2008 STA test with pics

Shop deals on ebay
Advertise with us
shop deals on amazon
Ford SportTrac Forum

Help Support Ford SportTrac Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
P

Patrick Pierobon

Active Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2002
Messages
422
Reaction score
0
Location
Sudbury, ON
Hello Everyone:



Well its 12:00pm April 20th 2008 and its been three days of testing with the Adrenalin and it is finally complete. I have broken down my test into a few areas. I have also taken pics of the Adrenalin compared to my ST. So here I go. Now some of my opinions are my opinions and does not reflect everyone.



Exterior



The exterior of the truck is fantastic. The look and stance of the truck fit well with the theme of the body kit and the front ties in nicely with the overal look. The body kit is high quality and it seems Ford took the time and effort to really think everything through. One of the highlights is how Ford on the side steps, rolled the black piece of plastic where you place your foot when you enter the truck. This over time will save you from having to repaint this area. On my ST my shoes left little scratches on the side step. This has been eliminated from the STA. You can see from the pic how the plastic rolls over the edge of the side step and how I had to place protective tape on my sport trac.



[Broken External Image]:



The back of the STA looks good and the way Ford went with all the curves and how they tied in the rear fasica looks great. I wish they could have put dual exhaust on the truck however at work when the STA was on the hoist the spare tire would be in the way. None the less the truck looks great from the rear. Only problem, (my opinion), the black tonneau cover just does not suit the theme of the truck. It stands out and a nice fiberglass cap would make wonders. Nonetheless, very functional and with the new locks compared to the older style, works better too. Seems like they also lightened it compared to the older style as well allowing less effort to open it. We all know how functional the inside of the box is so I won't go into detail about that. Here is the pic of the back.



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



When it comes to the side vents, well all I have to say is they give the STA that concept look and really distinguish it from all other ST's and ST Limiteds. Too bad they were not functional, however on closer inspection it looks like something can be done and I'm sure somebody will take this challenge upon them.



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



Finally when it comes to the front of the STA no matter what you have to give Ford credit for doing an excellent job. The front looks great without the chrome, the fog lights with the black surrounding and the cutouts look great and the blacked out headlights tie everything in nicely. At night when you open the doors, the interior light goes on, fog lights light up, side markers are light and the puddle lamps under the side mirrors light. I was at a coffee shop and a bystander said, "wow it looks like you have a plane on your hands." He then said, "that is an awsome way of how ford did that." I must have to agree with him. At night when you open your doors it looks awesome. Little things like this with the STA make it stand out even at night. Here are the pics. No night time pics but I will be getting them up tonight.



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



 
Last edited by a moderator:
Interior



Well there is not much to say about the interior of the truck. Ford went with an all black theme with hints of chrome to accent certain parts. None heated seats was a bad move in my opinion but compared to an ST Limited the perferated seats compined with softer leather and padding give the seats a more comfortable feel. But over the course of the three days (again my opinion) it got boring and dull. Hopefully Ford will accent the interior a little more in the following years. I would recommend anybody with an STA to carry a swifer dust cloth with them all the time since the interior shows everything. However overall, everything seems to be of high quality and fit and finish on this STA was amazing. All lines matched up and nothing seemed out of place.





[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



Engine and Driveline



Well we all know that this STA, well this model was an AWD unit. Impressions were overal good. Love how smooth everything worked and sounded. I wish there was some snow on the ground to really test it out however on loose gravel it it seemed to work great, no slipping and kicked it effortlessly. Cornering was solid and power was right there when you needed it. Some problems I saw was how sluggish the transmission was on take off. Seemed to hesitate for a second before engaging. However at roughly 30klm/h when you pressed the gas it took off. Overall, very pleased with the outcome. This unit only had 300klm on the odometer so gas milage seemed to be on the high side but what are you going to expect with an AWD unit and a V8.



One little feature that I liked was when I was playing with the inboard computer. If you pressed the setup button twice it brought you too an opion where you can have the AWD unit in Auto or Locked. When it lock mode it is like having the STA in 4x4 High. Great feature and when in lock mode and in Drive 3 or low gear pulling a boat out of the water would be easy. Again heads up to ford for thinking of that. Here are the pics.



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



Conclusion



Would I buy it, yes I would and mine would be white. However I would buy it in a year or two to see what Ford does with the interior. I just found it boring over the three days and not having the heated seats aggrevated me. I know you can install them but Ford come on. Overall great truck, fit and finish was beyond what I expected but a little more get up and go on take off would really make a difference for the truck. To all the peoople who have an STA right now, you have a great vehicle that is a head turner. Quality is up and you will have many years of fun with the STA. I look forward to joining the STA owners group within a year. Below are some other pics of the STA compared to mine. I hope this analysis helped and gave some insit on the STA. I could talk for hours on the truck but I don't want to keep you all staring at the screen for that long. LOL It was fun while it lasted and on Monday morning it will be going back. But at least I can see it everyday.



Regards,

Patrick Pierobon



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



[Broken External Image]:



 
Nice critique Pat, and very nice pictures. I totally agree that the STA is great looking inside and out, but Ford needs to improve on sportier performance (namely superior acceleration) and interior features. Hopefully this is possible without becoming too expensive. Also, the side vents look awesome, but they need to become functional.



BTW, your gen1 holds up very well next to the STA and, again, nice pics!
 
Sorry about the date on my camera. I just noticed that now. I guess when the battery died it messed up with thet date.



I also forgot about one thing in the write up. The STA just had a car wash but before that I noticed that the front ties kick up alot of dirt onto the side of the door and on the side steps. Over time, if you are not constantly cleaning this area the front of the side steps will begin to chip and look worn out. I would suggest a good pair of mud flaps but ford does not make any molded ones so for all STA owerners. Keep this area clean.



regards,

patrick pierobon

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Patrick. thanks for the write up and pics. Sounds like you had a good time with it. Also your Trac is good looker too...;)
 
Very much improved interior with the black. I like it a lot.



Exterior looks great, except truck is too low to the ground. Also, sissy rapper-thug/hip-hop/ricer-looking wheels and tires do not belong on a truck. This thing is going to get torn up bigtime the first time it goes off-road.



The rap music culture is destroying much of what was good in America. Please don't ruin our trucks with that crap. :angry:



 
Very much improved interior with the black. I like it a lot.



Exterior looks great, except truck is too low to the ground. Also, sissy rapper-thug/hip-hop/ricer-looking wheels and tires do not belong on a truck. This thing is going to get torn up bigtime the first time it goes off-road.



The rap music culture is destroying much of what was good in America. Please don't ruin our trucks with that crap.
Click to expand...



Pretty sure the Adrenalin version of the new ST is NOT meant for off-roading, which is why it has AWD instead of 4wd. If they had intended for it to be used off-road it would have had a part time transfer case with 4 low.
 
Exterior looks great, except truck is too low to the ground. Also, sissy rapper-thug/hip-hop/ricer-looking wheels and tires do not belong on a truck. .... This thing is going to get torn up bigtime the first time it goes off-road.
Click to expand...



Height. That's the reason it's the Adrenalin. It's focused on performance (well, performance looks), not off-road capability. In addition, Ford's not marketing this to the same segment as, e.g., a Wrangler purchaser.



Rims and the thug culture. Are you serious? 20" Ford rims? I don't even know how to respond to that. Does that mean 15" black wagon wheels with 33" mud-treads are the result of a redneck culture? :blink:
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Everyone has their opinion. However I would have to agree. The STA was more for street performance rather then offroading. As for the rims, I like how they look however when I get mine, I will be putting on another style. Not because I don't like them, I just want to give my truck my own special touch.



Regards,

Patrick Pierobon
 
I kinda like the interior of my STA, its not too busy and not too much flashy stuff. I like it. The one thing that I DONT like about the interior is there is no good place for change... In the 01 ST I could throw it in the console bag, but in the STA there is used things in the console like the MP3 hook up and the charger for my cell phone, so I dont want to be throwing too much change in there.



 
The rap music culture is destroying much of what was good in America. Please don't ruin our trucks with that crap.
Click to expand...



:lol: NO IT ISN'T It's parents not parenting their kids at early ages.





Patrick nice job! Great pictures!

 
Great write up, thanks.



Just a note, the Tonneau is not lighter, they just installed a torsion rod where it pivots so it opens easier. Once you take it off you know right away the entire unit is not lighter.



Thanks again.
 

Latest posts

Top