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Finally getting around to adding my truck to the members build thread. My truck is a 2018 XLT super crew (145 wb) in Oxford White w/the Sport appearance pkg, 5.0L motor and 10spd tranny. Additional options include the 302A pkg, Sync3 w/nav, tailgate step, power inverter and all-weather floor mats. I am extremely happy with this truck as it is a huge step up from my ’11 F150 XLT 3.5EB, which was a nice truck but no comparison to this ’18.
The Sport package is a great looking truck, but I feel Ford left a few things out of the Sport pkg that should have been included to make this a true sport appearing truck. My goal (theme) of this build is to finish what Ford has started. The plan is to add the detail pieces that I think Ford left out of the Sport pkg, at the XLT trim level. I wanted to add items that are from the Ford parts bin (or comparable aftermarket brand) as much as possible to keep the factory appearance and make it look like something Ford produced. This means keeping things simple or somewhat vanilla (as the factories do) to appeal to as many people as possible but trying to make the Sport package just different enough to stand out from other packages. I also wanted to stay in line with the XLT trim level and not try to up-level the truck.
I’m doing the truck in 2 phases. Phase 1 of the project is adding the what Ford should have included parts and phase 2 is adding the day-2 type mods, those items that are not necessarily part of the Sport package but items that are necessary for everyday truck use while still keeping the OEM theme.
First off was the stance. The 3” front to rear rake just does not cut it for an off-road style truck. So, I added a Zone 2” level kit, along with Coyote 1.5” wheel spacers. This really made the truck look a lot better. It is my opinion that for the best look the wheels need to be flush with the outer edge of the fenders, not tucked under and not pushed beyond the fenders, and these 2 mods accomplished that perfectly. Along with this came new all-terrain tires (really Ford highway tires on a Sport truck) and I don’t think there is a better A/T tire made than the BFG All-Terrain T/A KO2. I’ve had these on several trucks over the years and they are just fantastic. The look, performance and lack of road-noise make these the perfect tire for the Sport package. Size is 275/70/18. I kept the stock 18” rims for a few reasons. 1. I like them. 2. They keep the stock factory appearance. 3. Keeps the budget in check as I didn’t have to buy new rims.
Next up the addition of the Dee-Zee tailgate assist. This should be the 1st thing all owners add to their truck if not factory equipped, a true must-have.
Lights- I added Diode Dynamics SL1 LED low beams and Crystalux HXP50 H10 LED fog lights. At the same time, I added Custom Auto Works 4-light raptor grill lights, because these just look bad *****. The raptor lights along w/the white LED’s lows and fogs really give the truck a modern sporty look and differentiates the truck from standard trucks without having to go to the expense of replacing the entire headlight assemblies.
Badges- I’m an old school muscle car guy and I like it when cars have the engine call-outs on the car. All the Ford turbo trucks have emblems, as do the diesels, so why not the V-8? Well I fixed that with these 1st gen raptor style 5.0L badges from Truckemblemwearhouse. I think the black w/white trim look right at home on the Oxford white. Along with this I blacked out the F-150 fender emblems, so that they match.
First on the interior upgrades list was to complete the stereo system. Ford did a nice job with the Sync 3 head unit, and they paired it with a 7-speaker system, but they didn’t add a sub-woofer!! WTH?? Well thankfully they did run the wiring for the sub so adding one was a 30min. job. I added the Kicker 11HS8 8” shallow sub w/amp behind the rear seat and used a WTP1212 harness for a factory finish install. The System sounds great now and is what I consider a very nice factory sound system. Thanks to jwjeep for his write up on this.
Radio control trim rings. This might be my favorite upgrade as it really up-sells the look of the infotainment system and it only cost $40. The gloss black w/chrome trim matches the black & chrome interior perfectly and looks like it came right from the factory. If you compare the stock XLT rubber ***** to these, it’s a night and day improvement.
Cluster and steering wheel change. Now comes the 2 items that are the ones that I feel were most necessary and made the biggest change in completing the interior of the Sport pkg. Leaving the stock XLT cluster along with that fake leather steering wheel were just not acceptable. When it came time to do the cluster there was only one person to contact, Livnitup. His work with clusters is well documented on this forum and once I contacted him, he lived up to all the hype. Originally I was going to go with the 4” Sport cluster from an XLT SE as I feel that is the most appropriate style to have in the XLT, but due to the lack of availability of these 4” clusters Dave hooked me up with the 8” Sport cluster. Now I know this is a deviation from my XLT trim level guidelines, but things change (sometimes for the better) thanks Dave! To complete the Sport appearance on the inside I needed to replace that fake leather steering wheel with a real leather, sport style wheel and nothing fits that bill better than the Raptor wheel. With the addition of the Sport style gauges and Raptor wheel this Sport truck really has a different look and feel inside. 8" cluster w/Sport face, Blue numerals and bright red needles. looks killer! Raptor wheel After install all lit up
12-09-2018, 05:48 PM
Brick'S hithouse '18 XLT Sport build
