Stage 3 Motorsports 2012 F150 3.7L 2WD Project Truck

We understand why a 2WD V6 F150 is not tremendously exciting, but the reality is that these trucks are cheap and plentiful. When it comes to doing a budget F150 build the economical combination of 3.7L Duratec V6 and 2WD is a solid choice with more potential than you might imagine. With this truck we're going to show you a couple clever mods that will spice up any bland F150 without emptying out your wallet!

Stock Truck Photos

Here are a couple photos of our F150 in its factory form right off the lot. It's so incredibly stock and so bland that it actually starts to become invisible to the human eye, you may have to squint your eyes to spot it.

STEP 1: Suspension, Wheels & Tires

Don't get distracted by the shiny 6" lift kits and enormous mud terrain tires. Trust us, less is more when it comes to an inexpensive and practical suspension setup. We started by installing a used set of factory FX4 struts and rear blocks from our 2012 FX4 F150 Project Truck to give this F150 a slightly taller, 4x4 stance. On top of that we added an Auto Spring 1.5" Leveling Spacer Kit up front to level out the nose of the truck. Using some factory 4x4 suspension and a spacer kit like this can keep you comfortably under the $500 mark for new suspension on your truck!

Next, we needed to cut the awful factory wheels and tires out of the equation. We bought a used set of 17x9" Raceline Assault Wheels for cheap and wrapped them in 295/70/R17 Nitto Terra Grappler tires. The wheels match up nicely with our blacked out bumpers and the all-terrain Terra Grappler's provide more off-road traction without compromising on ride comfort and road noise!

STEP 2: Appearance & Lighting

While massive steel off-road bumpers are awesome, they're also not cheap and the added weight wouldn't be a benefit to this truck. As an alternative we plasti-dipped the factory front and rear bumpers black for a more aggressive look and bolted on a Smittybilt Light Bar with Baja Designs 8" La Paz off-road lights we had laying around the shop. A simple setup like this can save you thousands of dollars over a set of complete off-road bumpers with lights and you'll still get a rugged look you can be proud of!

STEP 3: Go For a Drive!

With our 2WD budget F150 all built up and looking better than ever all we had left to do was drive it! We headed up to Prescott, Arizona for a little fun and games on the trails. With our 2012 F150 FX4 5.0L Project truck leading the way, we found a few dusty trails and hills around Prescott Valley that made for a great time and allowed us to stretch the legs on our budget truck. Check out the photos below to see how it did!