Goose the Foose

Front View "Smoking The Tires"

Driver Side

Roush Engine

By Mike Schmidt, Vehicle Testing Coordinator Email | Blog
Date posted: 06-19-2008



Here we sit behind the wheel of the 2008 Ford F-150 Foose Edition. With one foot planted on the brake pedal, we drop it into gear and goose the throttle. Somewhere beyond the loud whine of the supercharger we hear a long, drawn-out shush. It's not our high school librarian. These 22-inch tires just don't squeal like we expected.

A glance in the rearview is reassuring. White smoke billows from the wheel openings and now engulfs the truck bed. This exercise doesn't sound as cool as we had hoped, but it gets the job done. We pull around to the front of the building, park in the first available spot and climb out.

Some bystanders shake their heads in disgust and a couple of kids smile as we puff out our chests and strut past them. Our tuxedos reek of rubber as we enter the church. Just then the groom turns and says, "It sure is a good thing we got here early for photos."

Now we understand why Chip Foose and Ford teamed up for the 2008 Ford F-150 Foose Edition. This truck is built for burnouts. And burnouts draw attention. Ford hopes this attention is enough to generate some F-150 sales.

A Familiar Story
Chip Foose is everywhere these days, as this surprisingly young member of the Hot Rod Hall of Fame seems to be everywhere all at once, sketching new hot rods, talking about design or hawking products on TV. It's no wonder that Ford sought him out for a special-edition version of the Ford F-150, because his hot-rod roots and modern design tastes are a perfect fit for what Ford is trying to accomplish here. Of course, this project probably sounded way cooler to the Ford product planners two years ago at the 2006 SEMA Show when it was conceived than it does right now. In the midst of escalating gas prices, you couldn't pick a worse time to sell a pickup with a supercharged 450-horsepower 5.4-liter V8.

Foose puts his own spin on a popular Ford story with his signature hot-rod look. First you start with an F-150 FX2 Sport short bed, then you add shiny upper and lower front grilles, a kit of add-on bodywork, plus a few items embossed with the Foose logo for the interior. Most of all, there are the Foose graphics (he's a guy with a strong graphic sense) — big striped decals that run the length of the truck. It all adds up to just what you'd expect from a hot-rod truck, although its overall visual refinement might make its appearance a little predictable.

The Foose Edition has plenty of hardware to back up the made-for-TV look. A Ford Racing supercharger with a clever integrated intercooler bolts right on to the iron-block 5.4-liter Triton V8, and a Ford Racing cat-back dual-exhaust system improves the overall airflow. The result is 450 hp at 5,200 rpm and 500 pound-feet of torque at 4,200 rpm.

With so much power at hand, some effort has been made to keep the Foose F-150 in touch with the ground. Eibach springs are installed, with coils up front and leaf springs in the rear, and there's a Sachs damper at every corner. Just as you'd expect, Foose-designed forged 22-inch wheels are part of the deal, although their impact is heightened by the massive P275/45R22 Pirelli Scorpion Zero tires. Spin these too frequently and replacement tires will pick your pocket for 250 bucks apiece.

Good Tires Make a Difference
When all is said and done, this Foose has output not unlike its companions in the F-150 special-edition sweepstakes, the 2007 F-150 Harley-Davidson, 2007 Saleen S331 Supercharged Sport Truck and 2007 Roush Performance Stage 3 F-150.

This kind of power has a definite impact on performance. In a straight line this 5,500-pound truck is quick for its size, completing the quarter-mile in 14.7 seconds at 92 mph, quicker by 0.2 second than the 2007 Roush Stage 3 we tested. Shifts are crisp in the Foose, but the widely spaced gear ratios in this old-fashioned four-speed automatic transmission deliver power in peaks and valleys.

This truck has some good stoppers, coming to a halt in a mere 117 feet from 60 mph. By comparison, the Roush Stage 3 requires 134 feet. We attribute much of this stopping power to the massive grip of its Pirellis, but we should also note that brake fade was nonexistent even after as many as seven attempts.

When it comes to turning a corner, the Foose handles well for a truck with a wheelbase of 138.5 inches and an overall length of 224 inches. Its slalom speed of 59.6 mph is faster than the Roush's 57.9 mph. Around the skid pad, the Foose and the Roush match one another with 0.80g of lateral force and they do the job with a far better balance between front and rear grip than the stock F-150.

Showroom Ready
Limited-production trucks like the Foose are built for a couple of reasons. They satisfy the needs of folks with money to burn who are looking for a finished truck capable of blowing the doors off all the wannabes in their neighborhood. (These people tend to spend $1,700 on personalization, much more than buyers of any other truck.) And from a brand perspective, Ford hopes they serve as a catalyst to encourage sales across the model line.

Full-size truck sales are down significantly from 2007 for all manufacturers, and the Ford F-150 in particular has slumped 24 percent in recent months, an indicator of the way the F-150 caters to non-truck people who can own anything they want. Trends in the price of oil suggest a shift toward unibody, fuel-efficient compact trucks may be on the horizon. Suddenly the Honda Ridgeline is looking more compelling to rival manufacturers despite its modest sales numbers, and we've already seen glimmers of what could be the next El Camino from GM's Holden arm. Concept retro versions of the Ford Ranchero and Subaru BRAT can't be far behind.

Ford needs to bring people to the dealership in order to sell trucks. And a truck like the Foose edition looks good on the showroom floor. It even looks good on paper, though you might wince at its $55,200 MSRP. Yet even those thin of wallet are likely to turn their efforts to a less expensive F-150, order parts on the Ford Racing site and modify their own truck. At least this is what Ford wants to happen.

Blowing Smoke
In a time when the Toyota Prius is king and hypermiling is actually a word, the 2008 Ford F-150 Foose Edition is out of place. This truck draws attention to itself with high horsepower and a propensity to victimize rubber. It's not interested in fuel consumption through a sippy cup, but instead prefers a funnel and hose.

Hot-rodders have always been considered part of the counterculture, and this Chip Foose-inspired truck fits that mold particularly well in these eco-conscious times. Unfortunately this truck is destined to be a collector's item as a result, because we don't foresee very many sales.

Nevertheless, the Foose F-150 is exactly what you want from a hot-rod truck. But when the urge to blow a smoky burnout behind the local church comes on, take a look around first. Be sure the pastor isn't standing out back on his cigarette break. Sorry, Reverend.

The manufacturer provided Edmunds this vehicle for the purposes of evaluation.