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Driving Impressions
The new Ford F-150 is built around an improved 4.6-liter V8 for the less-expensive models and, for the larger, heavier models, a brand-new 5.4-liter V8 engine with two intake valves and one exhaust valve per cylinder and a new intake port and combustion chamber design. Ford says that, between these two things, the 5.4-liter engine, which makes a nice, round 300 horsepower and 335 foot-pounds of torque, is also the fuel-stingiest engine the company has ever tested. It's similar in design to the previous 4.6-and 5.4-liter V8s in Ford trucks.Our Lariat test vehicle performed much, much better in terms of acceleration than the old XLT 4X4 we drove previously, mainly because it weighs a whole lot less and the engine doesn't have to work so hard to get the truck off the mark at stoplights. The regular cab and SuperCab versions with the 5.4 engine move out quickly and quietly, and the new 4R75E high-capacity four-speed transmission performed well. The power rack-and-pinion steering in our test truck was exemplary; it simply steered the truck in a new direction with each movement of the wheel, without hesitation or delay, but it was not in any way darty or overly quick or nervous. The truck tracks like a laser beam, turns in quickly, and recovers very quickly even with no load in the bed. The brakes, too, start decelerating the truck just a little way into the pedal travel, and the more you push the pedal, the more acute the braking becomes; the absence of dead space in the pedal travel is a welcome relief from typical truck practice. With its brand new front and rear suspension designs, the F-150 Lariat SuperCab rides more like a Lincoln LS sports sedan than a truck, with a minimum of body roll in the corners, and a nice, plush ride over cobbled pavement, rutted dirt roads, and freeway slabs.
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