The Ford F-150 has always been a popular choice for people looking for a reliable new truck. It’s a preferred full-size truck for everyday driving, but has it held up as a work truck over the years? More and more often, new trucks are given the luxury treatment, since more people are choosing pickups as their everyday vehicles. That’s great, but what about when you just need a work truck? You don’t need all the extra bells and whistles, you just need a truck that will perform well and have enough power. Let’s see how the Ford F-150 holds up minus all of the fancy add-ons.

What happened to the classic work truck?

Over the past decade, more people have been purchasing trucks as their everyday vehicle instead of cars. Because of this, truck manufacturers have transformed the market into almost a luxury market, adding features that were usually only found in expensive sedans. Now, you’ll find touchscreens, heated seats, Bluetooth speaker systems, rearview cameras, and advanced climate control in trucks that were once marketed as “work trucks.”

None of this is to say that it’s a problem having more technology and comfort in your truck – as long as it still holds up to the tasks you need it to do. MotorTrend recently tested a few different trucks to see how they stand up as work trucks, not just as everyday vehicles, including the Ford F-150 XL. The XL is one of the lower models in the F-150 lineup, so it doesn’t have as many amenities as the rest.

The Ford F-150 XL’s performance

The F-150 XL feels more like a work truck than its siblings, with no touch screen and vinyl seats. It rides smooth for the most part but struggles to accelerate on hills. But where it really shines is in its fuel economy, getting 27 miles per gallon on the highway and 22 in the city. That’s great if you also want to use it for your day-to-day driving.

The truck has a 7,656-lb. towing capacity, but according to the test that MotorTrend gave it, it didn’t seem like it held up to that standard. They attached an almost 4,000-lb. trailer to the truck and the engine seemed a bit tired. It took over 13 seconds to get it up to 60 mph, and the brakes didn’t feel confident while towing that big of a load.

With a maxed-out payload, the F-150 XL performed well for the MotorTrend guys, occasionally bouncing a little over dips in the road, but it kept the ride smooth for the most part. The biggest issue here was how the brakes performed with the maxed-out payload. The brakes required a proper stomp on them to work properly, something that you definitely don’t want to happen when you’re out and about.

The bottom line

The Ford F-150 is a tried-and-true work truck, but it may be outperformed by its competitors from other brands. It offers a lot of power and doesn’t waste your money on features like touchscreen controls, but it still has a lot of advanced tech to offer, making it a good truck to use daily, as well.

The brakes are the only possible issue here, but they performed perfectly without a load and Ford is usually known for fixing issues along the way if they are real concerns. It’s possible that they could just take some getting used to! To make sure it’s right for you, get out there and test drive one before you buy, just so you feel comfortable. It’s a great work truck and you won’t be disappointed.