Jose's Simple 2019 F150 Build
- Thread starter joseadventures
- Start date
joseadventures
dirthead
Here’s some shots of us boondocking on an October trip down to pahrump to take the Jimmy Lewis motorcycle class. I just took the floor tent since the rooftop one is on my van now.
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Explorerinil
Observer
I was going to order those seat covers, but after seeing how bad they fit I’ll pass.
joseadventures
dirthead
Lol yeah they are not a tailored fit, but that’s a bad picture since I had just installed them without sitting in them. They look more settled in in person.
I think they do sell a more fitted version but I wanted it easy to take off and wash. I’ve bought very fitted seat covers before that look nicer but are hard to put on and take off.
I think they do sell a more fitted version but I wanted it easy to take off and wash. I’ve bought very fitted seat covers before that look nicer but are hard to put on and take off.
Rovertrader
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Explorerinil
Observer
Ok that makes sense, and btw I wasn’t trying to sound mean about it, I was sold on those. I may look at marathons now.
joseadventures
dirthead
joseadventures
dirthead
It's a bit over 2 years now since I've been running this build, and I figured I'd jot down some quick thoughts on the truck and mods as a long term review.
As far as the truck itself, it has worked out great. The upsides (bring-all-the-things size, 3.5 EcoBoost power vs mpg balance, mile-eating comfy quiet cruiser) have proven true.
The two largest downsides for me were the i'm-on-a-boat size and not-a-toyota reliability, but so far those have not been a significant problem. I have gotten fairly used to parking this boat, and if things do get real tight there is always parking with in a couple blocks. I live in the SF Bay Area, and get a little nervous about parking when I have to go in to the city proper but it always works out. There are plenty of folks that live/work in SF proper with full-size pickups; if they can do it daily, I can figure it out every now and then. As far as on the trail, it hasn't been a problem. Mostly because I don't seek out technical stuff, and even when I have run in to some tight stuff I've been able to figure it out and hang with unlimited rubicons and 4runners just fine so far. It's just an extra foot or two here and there to deal with, not a bus. I do like that I can fit all the stuff inside the truck, and not have a bunch of stuff hanging on top or on the side; good for both the trail and the city but for different reasons.
As far as reliability, that remains TBD. It has been mostly reliable but with less than 3 years and 25k miles on the clock, thats not saying much. I did have a cam phaser recall (euphemistically called a Customer Satisfaction Program) done that required cab-off open-engine work at the dealer. Wasn't expecting that. Ford did own up to the issue, and did provide a redesigned part that should fix it going forward, so good on them. I do love the driving characteristics of this engine and realize that comes at the expense of simplicity of design and thus long term reliability. I would like to keep this rig a while, so we'll just have to see how creaky things get over time. Toyota noticed that a 3.5 twin turbo + 10spd is awesome too and put that in the new Tundra, so it will be interesting to see how reliability plays out there. I might swap out to a Tundra after a few years, but by then who knows what new awesomeness Ford might have that I might be drawn to. I digress.
Ok here are thoughts on the mod list:
As far as the truck itself, it has worked out great. The upsides (bring-all-the-things size, 3.5 EcoBoost power vs mpg balance, mile-eating comfy quiet cruiser) have proven true.
The two largest downsides for me were the i'm-on-a-boat size and not-a-toyota reliability, but so far those have not been a significant problem. I have gotten fairly used to parking this boat, and if things do get real tight there is always parking with in a couple blocks. I live in the SF Bay Area, and get a little nervous about parking when I have to go in to the city proper but it always works out. There are plenty of folks that live/work in SF proper with full-size pickups; if they can do it daily, I can figure it out every now and then. As far as on the trail, it hasn't been a problem. Mostly because I don't seek out technical stuff, and even when I have run in to some tight stuff I've been able to figure it out and hang with unlimited rubicons and 4runners just fine so far. It's just an extra foot or two here and there to deal with, not a bus. I do like that I can fit all the stuff inside the truck, and not have a bunch of stuff hanging on top or on the side; good for both the trail and the city but for different reasons.
As far as reliability, that remains TBD. It has been mostly reliable but with less than 3 years and 25k miles on the clock, thats not saying much. I did have a cam phaser recall (euphemistically called a Customer Satisfaction Program) done that required cab-off open-engine work at the dealer. Wasn't expecting that. Ford did own up to the issue, and did provide a redesigned part that should fix it going forward, so good on them. I do love the driving characteristics of this engine and realize that comes at the expense of simplicity of design and thus long term reliability. I would like to keep this rig a while, so we'll just have to see how creaky things get over time. Toyota noticed that a 3.5 twin turbo + 10spd is awesome too and put that in the new Tundra, so it will be interesting to see how reliability plays out there. I might swap out to a Tundra after a few years, but by then who knows what new awesomeness Ford might have that I might be drawn to. I digress.
Ok here are thoughts on the mod list:
- Snugtop Rebel with sportsmans upgrade (500lb load limit), windoor on right, vented slider on left, key fob integration.
- Very happy overall here. Functional and low key. Safely carries all the gear. You can even camp in it
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- Very happy overall here. Functional and low key. Safely carries all the gear. You can even camp in it
- Roofnest Falcon XL
- The tent itself was good but I sold it. Just a few months after buying this I got a pup. 65lb dogs do not mix well with RTTs. I've been using a Shiftpod mini and just bought a Gazelle t4, and am pretty happy with how quickly this style of ground tent sets up. With no RTT now I can park in most garages. And my tent is safely stowed away from the elements and thieves. The RTT was an interesting experiment but didn't work well for me. Surprisingly good resale value.
- Fox 2.0 Level kit in front, plus rear Fox 2.0s. - this let me fit the 33" tires.
- I think a level and 33's are a great config for daily driver that will see some BLM roads and moderately rocky trails. 35's are nice though. If this eventually becomes a dedicated adventure rig (not a daily) I might go bigger to take on more technical trails.
- Autospring Add-a-leaf kit for the rear - helped counter the sag of added weight of the snug top, RTT, gear, moto on hitch.
- This is a hack. It helps a little but I'll eventually need to get a real hd leafspring pack like one from Deaver.
- Method Roost 17" - I should have probably gone with the 700 series for lower pressure allowance but I liked the look of these.
- These are fine, maybe a bit pricey for what they are. I blew up a tire and wheel on a sharp rock in Death Valley and that hurt to replace. Might go budget steelies if I had to do this again. I do love having 5 of them with tpms to make rotations easy, get use out of the spare, and of course to have as a backup with no compromise.
- BFG KO2 LT285 70/R17 Load C - 33" was the right balance of size and weight for my needs. Load C was a balance of weight/suppleness vs toughness.
- I think I might go with Load E next time. Getting flats out there sucks.
- Line-X Bedliner
- Very happy.
- ESI ultimate tailgate seal + silicon2 bead in bed crevices - the gear gets real dusty back there without this mod.
- Gear stays clean now. Worth it. If you didn't have a camper shell, you might end up with pool back there after heavy rains.
- Morimoto XB LED headlights - better visibility...ok really because it looks cool.
- Lit.
- Full RCI Skidplate kit (FX4 skid plates were pretty flimsy)
- Since I don't do super technical trails, I haven't really needed these yet; they are scratchless. But nice insurance to have. I just added on the catalytic converter shield because thieves.
- N-fab rockrails
- These were not great, so I sold them. Design might cause more issues than it solves if you are going over rocks. Will upgrade to Rocky Road or White Knuckle sliders soon.
- Rhino-rack 59" vortex aero - for RTT.
- These stick out just a bit on the side. Pros (more room to fit stuff) and cons (tree catcher) to that. I might go with the 54" next time.
- Carhartt seat covers.
- These are great. I prefer cloth over the leather/vinyl for comfort and feel. Dog paw scratch resistant. Easy to wash. Warms up the drab grey interior.
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joseadventures
dirthead
To balance out all those words from my previous post, here are some pics of the rig on recent adventures up and down CA.
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