F-150 Lariat is One Powerful Pickup

The 2007 Ford F-150 Lariat SuperCrew 4x4 pickup offers more power, passenger room and cargo space than pretty much anything this side of a Mack Truck.

Face it, if you can't fit all you that need to tote into a Lariat, it's time to call U-Haul.

On the outside, the $35,465 Lariat SuperCrew looks beefy from the word "go."

A massive grille, standard front tow hooks and wide hood stretch back to big alloy wheels, four full-sized doors and two large side mirrors.

In back, the model offers a large bumper and a rear gate that folds down to add 26 more inches to the pickup's 6.5-foot bed. (There's also a $35,225 SuperCrew that offers a 5.5-foot bed.)

Climb inside the Lariat - and I do mean climb, given that the pickup's cabin is three feet off of the ground - and you'll find plenty of well-appointed space.

Motor Mouth's test model came with optional black leather- trimmed seats ($695) that teamed up nicely with the pickup's black- and-chrome door interiors and dashboard.

I particularly liked the Lariat's metallic air vents, which you can snap completely shut when either the driver or front passenger doesn't want heat or air conditioning.

Both driver and front passenger also enjoy great headroom, legroom and hip- room, with a power adjuster coming standard on the driver's side.

The Lariat's clean dashboard features a big speedometer, tachometer and combination battery/oil gauge, with smaller gauges measuring engine temperature and fuel levels.

A small digital display provides great trip information, like how much longer you can go before running out of gas.

Motor Mouth's test Lariat also came with an optional touchscreen navigation system ($1,995), which also controlled the pickup's standard AM/FM/CD stereo. (My test car added optional Sirius Satellite Radio for $195.)

The touchscreen is a snap to use, while the stereo also comes with about a dozen well-marked buttons and knobs as backups.

The pickup's standard single-zone climate system likewise relies on about a dozen well-marked buttons tied to a separate digital display.

In back, the Lariat offers rear passengers good headroom, legroom and hiproom.

These seats can comfortably accommodate three adults for city trips, or three children for short or long drives. (Grownups might find the space a bit cramped after 30 minutes or so.)

All the way back, the Lariat's mammoth cargo bed provides enough space to carry not just cross-country skis or some bicycles, but TWO upright pianos.

As noted above, this space extends out more than eight feet with the cargo door down - and also measures five feet side to side.

On the road, the Lariat offers about what you'd expect from a mammoth pickup truck: a "high-up" road view and lots of engine power, but decidedly less-than-nimble handling.

The model's 5.4-liter V-8 engine can crank out as much as 300 horsepower, giving the Lariat 9,200 pounds of towing capacity.

Tied to a four-speed automatic transmission and an on-demand rear- wheel-drive/four-wheel-drive system, the pickup offers good but not flawless acceleration.

Motor Mouth found the V-8 a bit sluggish and noisy in challenging situations, like going 0 mph to 60 mph to get on highways. That said, the V-8 always ultimately got up to speed without ever having to rev above 4,200 rpm.

On the downside, the Lariat's fuel efficiency certainly won't win you many friends at the Sierra Club.

The EPA rates the model at 14 mpg/city and 18 mpg/highway, and Motor Mouth logged a combined 13.8 mpg during a week of mixed test drives.

Similarly, parking, cornering or backing up the Lariat - not to mention fitting one in your garage - are all challenging given the pickup's size.

That said, Motor Mouth's test model DID come with an optional $245 backup assistant that beeps if you're about to hit something. The pickup also comes standard with turn signals built into the side mirrors.

As for pricing, the Lariat SuperCrew costs a bit more than its domestic rivals.

The pickup's $35,465 base runs a few thousand dollars above that of the $32,970 Dodge Ram SLT Quad Cab 4WD or $30,405 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 LT1 Extended Cab 4WD.

Of course, large trucks carry big rebates in this era of $3-a- gallon gas.

The Lariat has a $3,000 rebate through July 2, while the Ram 1500 offers up to $6,000 cash back until July 2 and the Silverado $1,500 through July 9.

BOX: Test drive: A look at the 2007 Ford F-150 Lariat SuperCrew 4x4:

** Base price: $35,465

** As tested: $41,965

** Type: four-wheel-drive five-passenger large pickup

** Engine: 5.4-liter, V-8 engine (300 horsepower)

** Transmission: four-speed automatic

** Mileage: 14 mpg/city, 18 mpg/highway

** Built in: United States

(c) 2007 Boston Herald. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.