Are Sport Trucks Poised for a Comeback?
The 2024 F-150 XL uses the Coyote V8 as its base engine, and it comes in over five grand less than a Mustang GT. Time to build a sport truck?
Is the ’90s “sport truck” craze due for a comeback? Times are tough. Money seems like it just doesn’t go as far as it used to. Back in 2021, you could buy a brand new, base model Mustang GT in the mid-$30k range. Now, the cheapest Mustang GT you can buy comes in at $43,555 with Destination & Delivery. The era of the affordable muscle car may be well and truly over.
Fret not. The new-for-2024 F-150 just might be everything you’ve wanted and more. Think we’re crazy? Hear us out. The cheapest base F-150 XL is a 2WD, regular cab shortbed with a 5.0 liter Coyote V8 under the hood. It’s got LED headlights and a giant infotainment screen standard. Best of all? It’s only $38,765 with Destination & Delivery.
If you were around in the ’90s, you might remember sport trucks. These full-size trucks were affordable, daily-driven street machines with more utility than your average muscle car.
Of course, there were factory options like the Ford SVT Lightning and the Chevrolet 454 SS. However, plenty of folks were taking V8, 2WD, short-box trucks, slamming them on a nice set of wheels, and doing it themselves. It might be high time for that sport truck trend to come back.
Performance vs. Utility
So, does a Ford F-150 XL make sense as an alternative to a Mustang GT? Let’s start with horsepower, torque, and weight. The F-150 brings a respectable 400 horsepower and 410 lb/ft of torque to the table. Compare that to the Mustang GT’s 480 horsepower and 415 lb/ft of torque, and the F-150 may seem less impressive. The 3,741-pound Mustang GT also bests the F-150 at the weigh-in, but not by as much as you think. The aluminum-bodied F-150 weighs just over 4,000 pounds.
Of course, we aren’t surprised by these numbers. After all, one is a dedicated sports car, while the other is more or less a work truck. We’re not going to compare corner-carving abilities for that same reason. Instead, let’s talk more about what would make these machines appealing as everyday vehicles for an enthusiast.
As for interior appointments, these two are surprisingly even. Both feature massive touchscreens with the latest version of Sync. Both have cloth seats, power windows, and air conditioning. Again, the driving position in a pickup will be much more upright than the Mustang, but you aren’t really getting more goodies for your money going for the Mustang – just a sportier, slightly more dynamic overall package.
Let’s talk about ergonomics and utility. This writer owns both a 2016 F-150 regular cab and a 2021 Mustang, and I’ve had experience road-tripping in both. I will say that when it comes to passenger room, the Mustang gets a nod. That’s only because you can technically fit most adults in the back seat, at least for short trips. Both cabins are cozy and comfortable on long drives, albeit in different ways.
As far as cargo room, the F-150 is the obvious winner. You can get very creative with cargo bars and plastic bins for organization, especially if you have a tonneau cover to keep everything secure and dry. That said, you can fit a shocking amount of stuff in the trunk of a newer Mustang, even without the rear seats folded.
I have a serious addiction to project cars, however, and I can’t imagine life without a truck bed. I’m not sure there’s a good way to fit an engine, transmission, rear end, or spare interior in a Mustang, but it all fits just fine in the truck bed. Oh yeah, the F-150 comes with a trailer hitch, too, which opens up the cargo possibilities even more.
Big Power – With a Warranty
Going back to that sport truck concept, let’s close this out by talking about modifications. Ford Performance doesn’t offer a supercharger kit for the 2024 F-150 yet, but they likely will soon. The kit for the 2021-2023 F-150 includes a Whipple Gen 5X 3.0L supercharger and is good for 700 horsepower and 590 lb/ft of torque.
The best part is the 3-year, 36,000-mile warranty – good peace of mind for a brand-new truck that’s likely financed. The Ford Performance Mustang GT kit uses a Gen 6 Whipple supercharger and ups the ante to 810 horsepower and 615 lb/ft of torque. Both kits cost between nine and ten grand, so cost is more or less a wash.
Of course, for those who don’t want to go whole hog on a $10,000 supercharger kit, there are plenty of options for wheels, lowering kits, intakes, tuners, and cat-back exhausts for both vehicles. It really is juts a matter of taste and personal need. This simply boils down to whether you want a performance vehicle with some utility, or a utility vehicle with some performance.
Of course, we’d rather have the F-150. Sure, there’s some bias there, but for us, we can’t imagine anything better than the utility of a pickup truck combined with the acceleration (and sonorous exhaust note) of a muscle car. You have to admit – with the cheapest Mustang GT costing over five grand more, a single-cab, short-box F-150 is an incredibly compelling option.
With two great Coyote-powered machines like these, though, there really are no bad choices. Which would you pick?
Images: Ford Motor Company
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