I was 16 the first time my uncle tossed me the keys to his brand-new pickup, a white '67 Ford F-150 with the biggest engine you could get, a 390 c.i. V-8 with a four-barrel carb and three on the stick.
That week, spent scooting around Bath County, Kentucky, to visit aunts, uncles and cousins, was when I first discovered that I was gifted with an ability to do foolish, illegal things behind the wheel and to somehow emerge with unscathed skin and intact sheet metal. Dumb luck has served me well.
Time and circumstance changed our family from hard-scrabble tenant tobacco growers to gentlemen farmers. Uncle Reese went to work as lineman straight out of high school, studied at night, and, in time, became general manager of the electric co-op. A couple of milk cows, a chicken house, a fishing pond and garden were all the farming done in those days.
Quietly proud of his hard-earned affluence, Reese opted for the fastest truck in the county, but not the most luxurious. Though Ford offered carpeting-for the first time-that year in the new Ranger, my uncle's step-side Custom was more fitting for the sensibilities of those reared during the Great Depression. Amid rubber mats and a plain bench seat was his only luxury, a radio capable of receiving FM stations.
Wow, if my uncle could see American pickups half a century later. Floating living rooms they are, with sofa-like seating, music-hall sound, power for all our devices, and quiet as a church during the annual tithing sermon; but still enough power to take to the track.
Two of the best $60,000 pickups graced our driveway over the holidays, enveloping us in luxury, nurturing our sense of security while giving us the ability to haul or pull massive objects.
I have long been inured to the power of chick magnets. At my age, when two sweet young things walk over at a gas station and strike up a conversation, I am pretty sure the star attraction is not me, but the Corvette, or Mercedes convertible, whatever.
The two weeks spent in these trucks, however, taught me a corollary: middle-aged guy magnet. Half a dozen times, I would be walking across a parking lot and some grey-haired, pot-bellied fellow-might be my twin-would holler, "nice truck!" I was checking into a hotel in Little Rock when a senior police official in an unmarked vehicle pulled in behind me to check out my ride. Without prompting, I offered consent to search.
Silverado High Country
Like all GM pickups, which feature triple-sealed doors, the High Country's chief claim to fame is its quietness. The High Country more than doubles the base price of a Silverado with a long list of goodies: a Wi-Fi hot spot, advanced smartphone integration, high-tech driver assistance features, rear-seat entertainment systems, and heated and ventilated front seats.
Curiously, neither of our test trucks came with state-of-art safety feature like active cruise control and front collision avoidance. They are smart enough to know the truck is about to hit something, but not smart enough to hit the brakes. In an age when cars can bounce an infrared signal off the pavement below the vehicle in front to detect when the one two cars up is slamming on the brakes, Ford and GM trucks are decidedly behind the curve.
Heated seats and a heated front steering wheel on the Silverado came in handy during the great Texas blizzard of '07. When it's 16 degrees, life improves drastically when one is supplied immediate heat to hands and buttocks.
A 5.3-liter V-8 is standard on the High Country, but our tester was fitted with the optional 6.2-liter V-8 which delivers 420-horsepower and 460 lb.-ft. of torque at 4,100 rpm. Mated to an 8-speed automatic, the powertain has the grunt to pull a houseboat (provided it weighs less than 11,700 pounds) and is Cadillac-smooth when air hauling. The two-hour trip to the Little Rock airport was made easier by having the oomph to shoot around left-lane hogs, or to fill the mirror with chrome when the right lane was also clogged.
Handling is crisp and linear, for such a massive machine. Parking lots are best approached with caution, especially since GM has yet to offer the sophisticated, 360-degree parking cameras that can be found on Fords. Alas, I frequently found that my best efforts left at least one portion of the High Country hanging out of its assigned area.
Seating was ample and comfortable and rear seating was as accommodating as any full-sized sedan. Entrance and egress was easy, even for our somewhat shorter and less agile passengers, thanks to a power step.
The Silverado's ride is generally soft, for a truck, but rear leaf springs cause it to be trucky in some circumstances. Along the new, concrete stretch of I-30 near the Red River Bridge it bounced like a boat on choppy seas, eliciting from us a rather nice, three-part harmony of oooOOO, oooOOO, oooOOO.
Ford F-150 Limited
Ford's gamble on aluminum in its F-150 lines seems to be paying off bigly. Lighter bodies and light, stronger frames result in trucks that handle better and use less fuel. Add in class-leading technology, like its EcoBoost VC-6 family that tow more than the competitors V-8s, trailering assist and nine-camera parking systems, and the reasons that Ford is sitting on top of the pickup world come into focus.
Available only as four-door SuperCrew cab with a 5.5-foot bed and the EcoBoost 3.5-liter, twin-turbo V-6 (a 5.0-liter V-8 and a 6.5-foot bed are optional) the Limited attracts attention with unique 22-inch wheels, a satin-finished grille and door handles, and a handful of otherwise optional features such as a panoramic moon roof.
Optional are four-wheel drive, a tailgate step, box-side steps, and a trailer tow package. Not available is blue-collar equipment such as the FX4 Off-Road package and Max Trailer Tow package. You want a work truck? Ford has it, but not with the Limited badge.
New for 2017 is an all-new EcoBoost V6 that delivers 50 lb.-ft. more torque for a best-in-class 470 lb.-ft. and adds 10 horsepower over the previous engine. Also new is an advanced 10-speed transmission optimizes power and torque curves for improved performance and efficiency. The setup allows the Limited to tow up to 11,800 lbs.
Like the Silverado, the F-150 limited wraps its occupants in luxury. Though the interior components look and feel rugged, caramel-colored leather, highlighted by matte-finished eucalyptus accents give the truck a rich feel. Seating is comfortable and supportive, even on a long ride, and the space is voluminous.
Power running boards make entering the tall truck at least manageable. Even the lovely Miss Ruth, and octogenarian, found the chore manageable. At night, ambient lighting illuminates the ground beneath the truck.
In the rear is a sizable amount of covered, locked, weather-proof storage behind the SuperCrew's rear seat. Ford has also designed the rear seat to accommodate smaller items beneath the bottom cushion when they're in use by passengers. We're told it's a handy spot to store firearms.
The dashboard and switches are logically laid out, easy to understand and use.
Because it does not offer emergency braking, the F-150 does not qualify for an IIHS' "Top Safety Pick." Still, the F-150 is ahead of competitors with 360-degree cameras system, a reversing camera, a blind spot warning system, and a rear cross-traffic alert system.
Haters are going to hate, and some folks will never accept anything less than a V-8 in a full-sized pickup. Still, independent testing says an EcoBoost V-6 powered F-150 can move from 0 to 60 in less than six seconds. My uncle would love it.
Like the High Country, the F-150 Limited provides exceptional ride and handling, especially for a vehicle with a high center of gravity and great mass.
The Verdict
As it worked out, we put both trucks through similar paces, toting the wise Ruth to the Little Rock airport with the F-150 and bringing her safely home in the Silverado. Although both are great trucks and I wouldn't kick either one out of my garage, this really isn't a close call. The Ford Limited wins this one going away.
Three reasons.
Because it is lighter and has a stronger frame, the F-150 Limited is more responsive. It has a heavy ride, but steering is precise and braking feels sure-footed. At the same time, although it has rear leaf springs, the Ford was noticeably less bouncy on uneven pavement. To digress, neither offer the ride of a Ram, which rides on multi-link geometry in the rear.
Fuel economy was another major difference. We averaged close to 23 mpg with the F-150 Limited, but less than 16 with the Silverado High Country. The way that worked out, we drove Mimi to the airport, drove around Little Rock that night, went sightseeing and shopping the next day, and had enough to drive around the rest of the week
We drove the Silverado straight to the airport and back, and had to put in $50 worth of gas to complete the week's errands. I know gas is cheap, but still.
Finally, there is the safety factor. Both of these rigs have some gigantic blind spots. The F-150's camera system and blind-spot offer some help.
If there's a heaven, I suspect Uncle Reese is tooling around in an F-150, but not the Limited. Too rich for his tastes.