Went and drove a Titan today, really sweet ride.
I guess I should also drive an F-150 to fully compare, but I really dont see how the Ford could top the truck I drove today. Might have a slightly nicer interior, buy you really have to jump to a Lariat or FX4 to get the nicest interior, the XLT is just as plain and plasticly as the Nissan.
After checking Edmunds and both Ford and Nissan websites, the price difference after rebates and such should be in favor of the Nissan by about $1,000 for closely equipped trucks.
Why is it so easy to justify a new car to yourself after you start looking?
UPDATE 6-1-04
Finally made it out to drive a Ford F150. I drove a Ford FX4 4WD Supercab. The Nissan I drove was a SE 4WD supercab.
I picked the FX4 over the Lariat simply because I love the bucket seats and console shifter, but I do not want leather seats. You can only get leather in the Lariat but cloth is available in the FX4. The bucket seats and console are not available below the FX4/Lariat line.
I will try to give my most quick comparison here.
INTERIOR
Ford wins hands down on niceness, nicer materials, nicer looks all around nicer feel. A few nagging things like a loud turn signal indicator and a long reach to the radio could get tiring down the road. Ford has made a huge mistake with (for me) with the lever to operate the tilt steering. It is one of those deals like Honda uses, some obscenely long cumbersome lever that has to be pulled way down from the lower side of the steering column to tilt the wheel. GM has always had a nicer system for tilt wheel, some small quick move lever to move the column. Since I get in and out of a truck about 20+ times a day this would be more than irritating. Nissan isnt as nice as GM, but far less cumbersome than the Ford.
Both trucks had a nice feel to the steering and a good seating position (both had driver power seats) Nissan had dual sunvisors (one for windsheild, one for side window), Ford only had one. Passenger seat in the Nissan folds all the way forward to make a nice little desk to work on. Nissan has a countersunk console lid to hold minor crap, Ford was flat, so everything rolls off. Nissan has more cupholders, and the AUX plug for the radio and pre-wired for SAT radio as well as radio controls on the steering wheel. Nissan is flat when you fold the rear seats, Ford still has the jack in the way.
Ford wins for niceness, Nissan wins for everyday useability.
EXTERIOR
All looks discussions are completely subjective, I can only give my opinion.
Ford seems overall to be a larger vehicle, they may measure out to be the same or really close, the Ford just seems much larger. Nissan has the great utility bed system, Ford has the nice feature of the assisted tailgate (both tailgates lock). The Ford bed is so deep that I can not reach the bottom of the bed with my fingertips standing beside the truck (I'm only 5-8) Ford sits up higher, but we all know this doesnt translate into ground clearance. The second row windows (extended cab part) in the Ford roll down (electrically) neat feature, not sure about the Nissan. The chrome treatments on the Nissan are still a sticky point, really dont care for it, but the grill on the FX4 is hideous so I guess they are equally nasty from the front. Ford has some huge badging on the front and back, Nissan was a bit more discreet. The Nissan exhaust goes vrooom vrooom, the Ford goes whoosh.
Nissan wins for easy to get in and out of, Ford wins for looking tougher.
OVERALL DRIVEABILITY
For all intents and purposes they are both sprung way too stiff for me. I will haul some stuff but it seems to me (vast conspiracy theory here) that the makers have become so caught up in the payload/ towing war that they have managed to make both trucks beasts over all but the most nicely paved road. The ride on both is stiff but well controlled, there is no jitteryness so to speak but really FIRM ride. Ford is even stiffer than the Nissan, but that could be a factor in the FX4 package having stiffer shocks. The Nissan seems quicker (Nissan had 2.97 (?) gears, Ford had 3.73 gears...Nissan has 3.36 gears available with their off-road package) I really dont give a huge rats ass about what quoted horsepower/torque numbers they put out, or when the said power is applied. A real drag race may yield a close race but the Nissan definitely felt quick and peppier in everyday driving. I think this has more to do with the 5 speed auto being able to better keep the motor in its sweet spot more of the time.
The Ford seems to exhibit some of the same nagging driveability issues that bug me about my Expedition. Resistant to kicking out of overdrive, quickly shifting out of 1st while accelerating slowly, always seems to be in too high of a gear when coming out of a turn, which means you have to give it more gas than you want since it is so resistive to kicking down a gear. Ford may have to program the tranny like this to keep their mileage up.
Both drive great on the highway and have low interior noise, cant pick a clear winner on that since I drove them over completely different roads and that can make such a huge difference in interior noise. Both nice and steady with low wind pull, and had good on-center steering feel. NIssan seemed to have a better AC (5 speed blower fan compared to Fords 4 speed fan), this is important since summer is coming and we get about 3 months of 95-105 temps and good AC is a must.
Nissan wins because of the peppy motor and 5speed auto.
Basically a huge draw. I just have to decide on some priorities. Some on-line consumer reviews point towards crappy mileage on the Nissan, but I am positive both can suck down expensive gas at an alarming rate.
In all reality I might buy a Dodge Dakota. Yeah old skool junk, thats just what I thought. I drove one on a whim. Nice cushy ride, better mileage and a massively lower price point when all the incentives are figured in. Since it basically for work...Dakota just might be the ticket. Dakota had a godawful loud AC motor, even on lower settings.
I guess I should also drive an F-150 to fully compare, but I really dont see how the Ford could top the truck I drove today. Might have a slightly nicer interior, buy you really have to jump to a Lariat or FX4 to get the nicest interior, the XLT is just as plain and plasticly as the Nissan.
After checking Edmunds and both Ford and Nissan websites, the price difference after rebates and such should be in favor of the Nissan by about $1,000 for closely equipped trucks.
Why is it so easy to justify a new car to yourself after you start looking?
UPDATE 6-1-04
Finally made it out to drive a Ford F150. I drove a Ford FX4 4WD Supercab. The Nissan I drove was a SE 4WD supercab.
I picked the FX4 over the Lariat simply because I love the bucket seats and console shifter, but I do not want leather seats. You can only get leather in the Lariat but cloth is available in the FX4. The bucket seats and console are not available below the FX4/Lariat line.
I will try to give my most quick comparison here.
INTERIOR
Ford wins hands down on niceness, nicer materials, nicer looks all around nicer feel. A few nagging things like a loud turn signal indicator and a long reach to the radio could get tiring down the road. Ford has made a huge mistake with (for me) with the lever to operate the tilt steering. It is one of those deals like Honda uses, some obscenely long cumbersome lever that has to be pulled way down from the lower side of the steering column to tilt the wheel. GM has always had a nicer system for tilt wheel, some small quick move lever to move the column. Since I get in and out of a truck about 20+ times a day this would be more than irritating. Nissan isnt as nice as GM, but far less cumbersome than the Ford.
Both trucks had a nice feel to the steering and a good seating position (both had driver power seats) Nissan had dual sunvisors (one for windsheild, one for side window), Ford only had one. Passenger seat in the Nissan folds all the way forward to make a nice little desk to work on. Nissan has a countersunk console lid to hold minor crap, Ford was flat, so everything rolls off. Nissan has more cupholders, and the AUX plug for the radio and pre-wired for SAT radio as well as radio controls on the steering wheel. Nissan is flat when you fold the rear seats, Ford still has the jack in the way.
Ford wins for niceness, Nissan wins for everyday useability.
EXTERIOR
All looks discussions are completely subjective, I can only give my opinion.
Ford seems overall to be a larger vehicle, they may measure out to be the same or really close, the Ford just seems much larger. Nissan has the great utility bed system, Ford has the nice feature of the assisted tailgate (both tailgates lock). The Ford bed is so deep that I can not reach the bottom of the bed with my fingertips standing beside the truck (I'm only 5-8) Ford sits up higher, but we all know this doesnt translate into ground clearance. The second row windows (extended cab part) in the Ford roll down (electrically) neat feature, not sure about the Nissan. The chrome treatments on the Nissan are still a sticky point, really dont care for it, but the grill on the FX4 is hideous so I guess they are equally nasty from the front. Ford has some huge badging on the front and back, Nissan was a bit more discreet. The Nissan exhaust goes vrooom vrooom, the Ford goes whoosh.
Nissan wins for easy to get in and out of, Ford wins for looking tougher.
OVERALL DRIVEABILITY
For all intents and purposes they are both sprung way too stiff for me. I will haul some stuff but it seems to me (vast conspiracy theory here) that the makers have become so caught up in the payload/ towing war that they have managed to make both trucks beasts over all but the most nicely paved road. The ride on both is stiff but well controlled, there is no jitteryness so to speak but really FIRM ride. Ford is even stiffer than the Nissan, but that could be a factor in the FX4 package having stiffer shocks. The Nissan seems quicker (Nissan had 2.97 (?) gears, Ford had 3.73 gears...Nissan has 3.36 gears available with their off-road package) I really dont give a huge rats ass about what quoted horsepower/torque numbers they put out, or when the said power is applied. A real drag race may yield a close race but the Nissan definitely felt quick and peppier in everyday driving. I think this has more to do with the 5 speed auto being able to better keep the motor in its sweet spot more of the time.
The Ford seems to exhibit some of the same nagging driveability issues that bug me about my Expedition. Resistant to kicking out of overdrive, quickly shifting out of 1st while accelerating slowly, always seems to be in too high of a gear when coming out of a turn, which means you have to give it more gas than you want since it is so resistive to kicking down a gear. Ford may have to program the tranny like this to keep their mileage up.
Both drive great on the highway and have low interior noise, cant pick a clear winner on that since I drove them over completely different roads and that can make such a huge difference in interior noise. Both nice and steady with low wind pull, and had good on-center steering feel. NIssan seemed to have a better AC (5 speed blower fan compared to Fords 4 speed fan), this is important since summer is coming and we get about 3 months of 95-105 temps and good AC is a must.
Nissan wins because of the peppy motor and 5speed auto.
Basically a huge draw. I just have to decide on some priorities. Some on-line consumer reviews point towards crappy mileage on the Nissan, but I am positive both can suck down expensive gas at an alarming rate.
In all reality I might buy a Dodge Dakota. Yeah old skool junk, thats just what I thought. I drove one on a whim. Nice cushy ride, better mileage and a massively lower price point when all the incentives are figured in. Since it basically for work...Dakota just might be the ticket. Dakota had a godawful loud AC motor, even on lower settings.
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