Armada sets sail as flagship of Nissan’s fleet of SUVs
NAPA, CA. — The big news out of Nissan this fall is the companyÂ’s bold attempt at entering the full-size U.S. truck market, where its Titan will attempt to take on the stalwart Ford-Chevrolet-Dodge and Toyota dominators. But as long as the big, new Titan is going to be built in the new facility at Canton, Miss., Nissan figured it would give it an accompanying sport-utility vehicle.
In fact, the new new, eight-passenger Armada will beat the Titan to market. The first models of the big SUV are rolling off the Canton assembly line already, scheduled to reach showrooms by the end of September, and aiming at 40,000 sales a year. The full half-ton Titan, with designs on selling 100,000 annually, wonÂ’t start production until October and wonÂ’t show up at dealerships until December.
The Armada shares Nissan’s all-new 5.6-liter V8, which is being built in Tennessee, and it is tweaked differently to have the same 305 horsepower at 4,900 RPMs and 385 foot-pounds of torque at 3,600 RPMs – an increase six over the Titan – with a best-in-class 9,100-pound towing capacity.
While the Titan measures up almost identically to the pickup industry standard Ford F150, the Armada is built on the same platform and with the same drivetrain, but replaces the TitanÂ’s solid rear axle with independent rear suspension. The difference in wheelbase shows the ArmadaÂ’s 123.2-inch span beating the Expedition by four inches, the Tahoe by seven and the Sequoia by five. In overall length, the Armada measures 206.9 inches in length, which is just over an inch longer than a Ford Expedition, three inches longer than a Toyota Sequoia, eight inches longer than a GMC Yukon, and 10 inches longer than a Tahoe. It is more than a foot shorter than a Chevrolet Suburban, however, settling for a competitive niche in the full-size but not behemoth class.
The new SUV will be known, undoubtedly, as the Armada, although its official name, Nissan executives insist, is the “Pathfinder Armada.†That could be a market-research point to debate, perhaps.
“It’s not the Armada, it’s the Pathfinder Armada,†said Mitch Davis, senior marketing manage for Nissan SUVs. “Pathfinder is a strong name in the market, and the name Pathfinder is important, because it means adventurous, rugged and capable. The Armada is big, powerful and premium, and it completes our SUV plan, because we had the Pathfinder, Xterra and Murano, and now we have a full-size SUV in the Armada.
“The Pathfinder itself is not going away, because it brings a lot to the midsize segment. We think the Armada will bring that to the large SUV segment.Ââ€
The fact that Davis felt he had to inform the media at the Napa Valley introduction of the Armada that the Pathfinder itself would not be eliminated came because that was the logical question from the media, and very likely will be the probable assumption by consumers.
Beyond that, I asked several Nissan executives that when the company’s committee that works so hard to come up with vehicle names did its job, was any consideration given to the actual definition of the words? All of them asked what I meant, and I suggested that the normal definition of a “pathfinder†is someone who is exploring to find a new route through unfamiliar terrain, while an “armada†is a large fleet of ships. Doesn’t that make “Pathfinder Armada†something like “Army Navy?†My question drew blanks.
The name notwithstanding, it will come to be known as the Armada, just to differentiate the completely different trucks, shortly after thousands of customers need to be informed that, no, the Armada doesnÂ’t replace the Pathfinder. The Armada is 25 inches longer than the Pathfinder, with a 17-inch longer wheelbase at 123.2 inches, and its seven inches wider. That greater size translates to 10 inches more rear-seat legroom, and 32.4 inches of third-row legroom, compared to no third-row seat in the Pathfinder.
In appearance, the Armada is impressive, both inside and out. The exterior shares the TitanÂ’s new-edge look from the grille, with tastefully artful lines and curves flowing back from there. The roofline has an arch to it, then levels out over the third-row seat. The Armada has a large presence, but inside it drives and rides much more smoothly and with greater agility than its size implies.
The structure is solid and firm, and safety side beams, three-zone crushable areas and front and side airbags support the secure feel. The three-row side curtain airbags and the seatbelt pretensioners all are activated if the Armada ever reaches a 45-degree angle, meaning occupants are cushioned from a potential rollover in the scant seconds between the time a rollover is sensed as imminent and when it occurs.
Inside, the Armada carries on NissanÂ’s recent trend toward slick, contemporary design of instruments, switchgear and seating flexibility. The Armada can seat eight, with two in front, three in the second row and three more in the third. The second row also can be configured in two buckets, reducing capacity to seven, but providing front and removable rear consoles with the personalized buckets.
Access to the third row is surprisingly easy, because after opening the large rear door, a flip of the seat latch causes the whole seat tumbles forward and you can simply step in and sit down in back. Six-footers will have no problem back there.
Most impressive, perhaps, is that the third row, and second row seats all fold down completely flat – not “nearly flat,†Nissan executives point out, with reference to rivals. Folded down, that leaves a 6.5-foot flat area behind the front seats. The front right bucket backrest also folds down flat, which means the driver could fill up the rest of the vehicle with all his worldlies, including a 10-foot ladder.
The fully independent double-wishbone suspension has stabilizer bars front and rear, and shares TitanÂ’s separated coil springs and shock absorbers up front. Four-wheel disc brakes have antilock, electronic brake force distribution and a brake assist feature to read a driverÂ’s intensity and provide maximum braking force. Standard wheels are 17 inch, with 18 optional.
The engine is a gem, with chain-driven dual-overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder,with aluminum block and heads, cast iron cylinder liners and forged steel crankshaft. The engine has standard vehicle dynamic control and brake-activated limited-slip traction control, which can be disabled. The all-wheel drive system has a switch to engage two-wheel drive, or four-wheel high or low.
The Armada comes in three models, the base SE, the SE off-road, and the LE, which has its luxury set apart by a chrome grille. Nissan anticipates selling 40,000 vehicles in Armada’s first year, which is modest considering that the Sequoia sold 70,000 for Toyota last year. Expectations are that one-third of Armada buyers will come from within Nissan’s customer base, either adding to or replacing one of the Nissan sedans, or moving up from – you should pardon the expression – the Pathfinder.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto columns; reach him by email at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
Armada sets sail as flagship of Nissan’s fleet of SUVs
NAPA, CA. — The big news out of Nissan this fall is the companyÂ’s bold attempt at entering the full-size U.S. truck market, where its Titan will attempt to take on the stalwart Ford-Chevrolet-Dodge and Toyota dominators. But as long as the big, new Titan is going to be built in the new facility at Canton, Miss., Nissan figured it would give it an accompanying sport-utility vehicle.
In fact, the new new, eight-passenger Armada will beat the Titan to market. The first models of the big SUV are rolling off the Canton assembly line already, scheduled to reach showrooms by the end of September, and aiming at 40,000 sales a year. The full half-ton Titan, with designs on selling 100,000 annually, wonÂ’t start production until October and wonÂ’t show up at dealerships until December.
The Armada shares Nissan’s all-new 5.6-liter V8, which is being built in Tennessee, and it is tweaked differently to have the same 305 horsepower at 4,900 RPMs and 385 foot-pounds of torque at 3,600 RPMs – an increase six over the Titan – with a best-in-class 9,100-pound towing capacity.
While the Titan measures up almost identically to the pickup industry standard Ford F150, the Armada is built on the same platform and with the same drivetrain, but replaces the TitanÂ’s solid rear axle with independent rear suspension. The difference in wheelbase shows the ArmadaÂ’s 123.2-inch span beating the Expedition by four inches, the Tahoe by seven and the Sequoia by five. In overall length, the Armada measures 206.9 inches in length, which is just over an inch longer than a Ford Expedition, three inches longer than a Toyota Sequoia, eight inches longer than a GMC Yukon, and 10 inches longer than a Tahoe. It is more than a foot shorter than a Chevrolet Suburban, however, settling for a competitive niche in the full-size but not behemoth class.
The new SUV will be known, undoubtedly, as the Armada, although its official name, Nissan executives insist, is the “Pathfinder Armada.†That could be a market-research point to debate, perhaps.
“It’s not the Armada, it’s the Pathfinder Armada,†said Mitch Davis, senior marketing manage for Nissan SUVs. “Pathfinder is a strong name in the market, and the name Pathfinder is important, because it means adventurous, rugged and capable. The Armada is big, powerful and premium, and it completes our SUV plan, because we had the Pathfinder, Xterra and Murano, and now we have a full-size SUV in the Armada.
“The Pathfinder itself is not going away, because it brings a lot to the midsize segment. We think the Armada will bring that to the large SUV segment.Ââ€
The fact that Davis felt he had to inform the media at the Napa Valley introduction of the Armada that the Pathfinder itself would not be eliminated came because that was the logical question from the media, and very likely will be the probable assumption by consumers.
Beyond that, I asked several Nissan executives that when the company’s committee that works so hard to come up with vehicle names did its job, was any consideration given to the actual definition of the words? All of them asked what I meant, and I suggested that the normal definition of a “pathfinder†is someone who is exploring to find a new route through unfamiliar terrain, while an “armada†is a large fleet of ships. Doesn’t that make “Pathfinder Armada†something like “Army Navy?†My question drew blanks.
The name notwithstanding, it will come to be known as the Armada, just to differentiate the completely different trucks, shortly after thousands of customers need to be informed that, no, the Armada doesnÂ’t replace the Pathfinder. The Armada is 25 inches longer than the Pathfinder, with a 17-inch longer wheelbase at 123.2 inches, and its seven inches wider. That greater size translates to 10 inches more rear-seat legroom, and 32.4 inches of third-row legroom, compared to no third-row seat in the Pathfinder.
In appearance, the Armada is impressive, both inside and out. The exterior shares the TitanÂ’s new-edge look from the grille, with tastefully artful lines and curves flowing back from there. The roofline has an arch to it, then levels out over the third-row seat. The Armada has a large presence, but inside it drives and rides much more smoothly and with greater agility than its size implies.
The structure is solid and firm, and safety side beams, three-zone crushable areas and front and side airbags support the secure feel. The three-row side curtain airbags and the seatbelt pretensioners all are activated if the Armada ever reaches a 45-degree angle, meaning occupants are cushioned from a potential rollover in the scant seconds between the time a rollover is sensed as imminent and when it occurs.
Inside, the Armada carries on NissanÂ’s recent trend toward slick, contemporary design of instruments, switchgear and seating flexibility. The Armada can seat eight, with two in front, three in the second row and three more in the third. The second row also can be configured in two buckets, reducing capacity to seven, but providing front and removable rear consoles with the personalized buckets.
Access to the third row is surprisingly easy, because after opening the large rear door, a flip of the seat latch causes the whole seat tumbles forward and you can simply step in and sit down in back. Six-footers will have no problem back there.
Most impressive, perhaps, is that the third row, and second row seats all fold down completely flat – not “nearly flat,†Nissan executives point out, with reference to rivals. Folded down, that leaves a 6.5-foot flat area behind the front seats. The front right bucket backrest also folds down flat, which means the driver could fill up the rest of the vehicle with all his worldlies, including a 10-foot ladder.
The fully independent double-wishbone suspension has stabilizer bars front and rear, and shares TitanÂ’s separated coil springs and shock absorbers up front. Four-wheel disc brakes have antilock, electronic brake force distribution and a brake assist feature to read a driverÂ’s intensity and provide maximum braking force. Standard wheels are 17 inch, with 18 optional.
The engine is a gem, with chain-driven dual-overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder,with aluminum block and heads, cast iron cylinder liners and forged steel crankshaft. The engine has standard vehicle dynamic control and brake-activated limited-slip traction control, which can be disabled. The all-wheel drive system has a switch to engage two-wheel drive, or four-wheel high or low.
The Armada comes in three models, the base SE, the SE off-road, and the LE, which has its luxury set apart by a chrome grille. Nissan anticipates selling 40,000 vehicles in Armada’s first year, which is modest considering that the Sequoia sold 70,000 for Toyota last year. Expectations are that one-third of Armada buyers will come from within Nissan’s customer base, either adding to or replacing one of the Nissan sedans, or moving up from – you should pardon the expression – the Pathfinder.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto columns; reach him by email at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
RS 6 moves Audi suddenly to the front of the fast lane
ItÂ’s a common theme: You’re cruising along at 70 on a Sunday afternoon drive, with fairly congested freeway traffic, and the oaf ahead of you is going five-under, mindlessly clogging the left lane. If youÂ’re lucky enough to be driving an Audi RS 6, however, you can write your own rules as soon as you spot an opening in the right lane.
Squeeze your left hand on the steering wheel and feel the downshift from fifth to fourth. Do it again, reaching third, and hit the gas as you cock the wheel just a bit. Responding immediately, the car leaps ahead as you sidestep into the right lane and duck back ahead of the moving roadblock. The power of 450 horsepower and 415 foot-pounds of torque creates an exhilarating moment, and the car has the refined social graces to get past the moving roadblock so suddenly that it leaves plenty of margin to clear slower right-lane traffic while not even disturbing the dawdling driverÂ’s snooze.
Hey, it beats road-rage!
You have to hand it to Audi engineers. They not only must not only keep coming up with successful versions of all three of its sedans, plus its coupes, roadsters, station wagons and sport-utility vehicles, but it must do the job in Germany to keep up with no less than Mercedes and BMW. For a couple of decades now, Audi has done an admirable job of competing with Mercedes and BMW model for model, usually with lower sticker prices, and the clearcut advantages of front-wheel drive and, with its incomparable quattro system, all-wheel drive.
Audi even has battled its German peers with sporty upgrades of its models, offering an S4 upgrade to its basic A4 sedan, an S6 on the A6 and even an S8 version of the costly, all-aluminum A8. Still, the competition in the mid-size range keeps improving. Mercedes goes over the top in performance with the supercharged AMG E-Class called the E55, and BMW is going to a V10 on its next M5.
AudiÂ’s response is the RS 6, which, if it isnÂ’t the ultimate all-weather sports sedan, certainly is among the very elite. Audi took the slick, midsize A6, enhanced its full-time quattro, beefed up the suspension, wheels, tires and brakes, and stuffed the A8Â’s V8 engine under the hood instead of the very competent 3.0-liter V6.
The 4.2-liter V8 has dual overhead camshafts and five valves per cylinder. Consider that a Corvette V8 has 16 valves, while the Audi V8 has 40! When the luxury A8 is strengthened to become the S8, the 4.2 has 360 horsepower. In the RS 6, twin turbochargers provoke 450 horsepower out of that same engine, and its 415 foot-pounds of torque hold that peak all the way from 1,900 to 5,600 RPMs.
A five-speed automatic transmission with the Porsche-patented Tiptronic shift gate allows clutch-free manual shifting. More fun is to leave the shift lever in “D†and use the touch-shift controls right where your index fingers rest on the backside of the steering wheel. Squeeze the right button to shift up to the next gear, squeeze the left button to downshift. The RS 6 will not only out-drag a BMW M3 or M5, but also beats Corvettes, Mustang SVT Cobras and Porsche 911s – in a family sedan with full-time all-wheel drive that won’t even let you screech the tires.
Typical of Audi, its brakes are as advanced as its power; Assorted magazine tests have clocked the RS 6 at 4.3 seconds in 0-60 sprints, just over 10 seconds in 0-100 dashes, and just a tick over 15 seconds in the spectacular 0-100-0 tests of power and braking.
Of course, such incredible performance does not come without cost. The RS 6 price tag is $84,660, without options, because everything from the wood inlays to the leather seats, in-dash CD changer and the computerized information center – to say nothing of the mind-blowing engine, transmission, suspension and overall coordination – is standard.
High-performance cars used to operate in direct conflict with safe vehicles, but in the RS 6 you get both. Front and rear crumple zones, side impact barriers, the latest front and side airbags and side curtains add to security. Firm, supportive seats and well-planned switch positioning help contribute to the feeling of total control.The superb suspension, coordinated with electronic stabilization, keep the RS 6 headed the right direction.
And, of course, there is quattro, which embodies Audi’s attempt at understatement by being spelled with a lower-case “q.†The system issues equal torque front and rear, shifting the emphasis of power if either end has more traction. The quattro system was aimed at enhancing high-performance cornering, and the car sticks unerringly to the pavement to the point where you might wonder if you’re really steering or the car is on rails. Winter-weather security, which is beyond question, turns out to be just a by-product of the performance grip.
The quattro has been so effective, and such a low-cost option to the base front-wheel drive of Audi cars, that Mercedes and BMW now offer all-wheel-drive systems, too, which proves that it isnÂ’t just Audi trying to keep up. Both Mercedes and BMW have steadfastly stayed with front-engine/rear-drive layouts, though, and their all-wheel-drive systems allow a small percentage of power to go to the front wheels in times of skittishness. AudiÂ’s quattro starts out with the 50-50 arrangement on the two axles, so all four wheels always are pulling their fair share.
Part of the appeal of the RS 6 is its scarcity. You wonÂ’t see one in every neighborhood, and when you spot one from another car it takes a sharp eye to discern the subtle RS 6 pedigree from the integrated front airdam, alloy wheels, the tiny logos on the grille or rear, the subtle rear spoiler lip, or the big twin chrome tailpipes.
The easiest way to spot the difference would be if the guy behind you downshifts a couple of gears, twitches the steering wheel, and at the touch of the gas gets his RS 6 to impersonate a blur as it disappears over the horizon.
Lexus RX330 gives new voice to midsize SUV slot
WASHINGTON, D.C.—We were starting out from a motel in a small town in Virginia, 20 miles out in suburban Washington, D.C., and hoping, after the late-afternoon sun finally end a two-day siege of rain, to beat darkness and get downtown to walk through all the monuments on the Mall.
Problem was, none of the four of us had a clue about how to get there. As the rest of the group started arm-wrestling a road map, I simply punched a button on the dash that said “Navi.†That activated the Lexus RX330 navigation system. It asked me for a destination, and I could choose from a street address, a restaurant, a hotel, an intersection, or a “POI.†I selected POI – point of interest – and keyed in the Washington Monument.
Immediately, a map appeared on the screen, showing the tangle of streets and highways, with a zig-zagging connection of various roads highlighted in royal blue. That would be our route.
We didn’t even have to look at the well-defined map, although I continually glanced just so I could anticipate our next move, but we left everything up to Zelda. Zelda was the name we gave to the pleasant, feminine voice that gently directed us to our next turn. “In the next 2 kilometers, keep right,†she would say. Then, “In 200 meters, make a right turn.†There probably is a way to change to feet and miles, but we never bothered figuring that out. Besides, it was a good exercise in the metric system.
Jerry, in the back seat, had been marveling at ZeldaÂ’s voice, but timed it perfectly when he said, “What did she say?†just as she was saying it. So I didn’t hear her and blew the final turn. Ah well, thatÂ’s what brothers-in-law are for, isnÂ’t it? No matter, because Zelda stayed calm, first suggesting we make a “legal u-turn,†which showed she had never driven in D.C., before, either. Then she gently directed us on a strange but efficient means of doubling back and around over bridges and one-way streets to bring us right back to the proper intersection.
“You have reached your destination,†Zelda said as I made the turn and found a steet-parking place. She did NOT say, “ItÂ’s about time, you morons!Ââ€
The chance to road-test the new 2004 Lexus RX330, and a niece’s wedding on July 3 in suburban Washington, D.C., conspired to give us a special trip to witness the Fourth of July in the nation’s Capitol. I anticipated the RX330 would be pretty impressive, because it is all-new for 2004, and its first version wrote the standards for the midsize sport-utility vehicle segment – establishing the target for the Acura MDX, BMW X5, Mercedes M-320 and others to strive for.
The new version is improved in every way. While the first RX300 sloped fore and aft to carve a sleek silhouette, the new one is much more angular and much more attractive, separating itself from the traditional boxy look of SUVs by about as much as is possible while still retaining utilitarian room and flexibility inside.
The features available pretty much cover all that is high-tech in the industry these days. Standard equipment starts with an enlarged 3.3-liter V6 engine, with dual-overhead camshafts and variable valve-timing sending 24 valves tapping their way to produce 230 horsepower. It has a computer-controlled 5-speed automatic with a snow feature that clicks to let you start up in second gear when itÂ’s slippery, and full-time all-wheel-drive.
Power rack and pinion steering is precise for a sporty car, let alone an SUV, and disc brakes at all four wheels have antilock as well as brake-assist to put the brakes on full when you need them, and electronic brake distribution to make sure the brake force works evenly. 17-inch alloy wheels, including a full-size spare, safety stuff that includes front airbags, driverÂ’s knee airbag, side curtain airbags and seat mounted front side airbags.
Vehicle stability control keeps the RX330 going in the right direction, which adds to the secure feeling inside, where you live. Living arrangements couldnÂ’t be better. Dual zone climate control with rear vents helped us in the 95-100 degree heat and stifling humidity around Washington, making the vehicle a welcome oasis every time we had walked ourselves to exhaustion.
A six-CD player with eight speakers, eight-way power driverÂ’s seat (four-way for the front passenger), with the rear three seats split 40-20-40 with reclining as well as fold-down capability. The large amount of wood trim was real wood, looking like birds-eye maple, and while the front liquid crystal display screen handled vent, audio, trip, temperature and clock functions, all of that was standard, for the $36,425 base price.
The option list jacked the price up to $45,668, but before you wince, consider what was included, and donÂ’t ask me to eliminate the choices for you. An upgrade to 18-inch wheels aided stability, a rear-seat entertainment system with ceiling-mound DVD screen and two wireless headphones was neat. (In fact, I should have stopped to invest in a DVD, just to divert brother-in-law Jer.)
Heated front seats with rain-sensing wipers – yes, they work by themselves – and headlight washers cost $665. The premium package was $3,440 and consists of leather seats, power tilt and telescope steering wheel with memory, one-touch open and close moonroof, high-intensity headlights, wood and leather steering wheel and shift knob, and a power, key-fob-operated rear hatch.
The navigation system comes in a $2,350 package that includes a compass and a rear back-up video camera, which plays a wide-angle video on the navigation screen any time you shift into reverse.
If you’d been with us, and Zelda, you’d never part with the navigation system. I knew it would work, but it still amazed me. The night before we went downtown, I had coded in the address of a pre-wedding dinner and it took us back and forth to two houses in different areas of winding suburban streets. After every trip, we just poked the button to go back to our previous destination – the hotel – and it returned us.
Having toured the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, walked around the White House while peering in to see the secret-service guys on the roof – and being startled by a formation of black-clad, night-vision machine-gun-toting guards sweeping the grounds inside the iron fencing – I must say that the Vietnam Wall was deeply moving, but the most moving thing of all was the Korean War Memorial. Its haunting, full-size sculptures of an infantry company stalking in scattered formation was stunning, but especially eerie at night, with the lighted Lincoln Memorial far in the background.
We knew there would be hundreds of thousands at the Mall on the night of the Fourth, so we went to Annapolis, Md., which was the nationÂ’s first Capitol, for the afternoon, highlighted by an all-you-can-eat seafood lunch buffet at BuddyÂ’s, then we decided to circle the crowd and go to the Georgetown area for the evening. We didnÂ’t know how to get there, of course, so we summoned Zelda again.
Without knowing any places there, we took a chance and coded in the Georgetown Inn. It gave us a reading, and Zelda guided us until we got to the vicinity, but the crowd and blockaded streets meant we had to abandon her directions and circle many blocks, many times, seeking a parking place. Long after Zelda had given up on us, we came around a corner, and suddenly Zelda’s voice said: “You have reached your destination.†We looked up, and sure enough, there was a place called the Georgetown Inn!
The new RX330 is so slick it can find places even if youÂ’re not really looking for them.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto columns. He can be reached by e-mail at cars@jwgilbert.com.)
Revised F150 perfect missile to defend Ford’s turf
SAN ANTONIO, TX.—Ford rounded up the world’s media to road-test the completely redone F150 pickup truck during the past few weeks, and it chose the site carefully: start with a little Old West history at the Alamo, drive the heck out of the trucks on a parking-lot autocross, roar through the rolling hill-country highways of southern Texas, and, most important, rent a ranch where drivers can experience a specially built off-road course.
The introduction took long enough that Ford wouldn’t allow any driving reports until July 1. So having discussed the F150’s introduction in context of all of Ford’s 2004 models a couple of weeks ago, now it can finally be told how all five models of the new full-size pickup – the XL, STX, XLT, FX4 and top-of-the-line Lariat – handled the tests with power and stability. That was an especially impressive achievement because Ford had brought out top models of the Chevrolet Silverado, Dodge Hemi and Toyota Tundra for comparison purposes.
The media favorite was definitely the off-road course. We started out running through a grass-in-the-middle trail through some brush, and after a couple of turns, we plunged down an extremely steep hill – straight into a river. Once in the river, we turned left, then, amazingly enough, we splashed through this quite-shallow but rapidly flowing river for a couple-hundred yards before turning left again and clawing our way up a steep hill. The course then followed a twisting trail with alternating patterns of huge holes, deep ditches, treacherous holes to climb up, down, and over, before finally climbing another hill with stair-like beams that sent you skyward, without being able to see that it immediately plunged down over the other side, where your descent end with a 90-degree right turn.
There is a chance you could own your full-size pickup truck for 10 years, working every day on a farm, ranch, or to haul something or somebody – or both – into town, and never put it through the rugged terrain we ran those F150s through.
As the top-selling vehicle in the world, the F150 has some serious turf to defend, particularly now, when competition is the most severe, with Nissan joining the crowded full-size pickup scene, although its new Titan wasnÂ’t out in time to be included. All of the trucks had some impressive assets, some more than others. The Tundra was lighter and you could hurl it around the autocross course, and it was, Ford admitted, its benchmark for building a quiet interior. And the Dodge was so strong it was understandable how some magazines ranked it the best among the 2003 pickups.
But the F150 lived up to the expectations of chassis engineer Frank Davis, who monitored every test, riding with journalists and welcoming conversation about each. Although he usually ended each session acknowledging that some rivals were OK, but stressing that heÂ’s happy, “as long as you like my truck.Ââ€
While selling over 800,000 F150s every year, Ford averages five sold every minute, with one a minute in Texas alone, which was a good reason the introduction was there. Just outside of San Antonio, we stopped for driver change and technical session at the Jennings Anderson Ford dealership, the fourth largest truck-seller in the industry, which boasts that 90 percent of its business comes from pickups.
“Our regular cab and Super Cab both are 6 inches longer inside, and have 16 inches of storage area behind the seat,†said Davis. “We’ve built the new F150 to be tough, capable and dependable. Twice as tough as today’s F150, with a 3,000-pound payload that’s 800 more than the competition. You can get a pickup box that is 5.5, 6.5 or 8 feet long on the Styleside.
“All our pickups have four doors, and we have 26 different choices in how you want to select your truck. Chevy has 21, there are 12 with the Ram, 8 with the Tundra and 6 with the Titan.Ââ€
Davis added that the rear seats have a 21-degree angle to the backrest, same as the front, so even occasional rear-seat occupants neednÂ’t sit bolt upright in the extended-cab models with rear-opening back doors.
When we got to the off-road segment, the smooth poise the F150 showed, even while charging through the shallow but fast-moving current of the river, was impressive. The revised 5.4-liter Triton V8 easily scaled cliff-like vertical climbs while the suspension ate up the bumps and holes. Equally impressive was how the things could be shifted into low range to ease nose-first down the other side of those hills, and the underside angle was sufficient so that you didnÂ’t even scrape when your instinct told you that you were about to stuff the grille into the bottom side of those hills. All of the competitors made it around too, although some bounce more, some were more harsh, some felt looser, and others couldnÂ’t match FordÂ’s angle of descent.
The F150 frame is nine times stiffer torsionally because of a fully-boxed design of hydroformed beams. That stiffness translates to added safety as well as handling capabilities. Newly designed coil-over-shock front suspension and rear shocks that have been moved as far out as possible provide better roll control, and quick, precise power rack-and-pinion steering also helps exercise the handling stability. A wider stance provides greater payload and interior room, and the payload, by the way, can be paid via a power tailgate.
There are other technical improvements, starting with the engine. The 5.4 V8 is a derivative of FordÂ’s modular 4.6-liter V8, and instead of the basic two-valve arrangement, the new pickupÂ’s 5.4 gets three valves per cylinder. Engine power comes from breathing ability, and instead of one 44.5-mm intake valve, the new one has two 33.8-mm valves for 23.1-mm more fuel-air intake. The single exhaust valve measures 37.5 mm compared to the 36-mm of the conventional two-valve.
Engine guru Pete Dowding explained the further advantage of all-new cylinder heads and variable valve-timing, with chain-driven single overhead camshafts altering the timing of both intake and exhaust valves, by a unique system that forces oil through five vanes to twist the cams’ position, relative to the crankshaft. That means the valve-timing is constantly altered to meet the demand of the driver, whose input on the gas pedal is electronically transmitted – just like the “drive-by-wire†concept of world-class race cars.
“Our engine has 300 horsepower compared to 260 on the current engine, and 365 foot-pounds of torque compared to 350,†said Dowding. “The story on the torque is that it stays constant from 1,000-3,500 RPMs, and still stays substantial at high RPMs. If you compare graphs, you see that the GM 6-liter engine and our 5.4 are very similar in torque. The Dodge Hemi has slightly higher torque, but they need premium gas. WeÂ’re using regular gas, and weÂ’re getting torque, power and refinement, but we also want the efficiency of burning all the gasoline.Ââ€
Styling might seem unimportant to truck-buyers who need their vehicles for heavy work, but if styling can make the difference in a buyerÂ’s decision, Ford has hit that ball well out of the park. On the outside, Ford altered the dramatically aerodynamic look of its current generation slightly, raising the tip of the nose for better driver aim while retaining its distinctive look. You can get different grilles, with the blacked-out subtlety of the basic XL with 17-inch steel wheels, or the STX with monotone paint and cast aluminum wheels, or the flashier XLT, or off-road specialist FX4, which goes to 18-inch wheels and has off-road shocks, skid plates and standard limited-slip axles. The top Lariat gets a bright chrome grille surrounding metallic mesh.
Inside, the F150 really goes all-out. No previous pickup truck ever has displayed the style and class of the new Ford. The basic models are efficiently laid out, with the shift lever on the steering column and all controls laid out in efficiently attractive position. The upgrade gets you captainÂ’s chairs with a floor-shift lever. The top Lariat has a different instrument layout, and rings the instruments with chrome while surrounding occupants with much fancier leather-seat and woodgrain trim, plus a computer-message center and assorted creature comforts. You can even get the SUV/minivan style DVD player in the ceiling for rear-seat occupants in the SuperCab or SuperCrew models.
My only complaints were the grip handles – too thick for some hands on the door-pull, and the front-pillar-mounted grab handle should be roof-mounted to aid entry and exit.
“WeÂ’ve sold 27.5 million trucks over 55 years,†said Jim Padilla, Ford North America president. “For 26 years itÂ’s been the best-selling truck, and for 21 years itÂ’s been the best-selling vehicle. The frame is rigid, the new body looks good, the powertrain is well beyond what weÂ’ve had, and the interior is a knockout. WeÂ’ve got a new manufacturing process that is lean and flexible, and we think we can build enough F150s at our Norfolk, Kansas City and River Rouge plants to retain our leadership position.Ââ€
FordÂ’s confidence in the new F150 is well-founded, because after two days of freeways and highways over hills and including gravel, and a punishing off-road session, it could be leaving the competition up the creek, as they say in Texas.
(John Gilbert writes weekly auto columns. He can be reached at jgilbert@duluth.com.)
About the Author
John Gilbert is a lifetime Minnesotan and career journalist, specializing in cars and sports during and since spending 30 years at the Minneapolis Tribune, now the Star Tribune. More recently, he has continued translating the high-tech world of autos and sharing his passionate insights as a freelance writer/photographer/broadcaster. A member of the prestigious North American Car and Truck of the Year jury since 1993. John can be heard Monday-Friday from 9-11am on 610 KDAL(www.kdal610.com) on the "John Gilbert Show," and writes a column in the Duluth Reader.
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