2008 Ford F150 XL review from North America

Nothing has actually gone wrong with the truck yet. Just a few annoying things.

Looks great, I like driving it. Mine is a 5 speed manual shift. I can hear a good bit of drive train noise from it. I have been told by two different Ford dealer service departments that it's because it's a manual, the hole in the floorboard where the shifter is located is allowing this noise. I noticed that it seems to have a slight miss at idle, this was explained to me that the EPA governs emissions and that ford has it programmed to run "lean" at idle. OK, but it's still annoying. I was told by the mechanic that looked at my truck this morning that the intake is plastic and that is why I can hear a "gushing" type of noise when I press the gas pedal. Kind of cheap in my opinion, plastic intake isn't very "Ford Tough". I was also told that even the glass used in my 2008 F150 is thinner than it used to be. I was also told the computer in the truck actually learns your driving habits and adjusts itself accordingly. The computer even controls the alternator now!!! No more the battery light is on, swap out the alternator, it's more complex than that now!

I was excited to get my 2008 F150 even though it was just a XL model. (all my budget would allow) It doesn't have the same amount of torque my 97 S-10 had. (4.3 vortec) I couldn't wait to get up and drive it to work each morning. Now it seems to be losing some of it's luster. I average just under 15MPG and I drive mostly highway (60-70 MPH) I am hoping that improved with more use. I think the tires they put on the XL are pathetic for a truck, I will use them until they need replaced and deffinitely upgrade them. Overall I like the F150, got a really good deal and interest rate from Ford Credit, but maybe I just need to get used to it.