Ouch. That is kind of scary!

 

x2

 

Unless something has changed with the Dodge real recently, you're looking at tuneups every 35,000 miles at about the same cost as the Ford at 100,000 miles....only you'll do it 3 times instead of once. The transmissions in the Dodge are a weak link. Figure about 80,000 and it will need replacement. The Hemi gets its power from burning LOTS of gas. While the 5.4 is a dog by comparison, it won't eat you out of house and home. Take a good look at resale values. The Dodge doesn't have any. I don't care for the cheap plastic on the Dodge but that's a personal kinda thing. Maintenance is high on a Dodge versus that of the Ford and cost of ownership will be considerably more. But the Ford you found has the leather interior. Fords leather has never been very good and wears out fast. Take a look at the used car lots at Fords leather and you'll see it split open and worn. I'd find a different one with cloth interior if you intend to keep very long.

 

I personally haven't been in the newer Ford trucks but I can tell you about 2010 Rams, my grandfather bought one brand new, they're nice trucks, but their flashy more than anything
Sure, the leather's nice and the optional 20s look good but the first big thing that I noticed on the 4x4 is that the front end on those things sit about even with an '04 F150 2x4. Another thing to be weary of, like others have said, is the new coil rear suspension. It gives the truck a good ride, but you sacrifice towing and payload.

As for gas mileage, with the new system they're putting in, it will cut back cylinders just like the GMs will do. But one thing to consider is even with the cylinder cut back, your mileage will still be right around the same as the Ford, if not lower than. One thing to think about, you sacrifice a lot of get up and go once they kick down, say you need to hurry up and pass someone for whatever reason and you're pulling a trailer, it probably won't end well because not only will there be the thud of the downshift, really rough transmission in them for working down, but you'll have a pause in power as the other four cylinders kick back up. Your RPMs will also run higher at pretty much any speed, from what I can tell, if you had all eight instead of four. Another thing that you can tell right away is that the transmission is geared for speed and not too much else, it doesn't take long to get to 60 but it's easy to go way past that and not really notice. Not to mention the 3k oil changes like the other feller said, and the fuel bill.

I've always loved Fords, there has been some others that caught my eye but only classics, so I'd just try and stay away from Dodge.
For me, the first choice, of course, is a Ford.
If you need more reasons to buy Ford instead of crash test ratings that are through the roof, great comfort, fuel economy, styling and 57 cubes of usable space when you fold the back bench up, just go here; http://www.fordvehicles.com/trucks/f...eos-and-demos/
Go buy yourself a new Ford, you'll be glad you did.

Oh, and mSaLL, 33 years, not 32.

 

Two days into a new Platinum after 20 good years with GM trucks (gov. motors thing and I love the look of the new Fords). I am tickled pink with this truck. I was initially concerned about the power but I think it is closer to the GM 5.3 that I first thought. My SLT seemed to have a lighter feel in the pedal as well as less lag time when you mash it, but once you get into it that 5.4 pulls hard enough to keep me happy. After all, its not a sports car. It's about getting things done in STYLE. lol

 

Don't forget about some basic power adders. My truck is a beast compared to stock. I have an 04 5.4 and I have a light foot 99% of the time. Added the exhuast, DWV intake and 87 performance based economy tune and the truck is a totally different animal. You;'d be amazed at how much power is held back in these trucks

 

As far as I know, I am the only one who responded yet who recently went from a Ford to Dodge Ram and back to Ford again.

So I'll give you some real observations and experiences.

Started out the (last) year with my 08 F250 FX4 loaded with luxo package. The truck was solid, had a great ride despite its size and heft, and quality was evident everywhere. One beautiful, bad a$$ truck but I could never get over 9.9 mpg (on rode, off road, sitting in my driveway...lol) and diesel prices started climbing to near $5/gal, so I sold it.



Didn't know what I wanted when I saw an almost new F150 XLT with no mileage and cheap, so thought it would be a fun project to build up. Now this was the most basic of XLTs as had the bench seat, no fog lights, base stereo, etc. but still was a fairly decent truck, quiet inside, and the 4.6L engine ran strong. But again, a quality truck with the exception of a dash rattle I could never find that drove me crazy. Importantly, was very easy to mod and looked good doing it.



Eventually, the 4.6L wasn't strong enough for my driving style and needs as I also pull a 20 ft production trailer (despite my Edge, AirRaid CAI, and Flowmaster exhaust.....sounded good but just didn't have the grunt). So I started looking at the 09 F150s that just came out (was not going back to F250 6.4L PSD). I was not sold on the new trucks back then so started looking at others including GMC, Tundra, and the new Dodge Ram. After much deliberation and driving my wife nuts, I went for a brand new, fully load Dodge Ram 1500 Laramie Crew 4x4. This thing had everything and stickered at over $53K.

I have to tell you, unless you owned one of these new Dodge Ram's yourself, people really don't know what they are talking about when they automatically put it down or compare their experiences to past Dodges they owned. The new Ram is a whole other animal when compared to Dodge Rams of past. First, I wish Ford could even come close to offering a similar engine for our F150s. That Hemi is fantastic! 390HP from the factory. Added an intake system and dual cat back system, and you have over 400HP. Add the performance chip and you're pushing 450 HP.

The second thing about the new Rams is the ride. The 4-coil suspension has an unbelievable ride (even after I lifted it). The overall design, inside and outside, is very well executed with nice features like dual compartment center console storage, dual compartment glove boxes. I also loved the in-bed dual Rambox that allows you to securely store gear in the bed of the truck while still leaving enough room for 4x8 sheets of plywood. And the dual in-floor coolers in the back seat area were cool too.

As far as towing, it handled my 20 foot enclosed trailer loaded with TV/broadcast production equipment like it wasn't even there. Sorry guys, Ford has the rating for the highest max load, but only a few of us actually get there (and if did, we probably be using our F250s). For most 1/2-ton towing needs though, the Dodge is just as competent and has a much stronger engine to get those loads up long grades faster than the F150s. Also, with the auto 5-speed with manual select ability, you can engine brake down to the next gear which is something we can't do. But the problem is it only has the 5-speed as its top line tranny where Ford now has the 6-speed.

Design wise, that is subjective of course but I actually really like the new exterior and interior designs. Some of the interior cues were blatantly borrowed from Ford in my mind while others were definitely innovative. The 115V power plug in the front console is another example.

On the down side, after a couple thousand miles, a couple of rattles materialized in the dash that I could not figure out. There is way too much chrome on the front end for my preference (again, more subjective). While the truck exhumed quality, and for sure it is heads and shoulders above the previous model, it doesn't quite match up to the inherent quality you see/feel when sitting in a similarly equipped Ford. And the seats are not near as comfortable as the new F150s. While there is plenty of room in the new Dodge Crew version, it falls short compared to the Ford and you don't get the same load floor as the Ford but you do get a lot more built in under seat storage.



Despite having fun modding out my Dodge and enjoying the Hemi, I decided to sell it when I found my current 09 F150 FX4. First impression: no matter how quiet I thought the new Ram was, this new F150 is almost vault like quite.

Second impression; you can't quite put your finger on it, but this truck is built well and you can see/feel it. Feels so very much put together than the Dodge, and that's saying a lot. For instance, went and drove a brand new fully loaded Chevy Avalanche Z71 with all the options off the lot just for grins and was amazed to how chintzy it felt (thin steering wheel, hard plastics, etc) as it had the complete opposite feel of the Dodge and Ford.

Third impression; the 5.4L may be well behind the 5.7L Hemi in a lot of ways, but the new 6-speed transmission sure helps and the engine runs very smooth. The 5.4L does seem to have more steam to it than did my previous 5.4Ls (as in my 07 KR) and is not bad at all for most situations (still, not a Hemi). But the 5.4L has no troubles towing my 20 ft enclosed trailer, and having the factory in-cab brake controller system is a nice feature my Ram didn't have (although Dodge now offers it too).

All in all, I think the new Fords are all around the better truck. I finally got to liking how they look, and the aftermarket industry makes it easy to mod these new trucks. The ride, while maybe not quite as good as the new Ram's, is still unbelievably smooth. The cab is very serene and quiet (more so than the Dodge), and I feel the dash/interior design of the new Fords is much nicer (in fact, in the FX4 it is down right gorgeous without the fake wood trimmings). The 6-speed tranny is great, but it is the overall feel you get while driving as the steering is sharper and more precise (although the turning radius is ridiculous compared to the Ram). And the new F150s are way more comfortable than that of previous years Fords or the new Ram; the front Captains chairs are great and hug you as your drive, and the rear seat room of the SuperCrew is amazing. I also like having my factory "man step" as it makes getting in/out of the bed much easier and safer. And honestly, now that I have mine modded, I like the looks of my new Ford over my new Dodge.

Honestly, despite what folks here will say (because we are on a Ford forum) you can't go wrong with either choice. I am glad I can say "been there, done that", but also glad to be back in my Ford.

 

Good writeup DesertDawg. I agree on the current Dodges being a vast improvement over previous Dodges. If there was a "most improved" award for a truck, I'd definitely give it to the '09 Ram.

Also, tow rating on the Dodge is almost 9k lbs. Just 7 years ago, Ford's max tow rating was 8800 lbs. My '03 has the 4.6l and is rated to tow 7200 lbs. If all you're towing is a boat, you should be fine with either the Ford or Dodge. Heck, my 4.6 hauls my dad's 20 ft. triton fish-n-ski just fine...just think how a truck with ~150 more hp and ~190 more lbs. of torque will handle it.

The ride on my neighbor's Dodge is soooo smooth....eases over bumps and potholes. Although, the Fords ride pretty good and smooth too. Even with the traditional leaf spring suspension.

All that said, I'd still buy the Ford. The reliability of Fords is proven, where Dodge is still working on it. They may be improved, but it's hard to tell yet. Just think about this: how many old (80s and 90s models) Dodges do you see on the road compared to old Fords and Chebbies?

 

i have driven both. i had a ram 1500 SLT as my rental for 40 days. it was very comfortable inside. it turned on a dime vs the f150. overall size, i like the f150. the interior of the f150 looks very tough compared to the ram. both were redesigned in 09+ but im more impressed with the f150 upgrades than the dodge. the "super crew" ram was very crammed. the 2 doors in the back made me feel like i was getting into an extended cab f150. my kids could kick the back of my seats easy. in the f150, there is so much space that my daughter can almost walk and not touch the seats getting to her carseat. i am a person who likes space so the f150 was an easy choice.

 

Desert Dawg - EXCELLENT feedback. That was very, very helpful.

Thanks.

 

Its actually 33 years now!

 

I actually wish that Ford would steel either the Titan's bedside box or the Rambox for their trucks. There is a lot of wasted space in the bed sides, and hell the bedside tool boxes were an option back in the 70's. It's be nice to keep my recovery strap, tie downs, etc in the box instead of in the cab. I have been in and driven the 09 Dodge's. While I prefer the looks of them over the GM's, I still think the overall quality goes to Ford as well as the looks. While the shutting down of cylinders is nice and you really don't hardly notice when it engages/disengages, it doesn't help you out much until you get on the highway at a set speed for a couple miles. It is of no use in the city to help with fuel consumption.

Probably can't go wrong with any truck these days, except the Tundra; that thing sucks.

 

i rather be stroking then cummin

 

I have drove all three brands and have to say that the Fords that had 200,000 miles (or more) on them were more solid than the Chebbies and Dodges with less than 100,000 miles. That's real experience.That's real facts. You can't go wrong with the #1 truck for 33 years....period!

 

Yeah, that is a great write-up! I think the fact that he's back in a Ford says the most though.