The Platinum pickup truck

Officially, the Ford F-150 has seven trims and the Limited – which isn’t available locally – offers the best combination of power and luxury, although the King Ranch and Platinum aren’t too far behind.

Out of the seven trims, the Philippines only gets two, the Platinum and the Lariat and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that of the two, the former is the top-of-the-line variant.

While both are equally capable and very well appointed, the Platinum does get a leg up over its sibling so to speak.

We take a detailed look at what makes F-150 3.5L V6 EcoBoost 4x4 Platinum AT (automatic transmission) Ford’s best pickup truck in the local market.

The Platinum is 41mm taller than the Lariat, which gives it 23mm more ground clearance. Length (5,890mm), width (2,029mm), and even wheelbase (3,683mm) are the same.

The Platinum comes with a lot more chrome on the exterior, from the grille, sideview mirrors, and door handles, plus it gets a more elaborate headlamp design.

On the body are daytime running lamps, quad-beam LED (light emitting diode) headlamps, LED fog lamps, heated power-adjustable (with memory, turn indicators, and auto-dimming feature) power-folding high-intensity LED security approach lamps sideview mirrors, remote keyless entry system, remote start system, pickup box rail and tailgate moldings, pickup box tie-down hooks, drop-in bedliner, LED taillamps, high-mount stop lamp with cargo lamp, LED trailer hookup light, removable tailgate with key lock, and remote tailgate release.

Exclusive to the Platinum is a tailgate step with tailgate lift assist, front skid plates, power-deployable running boards, and a twin panel moonroof.

Its chassis has vented disc brakes (front and rear), electric power-assisted steering with Normal, Comfort, and Sport modes, gas-pressurized twin-tube front and staggered outboard-mounted rear shock absorbers, and long-spindle double-wishbone coil-over-shock independent front suspension, a 3.31 non-limited slip rear axle, and 20-inch polished aluminum alloy wheels on 275/55 R20 tires.

Under the hood is a 3.5L EcoBoost V6 with auto Start-Stop function. It sends 375hp and 637Nm of torque to a 10-speed automatic transmission with SelectShift which then delivers it to a 4x4 drive layout with electronic shift-on-the-fly transfer case. Fuel tank capacity is 98 liters.

Inside is a 10-way power climate-controlled front bucket seats with memory and Active Motion, and 60:40 split one-touch flip-up (includes folding armrest with cupholder) unique multi-colored leather rear seats.

It has dual zone automatic temperature control, Intelligent Access with Push-Button Start, driver and passenger illuminated vanity mirrors on the sun visor, LED front dome and map lights, an illuminated entry system, power door locks with auto lock feature, power windows with one-touch up and down in front, auto dimming rearview mirrors, power-tilt and telescopic steering wheel column with memory function, leather-wrapped steering wheels with heather function, leather-wrapped center console lid and shift knob, power-adjustable accelerator and brake pedals with memory function, Ice Blue ambient lighting, and eight-inch LCD (liquid crystal display), capacitive touchscreen, SYNC3 with Applink, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, two smart-charging USB ports, a 12V power point, a navigation system with pinch-to-zoom capability, and eight-inch productivity screen in the instrument cluster, and a 10-speaker B&O Sound System by Bang & Olufsen with subwoofer.

Driver-assist technologies are 360-degree camera with split-view display, Active Park Assist, Curve Control, Hill Start Assist, SOS Post-Crash Alert System, Trailer Sway Control, rain-sensing wipers, and a reverse sensing system.

The Ford Co-Pilot 360 comes standard. These include Pre-collision assist with Automatic Emergency Braking, Pedestrian Detection, Forward Collision Warning and Dynamic Brake Support, Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop-and-Go, BLIS (Blind Spot Information System) with Cross-Traffic Alert and Trailer Tow Monitoring, Lane-Keeping System, and auto high-beam headlamps.

For increased safety, it also offers AdvanceTrac with RSC (Roll Stability Control), dual-stage front airbags, front-seat side airbags and Safety Canopy system with side-curtain airbags and rollover sensor, safety belt pretensioner, safety belt energy-management retractors, safety belt usage sensors, driver’s seat position sensors, crash severity sensor, restraint control module, front-passenger sensing system, individual Tire Pressure Monitoring system, SecuriLock Passive Anti-Theft system, ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) with EBD (Electronic Brakeforce Distribution), perimeter alarm, and rear inflatable safety belts.

The F-150 3.5L V6 EcoBoost 4x4 Platinum AT is priced at P2.998 million.

Photos from Ford Philippines