2012 Ford F-150 buying advice

Patches · Sep 2, 2012

Maybe you (should) look into the Tundra. I've got an '07 Double Cab;plenty of room in the back seat area, seat folds up for even more floor space, available with a V-6, 4.6 V-8, or the 5.7 V-8 which is what I have, and an 8' bed. As an added incentive to you, they're built in San Antonio. Help keep your fellow Texans working

JESSE1 · Sep 2, 2012

Eddie, Kilgore Ford shows to have an F-150 Supercab, Oxford white, XL trim, 8' bed, 5.0 engine and 3.73 axle ratio.

jejeosborne · Sep 2, 2012

Don't skip on the 8' bed, you will probably regret it later. Plus everything is supposed to be big in Texas

. Good luck on your search. If I couldn't find the exact truck that I desire, I would wait another 8 months (9,000 miles) and order exactly what you want when the 2013 rebates are attractive.

dstig1 · Sep 2, 2012

EddieWalker said:
I really don't carry that much weight, it's more of a volume thing. Lumber one day, a dozen sheets of sheetrock another day, maybe some cabinets or a bathtub. None of my loads are very heavy, but with my tool boxes in the back of the bed, I run out of room a lot and regularly have to tie stuff down because it's piled up above the sides of my bed. I want the extra cab so I can put my tool boxes inside and give more room in the box. I thought about the 6.5 bed being alright because I wouldn't have the tool boxes in there, but then I figured there isn't any such thing as too much room, and it was silly to go smaller when I already have to make several trips iwth an 8 ft bed.

Eddie

This brings up an interesting point I recalled. There was (still is??) a tax deduction for vehicles for business use that somehow applied to very large vehicles like 3/4 ton and up PUs. I think it applied to any vehicle over 8000 lbs GVWR, so it also impacted Hummers and some other large SUVs. It may be gone now, but perhaps there is something worth checking with your tax person to see what the deal is, or if that has all expired now. You may find it financially advantageous to get a larger truck. You could even then look at something that had a flat bed or a dump bed, which might be a significant help for you in your business. A 10' bed might be real nice for bigger items, even if you don't need the weight capacity. Just throwing out another option for you...

If you can't find what you want, I would just wait for the new model year books to open and then order precisely what you want. From what you stated, you are not in a crunch, you just want to be prepared and get a new vehicle before it becomes critical. Ordering and waiting will not hurt you in that case. I was going to do that in one case but the build-out date had just passed and I settled for a different car than I wanted. It didn't kill me, but I did regret not getting what I wanted to some degree, especially since I kept it for close to 16 yrs... I can be picky...

EddieWalker · Sep 3, 2012

JESSE1 said:
Eddie, Kilgore Ford shows to have an F-150 Supercab, Oxford white, XL trim, 8' bed, 5.0 engine and 3.73 axle ratio.

I went to their website, but it's pretty bad. I sent them an email and will wait to see what they say.

Thank you,
Eddie

jejeosborne · Sep 3, 2012

EddieWalker said:
I went to their website, but it's pretty bad. I sent them an email and will wait to see what they say.

Thank you,
Eddie

Here is a link to add any VIN and lookup the window sticker. Looks like that truck is bare bones which may or may not be what you are interested in. Just replace the last digits with any vin. For some reason that truck seems expensive for the options you get. It has the max payload I mentioned earlier but if not needed you may want to save the money or spend it on a comfort item.

http://services.forddirect.fordvehicles.com/inventory/WindowSticker.pdf?vin=1FTVX1EF0CKD82902

Rocksprings · Sep 3, 2012

http://www.f150forum.com/

EddieWalker · Sep 4, 2012

Thank you for the links!!!!

Eddie

EddieWalker · Sep 8, 2012

The truck that I posted has been sold. Seems like that really was a good price!!! They have sent me an email for an XL that looks very similar, just that it's not an XLT.

2012 FORD F-150 2WD SuperCab 8 Ft Box XL serving Terrell Mesquite Dallas Kaufman Canton Texas

The price is VERY GOOD!!!

Any thoughts on XL compared to XLT in a work truck?

Thanks,
Eddie

s219 · Sep 8, 2012

I liked the XLT for styling, but was definitely looking at the XLs -- I was shopping in December for tax purposes, and the XL is a hot seller to small businesses that time of year. The dealer was really moving them. They are almost always stocked in white color. There is an XL chrome package that does improve the looks quite a bit. If you want to maximize value, I really think the XL is hard to beat as a work truck. If it has the specs/options you want, definitely consider it.

Diamondpilot · Sep 10, 2012

XL is pretty plain jane. I would hold out for a xlt.

Chris

jejeosborne · Sep 10, 2012

If just used for a work truck the xl would be a no frills option. If used for personal use as well, the xlt would be a nice upgrade. I enjoy the LCD screen in the gauge area and am not sure if that is available in an xl or not. If you have a backup "date" vehicle, then frills are less important.

EddieWalker · Sep 30, 2012

I had some time and decided to go look at trucks. Before going I printed out about a dozen different trucks that I was interested in at different dealers. My local dealer wasn't able to come close to what they had in the Dallas area. Seemed like the farther out I looked, the better the deals. My third stop was in Terrel at Randal Noe. They had the white XL work truck that I wasn't sure if I would want because it was the XL and not as fancy as the XLT models I was wanting.

After looking at the XLT trucks, I sort of didn't like all the chrome and fancy interiors. I'm a simple guy and I'm not big on washing or making my truck look pretty. Having a pretty truck kind of scared me. The XL has rubber floors!!!! I really liked that. It has power windows, locks, mirrors and all sorts fo buttons that I don't know what they do.

I was concerned about the 3:31 gears, but thats what all the trucks had that I looked at and they all have more power and speed then I'm used to. The 5.0 V8 engine is a beast that just keeps accelerating until I chicken out. I've never had a vehicle with this much power or speed!!!!

It has the electronic power steering. I never even heard of this before, but have to say it's by far the nicest steering that I've ever experienced.

The ride is AMAZING. It's 2 wheel drive and 163 inches long. It feels very light and small when driving, but huge from sitting on the inside. Hard to describe, but a great feeling. On the road, it's like I'm not even moving. It feels like a sedan the way it rides. Cornering it feels like a sedan too!!! I really like the way it rides.

The bed is deeper then what I'm used to. I kept my tool box off of my old truck and there is a lot more room under it then what I had before. I'll be able to haul more material in this truck then I could before.

The back seat folds up and gives me all sorts of room. I'm still in the thinking stage of how I want to organize and take advantage of all that space. I have a dozen tool boxes for different tools or jobs. Things like copper, PVC, sanding, sheetrock and caulking are all in different tool boxes. Having them all back there all the time is my ulitimate goal. Making it nice and quiet is also a big part of what I want. Once I figure it out, and make it, I'll post pics. If anybody has any ideas, suggestions or sources, I'd appreciate hearing them.

Purchase price was $23,144. With trade in and down payment, I financed it for 6 years at 2.95% with a payment of $345 a month.

Thank you for everyone for your help. I oringially thought I wanted one thing, then wasn't sure what I wanted, then changed my mind again, and kind of went back and forth for a little bit. I really like this truck and don't know if I would have even looked at it if I hadn't of read everything on here and in the other threads about new trucks.

Eddie