Aonarch's 2024 F-150 XLT 5.0l Overland Build

[Aonarch]

Hello everyone! I'm starting this thread to document and discuss my new overlanding build.

I've had a couple of dedicated overland rigs in the past. A Lexus GX460, which I absolutely loved and sadly traded in for my Bronco. A Ranger Tremor, which was a cool truck, that I probably should have kept. A Jeep Gladiator, which I spent a ton of money on trying to get it just right, but never could. And now my former Bronco, which I traded in for the F-150. I will miss the Bronco, but the list of cons far outweighed the cool factor.

After doing months of research and going back and forth, back and forth over other trucks, I decided on this F-150. But first, what else was I considering?

• Ram 2500 Power Wagon
  • Poor gas mileage
  • Expensive
  • Worried it was too big for Southeast Trails
  • Comfortable
  • Extremely capable
• F-250 Tremor 7.3l V8
  • Really poor gas mileage
  • Even bigger than the Ram 2500
  • Very capable
  • Comfortable
• Chevy Silverado 1500 Diesel
  • Worried about reliability
  • Impressive fuel economy
  • Not as good of aftermarket, especially when looking at mounting a front winch
  • More expensive than a F-150 out the door
  • ZR2 is too expensive
• Chevy Colorado
  • ZR2 is an absolute bargain. $47-48k OTD
  • Very capable
  • Poor fuel economy for its size
  • Its a midsize, so small bed, small cabin
• Ranger Raptor
  • I still want one
  • Inventory is not readily available at the time of writing this
  • Still a midsize, so a bit small
  • Well priced compared to Tacoma, but the Chevy and Nissans are much cheaper

So what F-150 did I buy?

Well I love discounts. So my only three options that I cared about were:
302A Mid Package for cameras, adaptive cruise, and the seats. The 2024 302a is feature packed, has all of the features that a previous well-equipped Lariat would have.
5.0l V8 for the sound, reliability and ability to install the Ford Performance Supercharger
Then Tow/Haul for the rear locker with 3.73 gears and the trailer brake controller.

I didn't care about FX4, because I'd replace everything that came with that package. The only thing I would get out of it was Rock crawl mode and trail control???

This one came with the Black Appearance Package, which is cool because of the seats and other bits.

I bought it last day of the quarter for a nice discount.

What are my plans?

Immediate:
- Bed rack to mount my RTT (Ordered the Adarac Aluminum Overland Rack plus their additional bars) INSTALLED
- Tonneau cover (Ordered the Adarac Original) INSTALLED
- Skid plates (Ordered the full set of RCI aluminum skids including fuel tank) INSTALLED

Short-term:
- Suspension, not looking at adding a ton of height, I just want excellent ride quality offroad.
Bilstein 6112/5160
Eibach Pro-Truck 2R
Fox 2.0
- Wheels and tires, probably a 34x11, maybe the new KO3s.
I need to research offset and tire size for this platform. I really like the look of the factory wheels, and wouldn't mind keeping them for cost savings.
- Fabtech Offset Intrusion Bars
Only if needed
- Winch bumper
I HAVE A 13TH GEN ROUGH COUNTRY HIDDEN WINCH MOUNT IN MY GARAGE THAT I WILL ATTEMPT TO INSTALL
- Rock sliders

Mid-term:
- ?

Long-term:
- Supercharger (Once I have owned the truck past the honey moon phase and still love it, I will supercharge it)

First pictures when taking delivery.

The previous Bronco in the Badlands.

The day I put it back to stock.

Before the Bronco. I miss my Ranger. It was a great truck.

Sponsored

 

[Ford Motor Company]

Hello everyone! I'm starting this thread to document and discuss my new overlanding build.

I've had a couple of overland dedicated rigs in the past. A Lexus GX460, which I absolutely loved and sadly traded in for my Bronco. A Ranger Tremor, which was a cool truck, that I probably should have kept. A Jeep Gladiator, which I spent a ton of money on trying to get it just right, but never could. And now my former Bronco, which I traded in for the F-150. I will miss the Bronco, but the list of cons far outweighed the cool factor.

After doing months of research and going back and forth, back and forth over other trucks, I decided on this F-150. But first, what else was I considering?

• Ram 2500 Power Wagon
  • Poor gas mileage
  • Expensive
  • Worried it was too big for Southeast Trails
  • Comfortable
  • Extremely capable
• F-250 Tremor 7.3l V8
  • Really poor gas mileage
  • Even bigger than the Ram 2500
  • Very capable
  • Very comfortable
• Chevy Silverado 1500 Diesel
  • Worried about reliability
  • Impressive fuel economy
  • Not as good of aftermarket, especially when looking at mounting a front winch
  • More expensive than a F-150 out the door
  • ZR2 is too expensive
• Chevy Colorado
  • ZR2 is an absolute bargain. $47-48k OTD
  • Very capable
  • Poor fuel economy for its size
  • Its a midsize, so small bed, small cabin
• Ranger Raptor
  • I still want one
  • Inventory is not readily available at the time of writing this
  • Still a midsize, so a bit small
  • Well priced compared to Tacoma, but the Chevy and Nissans are much cheaper

So what F-150 did I buy?

Well I love discounts. So my only three options that I cared about were:
302A Mid Package for cameras, adaptive cruise, and the seats.
5.0l V8 for the sound, reliability and ability to install the Ford Performance Supercharger
Then Tow/Haul for the rear locker with 3.73 gears and the trailer brake controller.

I didn't care about FX4, because I'd replace everything that came with that package. The only thing I would get out of it was Rock crawl mode and trail control???

I bought it last day of the quarter for a nice discount.

What are my plans?

Immediate:
- Bed rack to mount my RTT

Short-term:
- Suspension, not looking at adding a ton of height, I just want excellent ride quality offroad.
- Wheels and tires, probably a 34x11
- Skid plates
- Winch bumper
- Rock sliders

Mid-term:

Long-term:
- Supercharger

First pictures when taking delivery.

The previous Bronco in the Badlands.

The day I put it back to stock.

Congrats on the new ride, we can't wait to see your build progress!

 

[Aonarch]

Repurposing this post as an ongoing list tracking my build.

Build List:

• Agri-Coverc Adarac Aluminum Pro Overland Bed Rack with support bars and accessory bars
• Agri -Cover Access Original Roll Up Tonneau Cover
• Husky Liners rear liners, mudflaps, and floor mats
• Volant Performance Intake with Donaldson PowerCore Filter
• Cobb Tuning Snorkel Support Bracket with trimmed cowl cover
• RCI Aluminum Skid Plates front to rear
• Spicer Rear Differential Cover with Lube Locker Gasket
• Gorilla Black Lug Nuts
• Rough County Hidden Winch Mount with Warn Zeon 10-S
• Ford Performance Fender Side Vents
• Ford Performance Door Sills
• Cravenspeed Stubby Antenna
• DIY Portable Battery and Fridge Mount (Not in use ATM)
• Bluetti AC70
• Iceco JP50 with Iceco Slide (Not in use ATM)
• Inspired Overland Standard RTT
• OVS 270 LTE Awning
• Built Right Bed Molle Panels
• Built Right Rear Seat Release
• Built Right Rear Seat Storage Panel
• Spigen Screen Protector for Infotainment
• x5 Rotopax mounts
• H8 Battery Cover and Interstate H8 Battery (900 CCA)
• Raptor Side Steps
• Eibach Pro Truck Stage 2R Suspension
• SPC 86252 HD Camber/ Caster Bolt Kit
• Falken Wildpeak AT4W LT285/70R18

 

[jasonkosi]

View attachment 127226

Ordered the ADARAC aluminum overland combo rack and their tonneau cover.

View attachment 127227

Ignore the Tundra, but this is the rack.

Picking a rack was annoying, and I am sure there was a better option. I chose this one because it works seamlessly with their Tonneau cover.

Is that rack the clamp on style or does it attach via the stake pockets in the bed? I’ve been looking at racks but can’t seem to find many that utilize the stake pockets or work with my existing hard folding tonneau cover.

 

[Aonarch]

Is that rack the clamp on style or does it attach via the stake pockets in the bed? I’ve been looking at racks but can’t seem to find many that utilize the stake pockets or work with my existing hard folding tonneau cover.

Stake pockets.

 

[Aonarch]

RCI Skid Plates ordered!

I went with full aluminum to keep the weight down.

I added the fuel skid too, since my truck has nothing, which scares the hell out of me.

 

[Hotshot Offroad]

Enjoy the build! These are a load of fun to build on. And we quite love our overland build we have too. Be sure to keep us all posted and if you ever need some parts, keep us in mind. We carry just about everything and are always happy to try and help answer questions you may have or just get you loaded up with what you need. Enjoy!!

 

[crazywayne311]

Welcome to the forum. nice to see someone else from vortex over here haha

Looking forward to seeing your build.

 

[Aonarch]

Welcome to the forum. nice to see someone else from vortex over here haha

Looking forward to seeing your build.

I'm still loyal to The Car Lounge. This is my daily.

 

[crazywayne311]

@Aonarch I recognized the name and then Keanu hahaha

Yeah the V60 is a nice ride. I dont post often anymore over on vortex. I traded my 2021 A4 (A45 S-Line Premium Plus) for my 22 F150. The mrs has an Atlas Cross Sport but wont let me mess with it haha

Ive posted my truck on the car lounge a while ago but thats about it.

 

[rashdom]

what is a overland build mean?

 

[Aonarch]

I ordered a bunch of stuff:

• RC Hidden Winch Mount from the <2020 MY, apparently I can just redrill the mounting holes and it works
• Warn connector extension with bracket, for clean mounting solution
• Ford Performance side vents in black
• Ford Performance door sills
• Spicer rear diff cover with Lube Locker gasket
• Husky floor liners (Shocked the truck didn't come with any)
• Husky sunshade
• Cravenspeed stubby antenna

 

[Aonarch]

A bunch of stuff showed up just in time for the weekend.

 

[Aonarch]

Why does Ford hide the front stake pockets??? Don't worry, I cleaned this up right after taking the picture. The best way I did this, was to make smaller cuts and look in, to see exactly where the metal is.

Drilling the holes to mount the "Overlanding" accessory bars. You get to chose how high or low you want to mount them. They provide a drilling template so you don't mis-drill.

Rack and tonneau cover are on.

However, I realized that I have the uprights spread out too far apart for my RTT.

Edit: ordered support bars for the rack. They run horizontal and will let me cleanly mount my RTT.

 

[Aonarch]

Full day today.

Changed out the oil for break-in with Amsoil Signature.

Installed RCI Aluminum skid plates for engine, transmission and transfer case.

I also have the fuel tank skid, but I've got about 34 gallons of gas right now, so will wait until I'm near empty.

The skids were straightforward except for the front one. The instructions weren't clear and the picture didn't match my truck, so I was very confused, but I figured it out.

I was shocked to see that I have the active air dam up front. I'm hoping the skid won't interfere. It looks ok.

I also cut out the top radiator shroud? If that is what it is called, for hopefully more airflow to the stock intake.

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