Stereo was replaced twice (volume kept fluctuating). Had to be aligned when I purchased it (with 18 miles).
It had a few items that felt "cheap", such as the supercab doors shifting when the full-size doors would get shut. I could also feel and hear the doors shift on certain bumps (at very low rates of speed). The cabin was extremely comfortable. Never had better than 15mpg on the highway. 3.55 gears.
I noticed the same problem on my F-150, with the doors shifting on certain bumps. In strong crosswinds (on the highway), I could also feel the drivers side doors "push out", if the wind was on the opposite side. My truck has no interior rattles, but I'm afraid it will when it gets around 5 years old, (the quality of the plastic interior is cheap). When I bought mine, it had 3 factory defects; a loose drivers seat, flaking paint on the fenders (right behind the headlights), and a bent tie rod. (And it only had 38 miles on it, when I bought it!) My F-150 was the American version.. Ford built the 95-03 F-150's in America and Canada, and I've heard from many friends to buy the Canadian version.
I hate to tell you this... but it's a full size V8 truck. You aren't going to get very good gas mileage out of it. You can make little improvements like installing an aftermarket intake (which really helped me... about a 10% mileage increase, actually), but you aren't going to get above 18 or 19 mpg, maximum. As for the doors...I've had no such issues that I can notice, but I'm sure that a few squeak off the assembly line without being "perfect"...quality control isn't without its flaws, obviously.
Yeah Bud, I'm well aware that it's a V-8. However, for only having 260 hp, the fuel mileage wasn't very impressive. I now have a Ram w/the Hemi, (that has 85 more hp than my F-150 did), and the fuel mileage is far more impressive than the Ford. (and they both have the same gear ratios, and similar drivetrain). And @ my business, we have an 03 F-150 Supercab, that has the same problem with the suicide doors shifting, so evidently you aren't looking too hard for serious flaws. We also have a 97 Ram Club Cab (w/suicide doors, like the F-150), and those doors are much more tighter & solid than the Ford is. (And this truck was built 10 years ago). Do some insurance & government safety research, and find out why Ford redesigned the F-150 in 2004...It's because in offset crash tests, (of 35-45 mph) the upper-front of the suicide doors were hitting the crash dummies in the back of the head, and computer data from the test dummies said death was "very likely". This was all over various news stations in late 2002. Hmmm, and 2 years later, it's redesigned from the ground up. Think there is a connection there?
One reason your hemi is getting better mileage is because it has more power and doesn't need to work as hard as the 5.4L to pull the truck up to speed. Also the Ram 1500 weighs about 200 Pounds less than the F150. However, expect transmission failure in a year or two if you do any towing with it. Seems Dodge designed it for speed and hauling, but not towing. Towing is where the F150 surpasses Dodge, GM, Toyota, Nissan, and The Honda Ridgeline (if you can call a modified minivan platform with an attached bed a truck). I live in Canada and I own a 1997 Ford Explorer Sport 4x4. You may think I am biased towards Ford (which I do prefer their exterior styling, but would never put up with a shoddy product), However I have a friend who owns a 2000 F150 XLT FX4 SuperCab 5.4L Triton, another that owns a 2002 Hemi Ram, and one that owns a 2005 GMC Sierra Quad Cab 5.3L. So far the Ford has visited the shop/Dealer less than than either GMC or Dodge, Gets better fuel economy than the GMC, plays better off road, and has MUCH better handling during our what seems to be 5 to 6 month long winter. So yes if you want fuel economy and a full size truck, by all means buy a Dodge. If you intend to use your truck to work, tow, in the winter, or just simply last longer and cost less to run and maintain, Buy a Ford F150. Also I have never heard of this news report about the F150 SuperCab safety issue. Companies change body styles to attract new customers and to entice current owners to buy a newer product, not necessarily to fix problems with an old model, though they do in fact fix old problems, but that is never the sole reason. If it were, then Ford would have made the change sooner than 2 years.
To the last poster, Ford did not offer the FX4 package until 2002, and dodge did not offer a Hemi in the Ram until 2003.
To the Oct 8 poster: The guy who wrote about Ford redesigning the F-150 was correct. The previous model (1995-2003) was redesigned, mainly because the media started all the hype about offset crash tests. In late 2002, when the press (mainly NBC), released the bad test data & videos, Ford scrambled their prototype F-150, to have a new model out sooner than originally planned. Yes, they were planning a new model to be unveiled, but due to the press coverage, Ford accelerated their work on the new model. They didn't want another incident such as "tiregate", in the late 90's with the Explorers. (And I don't care what you heard, I've been a General Manager at a Ford dealership for the past 12 years. Our inventory is over $30 million. So I think I'm qualified enough to explain)...
If you buy a truck with a big V8, you're going to get a gas guzzler. If fuel economy is a concern, get a car.
To the Ford General Manager (for 12 years) you have your model years messed up. Ford's F-150 style went from 1992-1996, then changed styles in 1997-2003. The current body style is from 2004-present. A body style change is planned for 2009. the F-150 will resemble the F-250 & 350...just FYI... from a bored Police Officer.. (former auto-dealer service advisor for 17yrs)
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