Opinions on best level of tech?

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GordoJay

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I'm busy shopping for Raptors and can't wait for the shutdown to end so that I can go ****** the hardware. I'm looking online at three different vehicles with slightly different levels of tech. 2020 801A, 802A, and 2019 802A without the technology package.

I'm not a big fan of tech in cars. My wife bought a 2018 Subaru that's loaded and I find many of the features annoying, although most of it can be turned off. For all the tech, it still does stupid stuff like run the battery down if you leave a door ajar overnight. Even my 2003 Dodge 3/4 ton was smart enough to turn the dome light off after a while. I don't mind the keyless entry. The adaptive cruise is OK, but useless in normal freeway driving around here as everyone tailgates at 75 and will cut into a three-car gap, causing a brake slam. Things like voice-activated navigation seem silly - I've had one of those in my pocket for years and it works just fine. It even makes phone calls. :) Things like power mirrors are nice. Lane keep assist is evil. Blind spot warning is OK, but I'm well-trained to lean forward and check my mirrors. A torsen would be nice. The price difference is huge. Lots of trade offs, and I'm torn between full bling and maybe higher/easier resale and spending a bunch of money on stuff I won't like or use. And more features means more stuff to stop working. I keep leaning back and forth. Anyway, I'm looking for opinions on how well Ford does the tech stuff and your ideas on which setup I might like. TIA.
 

B E N

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When i bought my 11 part of what I fell in love with was the lack of tech, mine has heated seats, power mirrors and the "upgraded" factory stereo with sub, that's it. I have some of the same issues, obviously the gen 1 didn't have as much "stuff" so maybe its not a fair comparison, but since it's a vehicle I plan on holding on to I knew the tech was going to get dated anyway. What do you do when sync 8 comes out and your still stuck at sync 3? I dunno, to me it turns a vehicle from timeless to dated. On the other hand if you plan on selling it in the short term higher trim levels tend to hold value better and be easier to sell.
 

04Ram2500Hemi

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I'm busy shopping for Raptors and can't wait for the shutdown to end so that I can go ****** the hardware. I'm looking online at three different vehicles with slightly different levels of tech. 2020 801A, 802A, and 2019 802A without the technology package.

I'm not a big fan of tech in cars. My wife bought a 2018 Subaru that's loaded and I find many of the features annoying, although most of it can be turned off. For all the tech, it still does stupid stuff like run the battery down if you leave a door ajar overnight. Even my 2003 Dodge 3/4 ton was smart enough to turn the dome light off after a while. I don't mind the keyless entry. The adaptive cruise is OK, but useless in normal freeway driving around here as everyone tailgates at 75 and will cut into a three-car gap, causing a brake slam. Things like voice-activated navigation seem silly - I've had one of those in my pocket for years and it works just fine. It even makes phone calls. :) Things like power mirrors are nice. Lane keep assist is evil. Blind spot warning is OK, but I'm well-trained to lean forward and check my mirrors. A torsen would be nice. The price difference is huge. Lots of trade offs, and I'm torn between full bling and maybe higher/easier resale and spending a bunch of money on stuff I won't like or use. And more features means more stuff to stop working. I keep leaning back and forth. Anyway, I'm looking for opinions on how well Ford does the tech stuff and your ideas on which setup I might like. TIA.

I have a 2020 with the 802A Package, and I had some of the same thoughts at first. After 1,000 miles here’s a few more thoughts
- Adaptive Cruise is pretty cool for two lane highways and interstate traffic that isn’t overly hectic. In Western Montana it’s pretty cool. In four lanes of highways it might not be (not sure).
-I’ve only used the voice active stuff a couple times, but it works good.
-Lane Assist in its mildest form is pretty cool. It just vibrates the steering wheel.
-I’ve had a CDL for 20 years and still swear by shoulder checks (private vehicle) and properly adjusted mirrors, but every vehicle should have blind spot monitoring. Vehicles can sneak up on you (especially motorcycles) and I truly appreciate the added safety.
-Can’t help on the front torsen, haven’t been in a spot to need it yet.
 

smurfslayer

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there are a lot of threads on the tech ; do i need it, do i want it, etc. Only you can answer the question. I went from a 2006 era, mostly optioned car to the 2017 Rap with pretty much everything. It’s owner’s manual is literally 3x the size as my previous.

This is like buying a gun in that it’s a very personal choice. Lots of people will “help” you decide which one to get, but they’re not you.

How are you going to use the truck? pavement princess? starbucks / mall crawler? work truck and some hunting, fishing and light off roading? You are a secret off road hero, mid travel can barely keep up with you?

My wife bought a 2018 Subaru that's loaded and I find many of the features annoying, although most of it can be turned off.

Do you find the features annoying, or the fact that it’s your wife’s car and she has significantly different tastes and opinions on vehicles, and you harbor some resentment for her vehicle choices? I know I do. Vehicles for my wife are a necessity, and she is the opposite of an enthusiast. A couple vehicles back, I instituted a ‘minimum horsepower rating’ so if i was stuck using it, there would be some redeeming quality. I think I need to step it up though - back to your dilemma: Each manufacturer handles things differently. something as simple as the seat belt chime - easily driver suppressed in the F150, cannot be disabled in the S00b (at least the ’11 my wife has) without significant effort. Locks, auto lock, auto unlock, etc. It’s difficult to analogize your wife’s vehicle and tech to the Raptor because they’re radically different vehicles. At least look to competing vehicle types- pickups of the same basic layout, even if they’re peasant trucks from other manufacturers.

For all the tech, it still does stupid stuff like run the battery down if you leave a door ajar overnight

Every vehicle make / model has quirks and weird behavior.

The adaptive cruise is OK, but useless in normal freeway driving around here as everyone tailgates at 75 and will cut into a three-car gap, causing a brake slam

I used to think the same thing until I learned to adjust the following distance. I’m near I95 / Metro DC. I can assure you, that traffic is orders of magnitude more hostile than where you are with the 2 exceptions of urban L.A. ( not Lower Alabama ) and urban NYC. The prevalence of drivers from out of country who shouldn’t be legal, and the prevalence of unlicensed illegals who actually do not understand the road signage, poorly skilled ‘murican drivers, many of whom fled the overcrowding of NY/NJ to overcrowd us. Leave a 3/4 car gap and you can bet every 3rd car will cut over in front of you if they spot that gap, whether you’re going 8 mph or 80mph. However, there’s driving defensively at / above the limit and keeping those clowns at bay, and ACC doesn’t excel at this. Or driving defensively at around the limit maintaining a pretty good gap. if conditions permit that pace, you can use ACC pretty effectively, but you may need to vary the following distance sometimes. Using ACC doesn’t have to be binary; either working or not, you can vary following distance to suit driving conditions and that greatly enhances its use and practicality.

Things like voice-activated navigation seem silly - I've had one of those in my pocket for years and it works just fine. It even makes phone calls

Not for nothing, but factory nav is pretty nicely integrated, plus with Fordpass you can search on your phone, send the address to the truck and she’ll fire up nav as soon as the boot up is ready. My gripe with factory nav is that it’s expensive to update. There’s always CarPlay/android integration as well for waze, or similar apps.

Lane keep assist is evil.
on this, as applies to the Raptor, you and I will have to agree to disagree. The Raptor is, shall we say... Big Framed.

Blind spot warning is OK, but I'm well-trained to lean forward and check my mirrors.

It’s a driver aid, and generally helpful. I’ve never had it balk at me or mislead me, so I’m not opposed to it.

torsen would be nice.
Agree

more features means more stuff to stop working.

This is undeniably true, and you’ll find plenty of us have had warranty run ins with the tech. I’ve found a use for all the stuff I got on the truck with the exception of heated rear seats.

802A trucks will command a higher price and should command a higher resale. there are some things that you may decide you don’t need or want. stickers, carbon fiber, recaros, etc. One thing I’d suggest is to hold out for a truck with no twin panel moonroof. They’re fragile, require maintenance that isn’t really documented or you’ll break the track, which is a time consuming and expensive repair out of warranty.

Good luck
 
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GordoJay

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This is like buying a gun in that it’s a very personal choice. Lots of people will “help” you decide which one to get, but they’re not you.

Good point. I much prefer Sig to Glock ... and all my friends carry Glocks.

How are you going to use the truck? pavement princess? starbucks / mall crawler? work truck and some hunting, fishing and light off roading? You are a secret off road hero, mid travel can barely keep up with you?

Daily driver with a fair amount of lower speed off-road loaded up with camping gear. New springs are on the must-have list. I'm not catching air on purpose, ever. Been there, done that, scared myself witless. I want a comfortable ride that can go off road without having to be too heavily modded.

Do you find the features annoying, or the fact that it’s your wife’s car and she has significantly different tastes and opinions on vehicles, and you harbor some resentment for her vehicle choices?

Actually, she hates it. It was my Dad's car, and when he died we bought it from Mom with only a few thousand on the clock. We're seriously considering dumping it. Her previous car was a 2010 Acura RDX which we both really liked. It was fast and responsive. She has a heavy foot and really gave that thing a workout. The Subaru is pretty gutless, even at sea level, which we aren't.

Each manufacturer handles things differently. something as simple as the seat belt chime

Exactly. That's why I'm trying to get a feel for how Ford does it before I plunk down the extra $7k that could go for springs instead. It sounds like Forscan can get rid of a lot of the annoying little issues. Fake exhaust noise sounds like a "feature" concocted by a committee of idiots. I want peace and quite in a luxury ride. Anyway, I can afford any of the choices, I just don't like wasting money. I'm weird that way.

At least look to competing vehicle types- pickups of the same basic layout, even if they’re peasant trucks from other manufacturers.

I am doing that. There are a couple of other trucks in contention. Both would have to be lifted, but you can buy a pretty nice lift kit, new wheels, and tires for the price difference. And the Raptor would need new springs, so it kind of washes out. I delayed going to car dealers before the shutdown as I don't much like car salesmen. I'm sure regretting that now. A priority for me is seat comfort and good visibility from the cab. I can often just sit in a vehicle and cross it off my list. I have a jacked-up back and am super picky about seating. It's quite possible that I won't buy a truck this year as a result. I've heard great things about the Raptor seats, but all butts are different. I'd like to be ready to move ahead if the seats work, hence this thread.

...on this, as applies to the Raptor, you and I will have to agree to disagree. The Raptor is, shall we say... Big Framed.

I used to drive a semi. I've driven lots of big delivery trucks. I grew up on a farm driving pickups. The mirror-to-mirror distance is the same as on a regular pickup, and those are what hits first when it gets narrow. Big frame might be a problem for me on narrow jeep trails. And parking lots. How's the turning radius? It might actually be a problem for my wife. She could never did get used to the Dodge, she kept bouncing the passenger rear over curbs when she made right turns ...

802A trucks will command a higher price and should command a higher resale. there are some things that you may decide you don’t need or want. stickers, carbon fiber, recaros, etc. One thing I’d suggest is to hold out for a truck with no twin panel moonroof. They’re fragile, require maintenance that isn’t really documented or you’ll break the track, which is a time consuming and expensive repair out of warranty.

No moonroof is at the top of my list. Like teats on a bull even if it were reliable. Stickers and CF are a close second. Recaros - that depends on comfort. I'll try both, there are two Recaro-equipped 802As locally without the moonroof. Most trucks seem to have the moonroof. Being cynical and realizing that Ford dealers make a lot of money doing warranty work, I suspect that they order them precisely because they're such a disaster. :)

Thanks for the detailed reply.

Gordo
 

smurfslayer

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It sounds like you’ve done quite a bit of digging on your own, good stuff. Unless you’re planning on carrying more cargo than the truck can capably handle, what makes you think you need springs? I’ve hauled a belt fed MG and ammo for a day at the range. The Rap handled it, accessories, passengers, food, drink, snacks etc. with no trouble at all.

Turning radius on the Rap is average. Good for what it is, but it’s no car.

Moon roof trucks are the dealer delivery trucks; ordered for dealer stock, not customer ordered. They’re often fully provisioned or very close to it, with one or 2 options under. I like all the tech stuff now and I’m glad I spent the money on it. If I were in the market now, I’d nix the moon roof, rear heated seats, graphics, and I don’t have and wouldn’t get recaros, carbon trim. Else, I’d probably pick all the rest up - especially the tailgate step.

good luck!
 
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GordoJay

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It sounds like you’ve done quite a bit of digging on your own, good stuff. Unless you’re planning on carrying more cargo than the truck can capably handle, what makes you think you need springs? I’ve hauled a belt fed MG and ammo for a day at the range. The Rap handled it, accessories, passengers, food, drink, snacks etc. with no trouble at all.

I'm looking to take 3 guys, including myself, and camping gear for week-long trips in the desert. I figure a minimum of 1200 pounds not counting the driver. It sounds like thrashing around off road with that much weight on will bend the rear leaf springs. Maybe not, though, since some of that weight would be in the cab and not the bed. I would try it first stock since there's a warranty.

Turning radius on the Rap is average. Good for what it is, but it’s no car.

I figured. That's what test drives are for. My old 3/4 ton Dodge with the solid front axle and the long wheelbase needed a football field worth of space for turning around in. It was annoying sometimes. I'd expect the IFS to be worlds better.

Moon roof trucks are the dealer delivery trucks; ordered for dealer stock, not customer ordered. They’re often fully provisioned or very close to it, with one or 2 options under. I like all the tech stuff now and I’m glad I spent the money on it. If I were in the market now, I’d nix the moon roof, rear heated seats, graphics, and I don’t have and wouldn’t get recaros, carbon trim. Else, I’d probably pick all the rest up - especially the tailgate step.

good luck!

Thanks. I've ordered trucks in the past because of all the over-optioning of dealer stock, but with the factory shutdown and related uncertainty about whether there will be a 2021, I'm feeling like I should just grab one if I can get a decent price. It may come down to what kind of deal I can swing. There aren't a lot of 801As out there, so the odds of finding a good discount on an 802A are a lot higher. As long as I can turn things off, it's not the end of the world.

Gordo
 

sixshooter_45

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I have a 2020 with the 802A Package, and I had some of the same thoughts at first. After 1,000 miles here’s a few more thoughts
- Adaptive Cruise is pretty cool for two lane highways and interstate traffic that isn’t overly hectic. In Western Montana it’s pretty cool. In four lanes of highways it might not be (not sure).
-I’ve only used the voice active stuff a couple times, but it works good.
-Lane Assist in its mildest form is pretty cool. It just vibrates the steering wheel.
-I’ve had a CDL for 20 years and still swear by shoulder checks (private vehicle) and properly adjusted mirrors, but every vehicle should have blind spot monitoring. Vehicles can sneak up on you (especially motorcycles) and I truly appreciate the added safety.
-Can’t help on the front torsen, haven’t been in a spot to need it yet.

Lane Assist doesn't just vibrate the steering wheel.

From the manual:

When you switch the system on and it detects an unintentional drift out of your lane is likely to occur, the system notifies or assists you to stay in your lane through the steering system and information display. In Alert mode, the system provides a warning by vibrating the steering wheel. In Aid mode, the system provides steering assistance by gently counter steering your vehicle back into the lane.

When the system is functioning in the combined Alert and Aid mode, the system first provides steering assistance by gently counter steering your vehicle back into the lane, followed by a warning that vibrates the steering wheel if the vehicle is still out of the lane markings.

lane Keeping System
 
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