickups and the blazers every thing from the front doors to the front bumpers could me swapped .

 

Yeah, just make sure you choose the appropriate one. (97-98 expys are different than the 99-02's. Just like the 150's.) I've swapped an expy grille onto mine, and I'm loving it.

 

You and your wife are round the same height as the gf and myself. That being said, Its not a tight fit in a scab with two car seats(2 an 5 year old) but I have a 60/40 bench. Gets tight with the dog(90lbs) and my bro(6'2") in there though.

Mpg wise my 4.6 gets 12-14 city and 15-18 hwy.