dbargfrede

My 2004 Red FX4 Build

I read through all of the other members builds and realized the other day that I should have started one for my truck. Of course, I am not sure you could call what I am planning a true "build" compared to many of the great looking trucks I have seen on here. But, I have done a lot of stuff to my 2004 F150 I bought from my grandpa back in 2013, so I will get you caught up.

As I said, I bought the truck from my grandpa back in 2013 with less than 90,000 miles on it. It was bone stock and served my grandpa really well. It wasn't driven very hard and besides the worn in driver's seat with a rip in the side, it looked really good. The first thing I did to it was add a Flowmaster American Thunder dual exhaust kit, then came a 2 1/2" MotoFab level and more aggressive tires. I then added tow mirrors, an edge programmer, and a K&N CAI at the same time. It sat like that for some time and I finally got tired of the old look, so when I bought a set of tires from my cousin I decided to swap the rims I bought with the tires for the rims that were originally on the truck. I soon got tired of the 09-14 rims that I had on there and switched back to the original rims. I also had seen a member on the forum put bed-liner on their rocker panels and bumpers so I decided to do the same. I was really satisfied how the black stood out against the bright red and I couldn't be happier with the look.

I have a small list of things I would like to do to my truck. The list includes getting the 09-14 Platinum stock 20's, adding the chrome door handles and tailgate handle, and getting leather seat covers. Right now, I have some other small projects that need to be done to it as well including fixing the drivers side window controls, attempting to clean up my headlights, and a good wash and wax.



Here is the truck with the 09-14 rims with the tires I bought from my cousin.




This is the truck after I put the bed-liner on the rockers and bumpers. I think it looks pretty sharp!



This is how it looks today. I had a chance to clean it when the weather turned nice, but then it decided to snow again.

dbargfrede

Against my better judgment, I tried Wipe New on my plastic trim pieces. The handles and the plastic piece between the windshield and the hood were my main targets. I have pretty much given up on trying to make my bed caps look new again, but I tried it anyways. However, I would like to say that I am really impressed with the results. I had seen many bad reviews on this stuff, but if you look past the people bashing others for buying an "as seen on TV product" and those that do not follow the instructions, many people have had good luck. I really made sure to clean the plastics with a de-greaser and then wiped down the surface with rubbing alcohol. I then applied the Wipe New and was fully expecting the plastics to return to the colors they were before, but that was not the case. I guess the only way to really tell if this stuff works is to let time, and the sun, do work on the plastics.


Before (top) and After (bottom) of the tailgate handle. I only uploaded this picture because the door handles were in much better shape but look like the after picture now.


Before (right) and After (left)


Before (top) and After (bottom) of the grille. I really didn't think it was going to do much to this, but it made the grille look like new.


Before (right) and After (left) of the bed caps. As you can see it didn't do much.

Again, only time will tell if this stuff is really worth it but I think it's a pretty decent product. Hopefully it lasts the two years they say it will on the box. If you are going to try it, make sure it is in a well ventilated area. I applied it in the garage with all the doors and windows open and it still was a very potent smell.