F-150 brakes

On Top Gear, Jeremy said the F-150 is a POS. One key point was his claim
that the brake pads are "the size of bottle caps" and are inadequate for a
vehicle of this weight and power. Is that a real issue or one man's
opinion?


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Reply in group, but if emailing add one more
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On May 29, 12:25*am, "Tom Del Rosso" >
wrote:
> On Top Gear, Jeremy said the F-150 is a POS. *One key point was his claim
> that the brake pads are "the size of bottle caps" and are inadequate for a
> vehicle of this weight and power. *Is that a real issue or one man's
> opinion?
>
> --
>
> Reply in group, but if emailing add one more
> zero, and remove the last word.

sounds like an opinion..

Also sounds like he might be talking about the rear pads which are
smaller than the front ones.

On 05/28/2011 09:25 PM, Tom Del Rosso wrote:
> On Top Gear, Jeremy said the F-150 is a POS. One key point was his claim
> that the brake pads are "the size of bottle caps" and are inadequate for a
> vehicle of this weight and power. Is that a real issue or one man's
> opinion?
>
>

if you use the vehicle for shopping and commuting, like a lot of people
do, they brakes are fine. but if you want to use it for towing or
hauling, they're inadequate.

frod play the numbers game. they know who the typical f150 buyers are,
and they know that for most people this "truck" doesn't get used at
"rated" capacity. so they save money by putting on brakes that are
merely "adequate" for common usage, not good for "rated" usage. and if
you get killed by brake failure at rated capacity, there's more than
enough money in the kitty from the savings to toss a few hundies to your
old lady to shut her up.


--
nomina rutrum rutrum

On Sun, 29 May 2011 00:25:43 -0400, Tom Del Rosso wrote:

> On Top Gear, Jeremy said the F-150 is a POS. One key point was his claim
> that the brake pads are "the size of bottle caps" and are inadequate for a
> vehicle of this weight and power. Is that a real issue or one man's
> opinion?


Jeremy doesn't like ANYTHING to do with America.

Tom Del Rosso wrote:
>
> On Top Gear, Jeremy said the F-150 is a POS. One key point was his claim
> that the brake pads are "the size of bottle caps" and are inadequate for a
> vehicle of this weight and power. Is that a real issue or one man's
> opinion?

I don't have an F150, but based on the brake complaints from several
friends who do, and their comments on how much better my F350 brakes
are, I'd say that the F150 brakes are inadequate.

"Pete C." > wrote in message
ter.com...
>
> Tom Del Rosso wrote:
>>
>> On Top Gear, Jeremy said the F-150 is a POS. One key point was his claim
>> that the brake pads are "the size of bottle caps" and are inadequate for
>> a
>> vehicle of this weight and power. Is that a real issue or one man's
>> opinion?

I love Top Gear, but as others have noted Clarkson seems to hate most
American vehicles (or at least pretends to - not sure when he is catering to
the audience and when he is sincere). But then he especially hates the
Prius, so he can't be all bad.

> I don't have an F150, but based on the brake complaints from several
> friends who do, and their comments on how much better my F350 brakes
> are, I'd say that the F150 brakes are inadequate.

I have a 2009 F150. The brakes take some getting used to compared to my old
Frontier. In my opinion. it is not the pad size, or rotor size, or the
ultimate braking ability that is an issue. It is the boost characteristics
and the way the suspension reacts to braking that are generating complaints.
The brake boost seems "soft" by comparison with my previous truck (an '06
Frontier). By that I mean the brakes feel soft - unless you really do want
to do a hard stop. Plus the truck seems to have a lot of "anti-dive" built
into the front suspension. By this I mean when you really stand on the
brakes, the front end doesn't dip down like some vehicles. This makes it
seem as if the brakes aren't working as well as in some vehicles where the
front end drops sharply under braking. I occasionally drive a neighboor
Silverado HD and his brakes seem to haul you down sharply with a relatively
light touch on the pedals (sort of like some of the old Chrsyler Products
that would almost throw you through the windshield if you touched the
brakes). This makes them seem a lot more powerful, but without any sort of
actual measurements, is it really true? One thing for sure, the anti-lock
activation of my F150 is far better than it was in the Frontier. The ABS in
my '06 Frontier kicked in often on almost any surface but a paved road. It
was pretty un-nerving at times.

For comaprison, I took a look at the Consumer Reports Tests for 1/2 Ton Crew
Cab Pick-ups:
Braking Distance
from 60 (ft)
Vehicle Dry Wet
2009 F150 XLT V8 138 150
2009 Chevrolet Silverado 150 163
2007 Toyota Tundra 153 178
2009 Dodge Ram 137 155
2004 Nissan Titan 139 154
2002 F150 XLT 151 --- (older test)

If you trust CR (hard to do I know) it seems that the F150 Brakes are as
good as anyones. The 2009 F150 in the CR test had 20 inch wheels with
Pirelli Scorpion Tires. I suspect these tires had a lot better braking
performance than the 18 inch General Tires that came on my 2009 F150. Too
bad they don't have a comparison of the same truck with different tire
options installed. My truck seems better on the Bridgestones I installed
last year. It might just be in my mind, but I am sure I have better off road
traction.

Ed

"C. E. White" wrote:
>
> "Pete C." > wrote in message
> ter.com...
> >
> > Tom Del Rosso wrote:
> >>
> >> On Top Gear, Jeremy said the F-150 is a POS. One key point was his claim
> >> that the brake pads are "the size of bottle caps" and are inadequate for
> >> a
> >> vehicle of this weight and power. Is that a real issue or one man's
> >> opinion?
>
> I love Top Gear, but as others have noted Clarkson seems to hate most
> American vehicles (or at least pretends to - not sure when he is catering to
> the audience and when he is sincere). But then he especially hates the
> Prius, so he can't be all bad.
>
> > I don't have an F150, but based on the brake complaints from several
> > friends who do, and their comments on how much better my F350 brakes
> > are, I'd say that the F150 brakes are inadequate.
>
> I have a 2009 F150. The brakes take some getting used to compared to my old
> Frontier. In my opinion. it is not the pad size, or rotor size, or the
> ultimate braking ability that is an issue. It is the boost characteristics
> and the way the suspension reacts to braking that are generating complaints.
> The brake boost seems "soft" by comparison with my previous truck (an '06
> Frontier). By that I mean the brakes feel soft - unless you really do want
> to do a hard stop. Plus the truck seems to have a lot of "anti-dive" built
> into the front suspension. By this I mean when you really stand on the
> brakes, the front end doesn't dip down like some vehicles. This makes it
> seem as if the brakes aren't working as well as in some vehicles where the
> front end drops sharply under braking. I occasionally drive a neighboor
> Silverado HD and his brakes seem to haul you down sharply with a relatively
> light touch on the pedals (sort of like some of the old Chrsyler Products
> that would almost throw you through the windshield if you touched the
> brakes). This makes them seem a lot more powerful, but without any sort of
> actual measurements, is it really true? One thing for sure, the anti-lock
> activation of my F150 is far better than it was in the Frontier. The ABS in
> my '06 Frontier kicked in often on almost any surface but a paved road. It
> was pretty un-nerving at times.
>
> For comaprison, I took a look at the Consumer Reports Tests for 1/2 Ton Crew
> Cab Pick-ups:
> Braking Distance
> from 60 (ft)
> Vehicle Dry Wet
> 2009 F150 XLT V8 138 150
> 2009 Chevrolet Silverado 150 163
> 2007 Toyota Tundra 153 178
> 2009 Dodge Ram 137 155
> 2004 Nissan Titan 139 154
> 2002 F150 XLT 151 --- (older test)
>
> If you trust CR (hard to do I know) it seems that the F150 Brakes are as
> good as anyones. The 2009 F150 in the CR test had 20 inch wheels with
> Pirelli Scorpion Tires. I suspect these tires had a lot better braking
> performance than the 18 inch General Tires that came on my 2009 F150. Too
> bad they don't have a comparison of the same truck with different tire
> options installed. My truck seems better on the Bridgestones I installed
> last year. It might just be in my mind, but I am sure I have better off road
> traction.
>
> Ed

I expect those numbers are for empty trucks. At least one of my friends
tows trailers that are heavy but within the rated spec for his F150
(with WD hitch), and he reports that the brakes truly are inadequate
with a load.

"Pete C." > wrote in message
ster.com...

> I expect those numbers are for empty trucks. At least one of my friends
> tows trailers that are heavy but within the rated spec for his F150
> (with WD hitch), and he reports that the brakes truly are inadequate
> with a load.

I don't do a lot of trailering, but I recently had my F150 loaded with a
pallet of soybean seeds ~ 2500 lb. Brakes seemed to handle that OK. On the
other hand it was flat land, only a few stops and I drove reasonably. A
friend with a medium size boat and a 2011 F150 says it tows good. But then
his boat is probably less than 5000 lb (just a guess - it is a 23 foot
center console something or other).

Ford gives you a lot of BS about trailer brakes for any trailer over X
weight (but I suppose everyone does). I can remeber hearing about when the
trailer brakes didn't work on my friends cattle trailer - he almost took out
a funeral procession when the Silverado wouldn't stop the truck/trailer fast
enough. I've used the Silverado to pull a flat bed trailer w/o brakes that
was loaded with ~8000 lb of hay + ~2000 lb trailer and it seemed OK, but
again, flat land, few stops and reasonable driving.

If I was going to pull heavy trailers regularly I'd definitely go for an
F250 or above. But since I mostly ride with the truck lightly loaded and
only occasionally tow something heavy (or carry something heavy), I like the
F150 better. As it is, my F150 mostly sets in the driveway beacsue I don't
want to spend a fortune on gas (17 mpg is a killer with $3.659 gas - almost
$0.22 per mile just for gas)! I only pull it out when I actually need to
haul something (like planting supplies).

Ed

On May 31, 10:54*am, "C. E. White" > wrote:
> "Pete C." > wrote in message
>
> ster.com...
>
> > I expect those numbers are for empty trucks. At least one of my friends
> > tows trailers that are heavy but within the rated spec for his F150
> > (with WD hitch), and he reports that the brakes truly are inadequate
> > with a load.
>
> I don't do a lot of trailering, but I recently had my F150 loaded with a
> pallet of soybean seeds ~ 2500 lb. Brakes seemed to handle that OK. On the
> other hand it was flat land, only a few stops and I drove reasonably. A
> friend with a medium size boat and a 2011 F150 says it tows good. But then
> his boat is probably less than 5000 lb (just a guess - it is a 23 foot
> center console something or other).
>
> Ford gives you a lot of BS about trailer brakes for any trailer over X
> weight (but I suppose everyone does). I can remeber hearing about when the
> trailer brakes didn't work on my friends cattle trailer - he almost took out
> a funeral procession when the Silverado wouldn't stop the truck/trailer fast
> enough. I've used the Silverado to pull a flat bed trailer w/o brakes that
> was loaded with ~8000 lb of hay + ~2000 lb trailer and it seemed OK, but
> again, flat land, few stops and reasonable driving.
>
> If I was going to pull heavy trailers regularly I'd definitely go for an
> F250 or above. But since I mostly ride with the truck lightly loaded and
> only occasionally tow something heavy (or carry something heavy), I like the
> F150 better. As it is, my F150 mostly sets in the driveway beacsue I don't
> want to spend a fortune on gas (17 mpg is a killer with $3.659 gas - almost
> $0.22 per mile just for gas)! I only pull it out when I actually need to
> haul something (like planting supplies).
>
> Ed

I don't really see the point of most current half-ton pickups. For
real truck use it seems like you have to go to at least a 3/4 ton.
unfortunately shopping used there aren't many cheap 3/4 ton pickups
out there, so I have a half-ton Ford (likely a few generations older
than the one we're discussing here.) Haven't really tested the
limitations of the brakes, but I tend to drive it conservatively, and
with only a 300 I-6, it's not like it's easy to get a good haul going.

nate

"C. E. White" wrote:
>
> "Pete C." > wrote in message
> ster.com...
>
> > I expect those numbers are for empty trucks. At least one of my friends
> > tows trailers that are heavy but within the rated spec for his F150
> > (with WD hitch), and he reports that the brakes truly are inadequate
> > with a load.
>
> I don't do a lot of trailering, but I recently had my F150 loaded with a
> pallet of soybean seeds ~ 2500 lb. Brakes seemed to handle that OK. On the
> other hand it was flat land, only a few stops and I drove reasonably. A
> friend with a medium size boat and a 2011 F150 says it tows good. But then
> his boat is probably less than 5000 lb (just a guess - it is a 23 foot
> center console something or other).
>
> Ford gives you a lot of BS about trailer brakes for any trailer over X
> weight (but I suppose everyone does). I can remeber hearing about when the
> trailer brakes didn't work on my friends cattle trailer - he almost took out
> a funeral procession when the Silverado wouldn't stop the truck/trailer fast
> enough. I've used the Silverado to pull a flat bed trailer w/o brakes that
> was loaded with ~8000 lb of hay + ~2000 lb trailer and it seemed OK, but
> again, flat land, few stops and reasonable driving.
>
> If I was going to pull heavy trailers regularly I'd definitely go for an
> F250 or above. But since I mostly ride with the truck lightly loaded and
> only occasionally tow something heavy (or carry something heavy), I like the
> F150 better. As it is, my F150 mostly sets in the driveway beacsue I don't
> want to spend a fortune on gas (17 mpg is a killer with $3.659 gas - almost
> $0.22 per mile just for gas)! I only pull it out when I actually need to
> haul something (like planting supplies).
>
> Ed

Properly working trailer brakes are certainly important, and I always
check the brake operation of any trailer I'm going to tow. Properly
adjusted weight distribution hitches are also important when towing with
a lighter truck like a F150. I don't generally use a WD hitch on my
F350, even though the specs say to use one, since unloaded I have 5,060#
on the front axle (6.4 diesel) so I certainly don't need to distribute
more weight up there and taking a bit off won't hurt at all. I do use a
2.5" class V ball mount and a similarly rated ball.