Buying another 2021 F150...

[unixadm]

Well, I'm back after less than a year of being without an F150. After being an early adopter of the 14th gen with my prior 2021 F150 Platinum FX4 PB with pretty much every option, I'm buying another 2021 F150. I traded my platinum in on a 2024 Ranger Raptor that I still have. However, I'm going to be starting a small business over the winter and need a truck mostly dedicated to that. Prices have gone up quite a bit, so I wanted to avoid buying new if possible. I located a 21 F150 XLT 302A 2WD SuperCab with the 6.5' bed and 5.0L in Velocity Blue that was special ordered. A 6.5' bed was the bare minimum I can get away with, so my options were pretty limited. It's a Job 1 truck and is pretty well equipped for an XLT. It has the Sport Appearance package w/ console, Copilot Assist 2.0, B&O audio, 360 Cameras, Trailer Brake Controller, Locking 3.73 9.25" 3/4 float rear axle, and Max Tow. I'm going to swap out the tires for some LT's and add rear air bags due to what I'll be hauling around. It has most of what the HDPP would have, less the frame and springs, but it does have the HD axle, so that's a big plus. Payload stock is about 2,100 pounds on the sticker. I had been really looking at XL's, so it's nice to get some of the creature comforts and most importantly, LED headlights. LOL. I know I never would have ordered this color. My prior F150 was Star White, and my Ranger Raptor is Cactus Gray. My Rav4 Prime is Silver. Yes, I'm a boring SOB.

The shocker was that the truck only has 5,900 miles on it. Paying cash for it (in the lower $30k range) and hope to take delivery within the nextweek. I've been on the hunt for an F150 with the HDPP, but those are like unicorns, and the ones I found were all pretty beat on, high miles, or on the east coast. This truck shows no accidents and was a CA truck all its life. I almost went with an F250/F350 with the 6.2/6-Speed to save some money, but I think I'll be happier with the F150. MPG and ride will certainly be far better. It has been a while since I've had a while since I've had a NA V8. All my F150's were 3.5L Ecoboosts.

I've bought a boatload of vehicles over the years, but I think this is the first time I've ever bought the same year and model again. At least I know what to expect, and will be busting out the laptop and Forscan to do some tweaks.

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[Buyer2021]

Gotta love a 145"WB SuperCab!

 

[Eighthtry]

When you are buying a used truck, you can't get picky. Take it and get over it.

 

[rugedraw]

Wow.....5900 miles in 4 years. Crazy.

 

[unixadm]

Pulled the trigger today and e-signed the paperwork. The truck was tied up in service for some recalls which involved FDRS updates, and we all know how painful those can be. It still has the axle shaft recall pending, so I'm going to need to address that with my local dealer. I logged into OASIS and I see it has a lot of updates still pending, so I'll probably be buying a 2-3 day logon on Saturday to update the truck. Thankfully, I have a Ford VCM2 and have gone through this with my prior 2021.

I ended up buying the Ford PremiumCare warranty for around 6 years and 85k miles. With the CDF drum issue affecting the 10R80 in this truck, I rolled the dice if it would have issues. If it was a 2023 or newer, I would have skipped the warranty. They matched Granger's online price and actually got me another 10k miles of coverage.

I'm just waiting on the funds to transfer and then they'll deliver it to me. I am looking forward to having a V8 again, since the only V8 I've had for a while is in my 70 Chevelle SS 454, and driving that just isn't the same as a modern daily driver. LOL

 

[unixadm]

I'm officially back in the saddle again. A big shout out to Capitol Ford in San Jose, CA. They're part of the DGDG automotive group, and I've bought a few vehicles from DGDG dealerships over the years. They were an absolute pleasure to work with. They accepted my offer, sent me photos of the truck, sent videos, matched Granger on the ESP warranty, and even delivered the truck from San Jose to Sacramento for me today as soon as the funds cleared. Ironically, the sales man I bought my Ranger Raptor from left that dealership and showed up at my house working for Capitol, so it was a small world moment when I'm like, wait a minute..... haha. On top of delivering it, they filled up the 36 gallon tank which was awesome since that's not typical on a used vehicle.

The truck is in excellent like new condition. It could use a polishing, but I only found one scratch, no dings, no dents, and no chips in the glass. The interior is perfect, and the bed looks like it was hardly ever used. I honestly think I did well for what I paid for it.

First impressions with the 5.0L after having a 2012 F150 with the 3.5L, then a 2018 F150 with the 3.5L, and lastly the 2021 F150 Powerboost Platinum. I'll say, it lacks that initial off the line feel, but I know even though I have not had my old 21 since October 2024, I drove it quite a bit. This truck just isn't nearly as smooth with the powertrain, but it has the Job 1 initial PCM calibration. I'm going to start updating using FDRS tomorrow, and I know on my old 21, it helped a lot when I applied newer calibrations to the truck. What I do love is the engine sound. Now I understand what everyone was talking about - it sounds mean under the hood and revs like crazy. Is it as fast as my old PB, nope. But it sure puts a smile on my face that the PB never did.

Overall, compared to my old Platinum, this truck seems to be dang near as quiet and comfortable. The XLT seats are quite comfortable, and I do not miss the Platinum center console cover with the different layers of leather. It's nice just to have a smooth armrest in this truck. I'd say the biggest thing I notice and I expected it, is how much of a downgrade the base B&O is compared to the unleashed system. It's not overly clear, and it lacks bass, but it's still better than what I was going to get in an XL, so I'm not complaining. But I've read people don't notice big differences between them, but after having the Unleashed system for 3+ years, it's very noticeable to me.

The truck drives like new and I'm super happy. I had to extract the factory keypad code using the two key in the console trick, because the card was missing from the truck. I added an old Uniden R3 radar detector, blend mount, and mirror taps that I had left over from my old 21. Found the stubby antenna too, so I installed that as well. I did order up a set of Husky floor liners to replace the carpet mats. Next up will be new tires and a set of rear air bags.

Speaking of tires, I did notice some cracking on the tires, and the truck is gold certified from Ford, so I emailed the dealership and they're looking into what they can do for me, since it shouldn't have came with tires showing some dry rot. They're not terrible, but since I'm going to be towing, I'll need to replace them quickly. Hopefully they'll help me out with that.

 

[MJG44]

A pedal monster changes the 5.0 quite a bit, you'll be much more satisfied with the driving experience.

 

[crazywayne311]

aint gonna lie, thats a nice looking truck

 

[Eighthtry]

A pedal monster changes the 5.0 quite a bit, you'll be much more satisfied with the driving experience.

Tell us more about the pedal monster and how it changes our F150's

 

[unixadm]

I woke up early, bought the $50 FDRS license and got all of the low hanging fruit modules updated. Everything else remaining is ABS, PSCM, CCM, IPMA, and IPC. Those often take a long time and result in multiple modules being programmed. I'm towing a trailer out to my buddy's house this morning, so I only had a limited amount of time.

I will say after updating the audio control module and DSP, the B&O system sounds better. I recall I had a similar experience with the unleashed system after an update, so that was nice. The main things I wanted to update today were the gear shift module because it can get stuck, the trailer brake module, and the PCM. All of those went through, though the ACM still shows an updated pending. I had the same issue with FDRS in the past where it shows a false update after updating.

 

[unixadm]

Got all of the FDRS module updates completed yesterday. It took about 10ish hours with the IPC and IPMA being the absolute worst when using a VCM2. The PCM tune really helped with smoothing out the transmission, though. I also put the truck to work during the day! Really enjoying it.

I went ahead and made my Forscan changes today and got everything enabled/tweaked that I was looking for. Also installed a set of Husky liners I got from Amazon warehouse deals which fit perfect.

I figured since I had access to FDRS, I updated my 2024 Ranger Raptor as well. Thankfully, it only had four modules requiring updates and only took about 35 minutes.

Next up is figuring out what new tires I'm going to put on the truck.

 

[Aonarch]

Nice find!

 

[unixadm]

After wrapping up the FDRS updates, I wanted to put a couple hundred miles on the truck. I decided to take it up into the Sierra Nevada foothills for some driving, sightseeing, and hiking. The truck performed great and I got about 23MPG indicated with some windy road spirited driving mixed in. It got about 25 MPG on the highway at 73ish MPH. Super happy with the MPG so far.

I like the 5.0, but I do miss the low end grunt of the 3.5. They drive so differently. In an Ecoboost, the throttle delivers more results than in this truck. It’s taking me a little time to develop new muscle memory to really dig into the accelerator.

 

[unixadm]

A few updates. I was able to get $500 from the selling dealer to put towards a new set of tires. I ordered a used set of 2021+ HDPP 18" wheels from LKQ and received those yesterday. I paid $91 each shipped for three of them, and $157 for the 4th. Not too bad. They're in pretty good condition and to my surprise they included OEM TPMS sensors and center caps. I touched up a few blems on them and ordered a set of 275/65/18 Rocky Mountain All Terrain LT E rated tires to install on them. Most of the tires I was interested in were OEM variants from the big name brands at this size, and I'm not a big fan of OEM built tires, so I decided to save some money and give these a try. If I don't like them, I'll have 30 days from America's Tire to swap to something else. I'm going to sell the OEM sport wheels.

I also purchased a set of Morimoto red rear LED taillights to replace the OEM halogen w/ BLIS lights that came on my truck. I added their 3rd LED reverse light as well that installs on the license plate. The install was pretty easy and took about 30-45 minutes. The only thing I wish they had done was go with amber turn signals, but I still like the look. I have a set of LED front turn signal bulbs to install, and then the truck will be completely LED. That's about the only exterior mod I'm doing besides changing from the sport wheels over to the HDPP wheels.

I did purchase Livernois tune for the truck and received it a week ago, but I have not installed it. Having seconds thoughts after ordering it post-two Old Fashioned cocktails. LOL

 

[‘22Powerboost]

You said in your opening post, that you bought the same model again…but your previous F150 was a Platinum PB, and this is an XLT 2 WD. How is that the same model? Or did I miss something?

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