Ford F-250 reviews

1998 Ford F-250 Walkaround

Within the F-150/250 Series there is the regular cab and the extended SuperCab; wheelbase lengths of 119.9 in., 138.5 in. and 157.1 in.; smooth Styleside or nostalgia-look Flareside; two-wheel or four-wheel drive; and three engines: a 4.2-liter V6 of 210 hp and 255 pound-feet of torque, or a pair of overhead cam Triton V8s, a 4.6-liter of 220 hp and 290 lb.-ft., and a 5.4-liter of 235 hp and 330 lb.-ft. These are the world's first and so-far only overhead-cam V8 truck engines.

Then there are four trim levels: Standard, XL, XLT and Lariat, in ascending order. Not all possible combinations are available. But, by and large, there ought to be something here for just about anybody. Just counting Styleside or Flareside, 2WD or 4WD, regular cab or SuperCab, wheelbase choices and trim levels, we arrived at 60 choices and that was before we got into the multitude of available options.

Our subject vehicle was an F-250 SuperCab in Lariat trim, powered by the 5.4-liter V8.

We don't have room to go into all the prices, but the lowest-priced F-150, with rear-drive, a regular cab, Stylside standard trim, and a V6 engine has a base price of $14,430, plus $615 destination, for a total of $15,045. The "base" on our highly-loaded F-250 was $24,625, including destination.

The Lariat trim includes several items that would otherwise be options. Ours had a package that included leather seats, power mirrors, four-wheel anti-lock brakes and a chrome rear bumper; the 5.4-liter engine; automatic transmission; sliding rear window; trailer towing; keyless entry; and a six-disc CD changer. The total, including a "Special Added Discount" that took off $1850, came to $27,495.

The new Triton engine family is terrific, especially the 5.4-liter version. In smoothness, it embarrasses practically every other truck engine on the market. The power delivery is crisp and responsive, and to good low-end power it adds excellent mid-range and higher-speed power to make short work of real-world demands such as quick acceleration to freeway speeds.

Another very welcome change is a completely new front suspension with upper and lower control arms. It replaces the ancient Twin I-Beam, and we're thankful. With the new layout, ride is far better, handling is superior, steering feel is drastically improved and directional stability, such as when traveling at highway speeds in a severe crosswind (which we had an opportunity to experience), is immensely enhanced. We would expect that even tire wear, a Twin I-Beam weak point, would also be better.

Towing capacity for the base F-150 is 2300 pounds, but the F-250 with 2WD and 5.4-liter V8 is rated at 8700 lbs., which should take care of most of us.