As the old southern preacher once said…”YeAAASSS!!!
It’s been a long time a’comin’, but the powers
that be at Ford Motor Company have seen the light, saw the truth,
had a “better idea”…oh hell, just keep
reading…..
From time to time vehicle
manufacturers bring vehicles to the showroom floors
“targeted” at a specific type of consumer. Back in the
“Muscle Car” era, there was the “AAR Cuda”,
Pontiac GTO Judge” and of course the king hell “Boss
Mustangs” - real cars for real people with a real purpose.
These weren’t just “trim packages” that added
some vinyl stripes, chrome hubcaps and a hefty sum to the retail
price, they were genuine improvements to the power, handling and
overall performance of the baseline vehicles.
Before the FX4 became a reality, it was a
concept built on information gathered from real-world off-roaders
at events across the country.
For many years after the muscle era died,
“trim packages” were about all that was available.
There were no real performance cars on the lots to choose from, and
as a result, the automotive aftermarket flourished. In recent years
though, the automotive mavens of the world have been living through
the second “Muscle Car” era. For car buffs, it’s
a great time to be alive.
But what about us
truck guys? Sadly, things haven’t been as peachy for
conisuers of 4WD and off-highway performance around the dealer
lots. While Jeep made a significant contribution to off-road
worthiness in it’s release of the “TJ” in
’97 and Toyota ushered in their “Prerunner”
Tacomas for the pick-up market, there were still no “high
end” trucks filled to bursting with the off-highway
equivalents of the muscle cars of days gone by.Leave it to Ford to break that ground.
Before the FX4 became a reality, it was a concept
built on information gathered from real-world off-roaders at events
across the country. The Ford sponsored “Best In The Desert
Tough Truck Meet” held annually in Las Vegas NV was only one
of many places where the boys of the Blue Oval sat down and talked
turkey with the people who use their products - and use them
hard.
Stainless steel front tow hooks add a touch of
flair and a lot of strength to the package.
Questions ranged from the general (What do you use
your truck for?) to the very specific (Would you pay extra for
factory installed performance suspensions, tires, etc.?). Being one
of the people questioned, I’ll vouch for the thoroughness and
sincerity of Ford’s outreach effort. But what will likely
come as a surprise to many in the off-road community is that Ford
listened to what it’s customers had to say - and acted on
it.FX4 At A Glance
Equipped with the optional “FX4”
package, Ford’s best selling mid-size undergos the
transformation from economical work/commuter vehicle to a fully
capable off-road weapon, through the use of several state of the
off-road art components.
15" ALCOA Forged
Aluminum Wheels and B.F. Goodrich All-Terrain T/A KO Tires
(31x10.5)
The foundation of any true
off-road capable vehicle are their wheels and tires. Simply put,
all the suspension trickery and high powered engines are useless if
the vehicle is unable to get it all to the ground. Secondly, tires
and wheels used off-road take many times the abuse of their highway
counterparts. Rocks, stumps, ruts and other off-highway obstacles
can quickly puncture rubber or damage cast aluminum or stamped
steel rims.
The FX4 responds to these
concerns with a wheel and tire package proven over the world famous
“Baja 500” and “Baja 1000” races. Sized at
31x10.5x15, BF Goodrich’ redesigned “All Terrain
KO” tires are pared with a set of forged aluminum wheels from
the people at Alcoa. With a weight rating many times that of the
FX4 and a track record that has claimed more trophies in
competition than all itheir competitors combined, the wheel and
tire package is well up to any abuse the average off-roader can
dish out.Premium Bilstein Shock
Absorbers / Performance Suspension
While the new A-arm front suspension may have been a step up
in the Ranger’s
T
he FX4 features a
list of detail and comfort options that won’t send a new
owner scurrying for an aftermarket catalog.
handling and overall driveability, the torsion bar
design easily overwhelmed the stock shocks ability to deal with
anything but the most basic use. With some beefy rubber on board,
it was clear to Ford that a major increase in suspension dampening
was in order.
Rather than simply bolt up
heavier duty pieces, the engineers at the Blue Oval turned to
Bilstein to design a shock that would be specifically tuned to work
with the FX4’s performance tuned suspension components. With
decades of off-road racing under their belt and an ongoing R&D
program in off-highway competition, it was child’s play for
Bilstein to come up with a shock that turned the Ranger’s
stock suspension into an outstanding performer both on and off the
road.Skid Plates (Front Suspension,
Fuel Tank & Transfer Case)
Real
off-roaders use their vehicles in the most abusive ways imaginable,
so it comes as no surprise that their vehicles need the utmost in
protection from the terrain they encounter. Ford equipped the FX4
with a full compliment of steel skid plates to protect the front
suspension /differential, transfer case and highly vounerable fuel
tank from destruction at the hands of aggressive drivers and Mother
Nature.Stainless Steel, Open-Ended
Front Tow Hooks - Black, Open-Ended Rear Tow Hook
Off-road performance takes power, and the FX4
delivers. With a 4.0L SOHC V6 under the hood feeding 207 HP and 238
ft. lbs. of torque
.
At some point, even the best drivers in the best
of vehicles will find themselves stuck. Deep mud, tall rocks and
soft sand are the whole reason we’re out there, but sometimes
they’ll get the best of us. Ford chose to equip the FX4 with
solid vehicle recovery equipment straight from the factory.
Stainless steel front tow hooks add a touch of flair and a lot of
strength to the package, while standard black steel pieces
sacrifice a little glitz for solid dependability.Torsen Limited Slip Differential
Axle
Short of a full locking
differential, the Torsen limited slip differential is by far the
preferred traction aiding device in use today. Rather than relying
on springs and clutches to send power to the wheel that needs it
most, the Torsen uses a series of gears to keep the traction high
and the maintenance low. With Torsens having been proven through
their use on both military and civilian Hum Vees and coupled to the
big BF Goodrich rubber, the FX4 Ranger will certainly surpass
it’s lesser brethren’s traction capabilities. Manual Shifting Transfer Case (with Manual Transmission
only)
Though off-roaders like
“high tech” electronic goodies just like anyone else,
the
transfer case isn’t among them.
We like a good old fashioned shift lever to engage and disengage
our gears. To meet the need, Ford has abandoned the electronic
shifted x-fer case on the FX4 (manual transmission version), once
again adding to the reliability and versatility of the
truck.Powertrain
J
ust because a vehicle
is “capable” doesn’t mean that it can’t be
“beautiful.”
Off-road performance takes power, and the FX4
delivers. With a 4.0L SOHC V6 under the hood feeding 207 HP and 238
ft. lbs. of torque to your choice of 5-speed manual or automatic
overdrive transmissions, the FX4 is far from under powered. Add in
a set of 4.10 to 1 gears and performance moves up the scale
significantly. Low gearing works with the torquey mill and big
rubber to let the FX4 power it’s way over, around and through
all but the most aggressive obstacles.
Though there’s plenty of power here, it’s not that
far fetched to see future editions of the FX4 come equipped with
even more power, or Ford Racing/SVO pieces. High end Ford products
like the FX4 have a history of factory performance follow up.
Witness the upgrades to the “Lightning”,
“Cobra” and even the SVT Focus and
Contour.”….Yea, we’re drooling
too…..And Now The Glitz and
Glam
As you can see, Ford took a
“Big Picture” approach to the FX4. Rather than simply
bolting up some pretty fender flares, adding a sticker and calling
the result an “off-road vehicle”, they carefully
matched one component to another, analyzing the needs of each, and
their inter-relation with each other to extract the maximum
performance possible.
But just because a
vehicle is “capable” doesn’t mean that it
can’t be “beautiful.” Added to the list of
performance features, the FX4 features a list of detail and comfort
options that won’t send a new owner scurrying for an
aftermarket catalog. In fact, The FX4 aesthetics are orders of
magnitude above any truck released before.
Ford has abandoned the electronic shifted
x-fer case on the FX4 (manual transmission version), once again
adding to the reliability and versatility of the truck.
With 4 available colors (Black, Red, Silver and
Blue) as a starting point, the FX4 features a black or tan interior
with a trim package that combines a retro flair with modern design.
Black trim pieces contrast with chrome components to set the FX4
far apart from its XLT counterpart on the interior, while a
“Blackout” theme extends to the exterior
components.“Muscle Trucks and
More”
With the F-150
“Lightning” being the leader of the “Muscle
Truck” revolution, Ford has extended it’s reach into
the mid/mini market with the FX4. While the two may seem mutually
exclusive (pavement pounder and off-road hero) there’s a lot
of the same thought going into each from the engineers in Dearborn.
With off-highway recreation at an all-time high, Ford has taken the
lead in providing the buying public with a truly
“capable” off road vehicle that really is more than the
sum of it’s parts.
Unlike the
“Lightning” however, the FX4 looks to face competition
from Toyota with its “Prerunner” Tacoma, and
Nissan’s “Desert Runner”. Yet when one looks
below the surface of each and into the components that make the
machine, it becomes clear that the FX4 really doesn’t have
any competition at all.
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