Test Drove 07 ST

[John Moore]

I've owned an 01 Sport Trac since August of 01. Currently has 104,000 miles and overall, I love it! Some things I've never liked about it are:

1. Wind Noise. Always sounds like I have a window down. No leaks, just the way it sounds.

2. Really stiff ride. Throws you around all over the truck with a simple bump in the road. Whiplash!

3. Turning radius. Basically has the turning radius of a school bus.



All of these things have been fixed in the 07. I test drove a V8 Limited yesterday afternoon and have to say, this WILL be my next vehicle. This baby was a solid black beauty from front to back. Plenty of power with a smooth and quiet ride. The particular one I test drove had everything... heated windshield, heated seats, climate control for both sides, autodim rearview mirror, etc...

It did not have a roll down back window. I've heard rumors that they will not be available until July. Weird! It had Michelin's installed which is a nice surprise. Everything is a definite improvement over my 01 model except for one thing. No tow hooks or front mounts for brush guards, etc... I just think that's odd.

 

[Alex W]

Its a sweet ride. The V8 limited is just so sexy :wub:

 

[Rich Stern]

sparks, in my own post about the '07 ST test drive, I forgot to mention the turning radius. It's only a few feet better than the old model, but it seems so much better.



We talked about the front mount points with the Ford engineering staff at the '05 national meet. The issue was the Explorer's safety sensors and the crash testing requirements. The crash safety systems in these newer vehicles is so finely tuned that adding those mount points to the 2006 Explorer platform based Sport Trac would be a very big re-engineering (expensive) project for the vehicle.



As much as I like the tow hooks and front mount points, I'll happily trade them for the Explorer's frontal crash safety capability.

 

[John Moore]

Thanks for the info on the tow hooks/mounts. That's interesting to know!

 

[William Washington]

The one "new" thing I hate is that the gas tank filler is on the Passenger side. What's up with that? A pain in the butt. And, just not very user friendly.

 

[MARVIN McINTYRE 2]

Hey wwashing that will change sides when they do the 08 ST, just to let you know that it is not an 07 ST.Subtle changes, but it is a way to distinguish the year models, IMO.

 

[Rich Stern]

The one "new" thing I hate is that the gas tank filler is on the Passenger side. What's up with that? A pain in the butt. And, just not very user friendly.

The Ford engineers explained that one, too. Because of fill-up difficulty complaints in the previous generation, they wanted to shorten the tank filler neck to minimize the problems. That meant passenger side fuel door.

 

[EddieS'04]

I have no problem filling my '04...seems to me if the filler door is on the bedside and the tank is inside the frame..the neck is just as long, maybe longer..the new trac is wider..sounds hokey to me...probably using existing exhaust components and had to be user unfreindly....:huh: