Yet another Gen II review

[smurfslayer]

I’d say it’s fair to say I prefer American cars, but not to exclusivity. previous 3 4 wheeled vehicles were Japanese. I’ve not owned a European car, but owned Ducati for 5 years. Just like a boat, the 2 happiest days of a Ducati owner’s life are the day they buy it, and the day they sell it. Without question, the Duc was the nimblest, best handling vehicle I’ve had. Ever. It was also pretty darn quick, but was a temperamental creature.


I’m more into bikes than cars and truly, just before I landed the deal on my Rap, I was going to pitch the whole idea and buy a Ninja H2.

 

[gwpfan]

[*]Seat memory recall setting. It is completely asinine for you to have to be in park to recall a memory setting. Sorry to start this off with a rant, but this is the stupidest and dumbest thing I have ever seen in over 15 cars in my lifetime. Is it reasonable to expect driver to pull over and park just to adjust the seat to their memory? Geez Ford, bad miss there..

Personally I agree, fine if over x speed maybe, but for the average build person it doesn't take it that far out of reach, IMO.
FWIW - my wife likes it a bit closer than I do and I forget half of the time until I am down the road and stretch. Try shifting into neutral, then hitting the memory recall button you want. Once it starts going to the position you want shift back into drive. Works on the 12'-16' year model Ford/Lincoln vehicles I've owned. Haven't tried it on the new one yet.

[*]Ride is bouncy and uncomposed, steering is sloppy, the whole thing is “floaty.” Calm down Gen II fans, hold the trigger on “you bought a full size pickup what do you expect” comments. Yes, the bouncy ride doesn’t bother me one bit. This is not and will never be a sports car, no matter how much power it makes, the same way as any 5700 lb truck will never be a sports car. The floaty ride is actually an asset, more on that below.

What air pressure are you running in your tires? Numerous of us have found them grossly over inflated. Most are running 35-40 psi, yet finding them off the dealer lot at 50+, when rated for 45 max. Made a big difference on mine.

[*]Brakes are spongy and numb. I don’t think it’s the piston setup or rotor size, I think there is enough clamp, just not any feel to the pedal and a lot of pedal travel. It’s like squeezing an exercise ball in your hand. It makes me wonder if just changing out the brake fluid may have a positive impact?

Agreed, brakes feel to soft even in wife's 16 Platinum, Raptor the same and wish they weren't so soft.

 

[Miker397]

Agree with most of op points. The brakes are spongy and weak, the ride is floaty and juddery on bad roads and grip on or off throttle on wet roads is abysmal. It's impossible to put power down at all on wet bad roads with bumps.I don't care about the seat recall feature, more bugged sport mode has to be toggled every time and is not stored. The sound is fine, not special for sure but fine.

I also like a lot of things, the cabin is beautiful and I love the space, ride position, rear seats, etc. The power in any gear is shockingly fantastic, especially impressed how well this thing gains speed from 70-80mph with just a drop to 9th gear. I thought it would lag terribly in top gear on the highway from too tall of overdrive gears, but that's far from the case. I like the firm crisp sport shift gear changes, but I hate how it often holds third or fourth gear forevvvver in sport. The leather is great quality, very soft for a Ford. The look and cool factor are off the charts.

 

[gwpfan]

Verified shift into neutral while driving allows for seat recall feature.

 

[WhatExit?]

Ride is bouncy and uncomposed, steering is sloppy, the whole thing is “floaty.”

All that writing and that's all you can say about the ride?!

Do you go off road? Have you driven it off road?

Your whole review is "MEH" - you're "MEH" - whatever car/truck you love you should go back to it. You sound like you expected an M5 instead of a Raptor.

Do yourself and the Raptor world a favor and sell your 2017 and go back to the Bimmer forums where you can put down how lousy 911's handle.

 

[xxaarraa]

I’d say it’s fair to say I prefer American cars, but not to exclusivity. previous 3 4 wheeled vehicles were Japanese. I’ve not owned a European car, but owned Ducati for 5 years. Just like a boat, the 2 happiest days of a Ducati owner’s life are the day they buy it, and the day they sell it. Without question, the Duc was the nimblest, best handling vehicle I’ve had. Ever. It was also pretty darn quick, but was a temperamental creature.


I’m more into bikes than cars and truly, just before I landed the deal on my Rap, I was going to pitch the whole idea and buy a Ninja H2.

Your 1198S is a cool bike, a lot of people still miss the trellis frame era bikes, of which the 1198S or the later 1198 corse were the pinnacle.

I have had a bunch of Ducatis over the years, and currently race an 848 corse as my middleweight. I also race Aprilias for lightweight (RS250) and heavyweight (RSV4). Italian bikes have so much character and make for such a great ownership experience despite their unreliability, that all flaws are forgiven. Same as Raptor, in my book.

Having said all that, you should own a few European cars if you get the opportunity in the future.
You aren't a true auto enthusiast till you have owned an M, an AMG, and maybe a 911 too. You don't have to like them, but you need to know them. They are yardsticks.

Agree with most of op points. The brakes are spongy and weak, the ride is floaty and juddery on bad roads and grip on or off throttle on wet roads is abysmal. It's impossible to put power down at all on wet bad roads with bumps.I don't care about the seat recall feature, more bugged sport mode has to be toggled every time and is not stored. The sound is fine, not special for sure but fine.

I also like a lot of things, the cabin is beautiful and I love the space, ride position, rear seats, etc. The power in any gear is shockingly fantastic, especially impressed how well this thing gains speed from 70-80mph with just a drop to 9th gear. I thought it would lag terribly in top gear on the highway from too tall of overdrive gears, but that's far from the case. I like the firm crisp sport shift gear changes, but I hate how it often holds third or fourth gear forevvvver in sport. The leather is great quality, very soft for a Ford. The look and cool factor are off the charts.

Could not agree with you more. We both have the same POV.

All that writing and that's all you can say about the ride?!

Do you go off road? Have you driven it off road?

Your whole review is "MEH" - you're "MEH" - whatever car/truck you love you should go back to it. You sound like you expected an M5 instead of a Raptor.

Do yourself and the Raptor world a favor and sell your 2017 and go back to the Bimmer forums where you can put down how lousy 911's handle.

Dude, take it easy. My overall review is very positive and I love my truck. IF someone posts an objective critique and you respond by attacking them, it makes you look less of a true auto enthusiast and more of a fanboi.

 

[Miker397]

I forgot to mention the steering is taking some getting used to. I like the option of the three different steering modes, but the electric steering feels very chunky and non linear, especially as you exit a turn and let wheel slide back into center position. If you are in 4a or 4h or 4l, I can barely turn the damn wheel with any predictability. I'm sure the massive ko2s don't help.

Again, I'm using this thread as more of a negative venting vs the positive. I wanted a big truck for the space to haul my son and luggage and snowmobile trailers up north etc. I admit I won't use the off-road features near as much as I'd like, and this is also my first truck. Maybe I let the cool factor overcome on road driving characteristics and I'd be better off with Platinum, but I think the things I don't prefer are characteristic of all trucks. Every review I've read from people say the raptor is better on road then a platinum or super duty.

 

[kandewinn]

The Best Ride by Far

I forgot to mention the steering is taking some getting used to. I like the option of the three different steering modes, but the electric steering feels very chunky and non linear, especially as you exit a turn and let wheel slide back into center position. If you are in 4a or 4h or 4l, I can barely turn the damn wheel with any predictability. I'm sure the massive ko2s don't help.

Again, I'm using this thread as more of a negative venting vs the positive. I wanted a big truck for the space to haul my son and luggage and snowmobile trailers up north etc. I admit I won't use the off-road features near as much as I'd like, and this is also my first truck. Maybe I let the cool factor overcome on road driving characteristics and I'd be better off with Platinum, but I think the things I don't prefer are characteristic of all trucks. Every review I've read from people say the raptor is better on road then a platinum or super duty.

Good points in all your posts. The truck is definitely the best riding truck on the market. I've owned everything from Dodge to Chevy to Ford. 1500 to 2500 in each model. I quit shopping for any other truck once I bought my 2011 SCREW. It was the best riding truck I ever owned, until the 2017. As far as traction and grip over wet/bumpy roads, air down the tires to at least 38 PSI, my tires are all at 40 psi once hot. And I've found that 4A solves all of my traction issues on wet roads. The slippage is a characteristic of the KO2s. I noticed the KO2s had far less grip in rain than the original BFGs that came on my Gen1 when I replaced them at 70K miles. Enjoy that truck, you will not find a better riding one!!

 

[Miker397]

I agree 4a completly solves the acceleration skipping in the wet, but around a round a bout at reasonably speed it still slides horizontally. Defibatky the tires with 6000lbs on them I guess. My problem with 4a is the steering feel is absolutely aweful all the time. Heaven forbid trying to park at the grocery with 4a on. I would understand it from 4h, but lots of vehicles have 4a without destroying the steering.

How are the ko2 in the snow/ice then? I am more concerned about that driving in Michigan and hauling snowmobiles up to the UP.

 

[Truck-in-Muck]

What air pressure are you running in your tires? Numerous of us have found them grossly over inflated. Most are running 35-40 psi, yet finding them off the dealer lot at 50+, when rated for 45 max. Made a big difference on mine.

Same here. Went from 48 to 38 cold and it made a difference. Same thing applies to air pressures on motorbikes and sports cars.