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Hey friends! I’ll run down my build first, then the process, and some final notes. I’ll do a fuller review later when ive driven some miles and maybe after our camping trip in June for some useful photos for you all.
The build:
XLT
4k
Katzkin leather and heated seat package
herculiner roll in bed liner (not yet installed)
gator soft fold (currently in transit to me)
if you have any questions about the build feel free to ask, i just dont feel like typing out all the details if nobody cares lol
the process:
i researched the crap outa this one. i spent about a month both here and on youtube reviews figuring out if this is the car for me, and then what exactly to do with my build. Thanks to this forum, I was able to identify constraint items, avoid them, and have a really quick turn-around.
ordered through Trillium Ford on Jan 17
Schedule email came in march
Built first week in april
arrived off train may 6
to dealer may 12
picked up today, may 19. Almost 4 months to the day.
my experience with trillium was fantastic, i’ll reserve judgement for a few days for a full review though, someone forgot to install my heated seats underneath my leather package lol so i’ll get to review their customer service very early on into our relationship lol but the buying process was great. Evreything over email except for a 5 minute phone call for credit check, and 10 minutes of in person signatures. I was able to decline all the extended warranties and stuff like that through email. Nothing awkward. Paid MSRP.
Couple quickie observations from my 40 minutes of driving:
1. Most importantly… this car… is rediculously fun to drive for the price you pay. The eco is easily excitable, eager, and responsive. Sport mode actually changes the driving feel (as opposed to our Sorento where i swear it just changes the color of your HUD lol) and as a biproduct of being designed to pull 4000 lbs the suspension is kinda sports car like lol just with a SUV ride height.
2. Despite the fact that i over-researched before buying… and after for that matter, there were still a few things i didn’t know about the car when i got it. For example I didn’t know it came with the keypad entry, which im really happy about.
3. There have been a lot of complaints about the screen and the speakers… i dunno what cars you guys were trading in lol but the screen is bigger and clearer than on my previous 2018 kia rio, and my current family suv (2020 kia sorento). Its also more responsive than the rio’s. Probably about the same as the sorento. The speakers are on par with the rio, so theyre fine lol nothing special IMO for good or bad.
4. The phone holding portion of the center console (the big orange bit) is really ergonomically smart. The standy uppy one is perfect for using maps if you happen to not have a chord for carplay handy. The laying down one is perfect for carplay function.
5. I love my katzkin package lol i hope some of you do too. Also i love the XLT rims… and just the overall trim in general. So pleased! This weekend i’ll roll on the bed liner and make myself a bed protector (cuz i actually will be using this trucklet for work)
EDIT: i forgot a couple things
6. I forgot how much plastic steering wheels suck. I’ll be addressing this somehow lol if i dont spring for a new wheel i’ll get a leather DIY wrapping kit from amazon
7. I didn’t know XLT had auto climate control. This was a pleasant surprise
8. Like many have mentioned, tire pressure way too high from factory. I dunno why. But it definitely affects the ride feel. You feel every little thing in the road, and its a bit jittery. I’ll adjust the pressure today and see what happens.
thanks for reading! And thanks to all you here that helped me land on a build i’m super pleased with
The build:
XLT
4k
Katzkin leather and heated seat package
herculiner roll in bed liner (not yet installed)
gator soft fold (currently in transit to me)
if you have any questions about the build feel free to ask, i just dont feel like typing out all the details if nobody cares lol
the process:
i researched the crap outa this one. i spent about a month both here and on youtube reviews figuring out if this is the car for me, and then what exactly to do with my build. Thanks to this forum, I was able to identify constraint items, avoid them, and have a really quick turn-around.
ordered through Trillium Ford on Jan 17
Schedule email came in march
Built first week in april
arrived off train may 6
to dealer may 12
picked up today, may 19. Almost 4 months to the day.
my experience with trillium was fantastic, i’ll reserve judgement for a few days for a full review though, someone forgot to install my heated seats underneath my leather package lol so i’ll get to review their customer service very early on into our relationship lol but the buying process was great. Evreything over email except for a 5 minute phone call for credit check, and 10 minutes of in person signatures. I was able to decline all the extended warranties and stuff like that through email. Nothing awkward. Paid MSRP.
Couple quickie observations from my 40 minutes of driving:
1. Most importantly… this car… is rediculously fun to drive for the price you pay. The eco is easily excitable, eager, and responsive. Sport mode actually changes the driving feel (as opposed to our Sorento where i swear it just changes the color of your HUD lol) and as a biproduct of being designed to pull 4000 lbs the suspension is kinda sports car like lol just with a SUV ride height.
2. Despite the fact that i over-researched before buying… and after for that matter, there were still a few things i didn’t know about the car when i got it. For example I didn’t know it came with the keypad entry, which im really happy about.
3. There have been a lot of complaints about the screen and the speakers… i dunno what cars you guys were trading in lol but the screen is bigger and clearer than on my previous 2018 kia rio, and my current family suv (2020 kia sorento). Its also more responsive than the rio’s. Probably about the same as the sorento. The speakers are on par with the rio, so theyre fine lol nothing special IMO for good or bad.
4. The phone holding portion of the center console (the big orange bit) is really ergonomically smart. The standy uppy one is perfect for using maps if you happen to not have a chord for carplay handy. The laying down one is perfect for carplay function.
5. I love my katzkin package lol i hope some of you do too. Also i love the XLT rims… and just the overall trim in general. So pleased! This weekend i’ll roll on the bed liner and make myself a bed protector (cuz i actually will be using this trucklet for work)
EDIT: i forgot a couple things
6. I forgot how much plastic steering wheels suck. I’ll be addressing this somehow lol if i dont spring for a new wheel i’ll get a leather DIY wrapping kit from amazon
7. I didn’t know XLT had auto climate control. This was a pleasant surprise
8. Like many have mentioned, tire pressure way too high from factory. I dunno why. But it definitely affects the ride feel. You feel every little thing in the road, and its a bit jittery. I’ll adjust the pressure today and see what happens.
thanks for reading! And thanks to all you here that helped me land on a build i’m super pleased with
Sponsored
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Enjoy!
