Ford’s All-new Pickup Has a Long List of Changes

TEXT BY AARON GOLD

In a way, we feel sorry for the engineers at Ford, because there are a lot of neat things about the ’15 F-150: fancy electronics, nifty bed hardware and a fantastic new small-displacement twin-turbo V-6 that does a spot-on imitation of a V-8; yet, all anyone wants to talk about is the fact that the body is made out of aluminum.

To be fair, the aluminum thing is a pretty big deal. Together with other weight-saving measures—around 70 pounds taken out of the frame, for example, thanks to the use of high- strength steel—Ford claims the new F-150 will be up to 700 pounds lighter than the old one. If those numbers turn out to be correct (at the time we went to press, Ford hadn’t released the actual curb weight of the new truck), that means the new F-150 will weigh about the same as an old F-150 with the engine, transmission and tailgate removed.

Trucks are moving to lighter weight construction to save fuel, and this has another key advantage: increased capacity. The F-150’s gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR, the maximum permissible weight of the truck, fuel, passengers and cargo) hasn’t changed, so all of the weight savings can be added to the payload. Depending on configuration, the new F-150 offers up to 3,300 pounds of payload (passengers, cargo and fuel) and can tow up to 12,200 pounds.

Lighter Weight Means Smaller Engines

The lighter weight also allows the use of smaller engines. The entry- level V-6 is now a 283-hp 3.5L engine, which replaces the 302 hp 3.7 in last year’s truck. Ford says performance is unchanged, and fuel economy does increase, though only slightly: EPA estimates of 18 mpg city and 25 mpg highway are a 1- and 2-mpg improvement over last year’s truck.

Newest and most notable is the new 2.7L EcoBoost engine, a twin-turbocharged V-6 rated at 325 hp and 375 lb-ft of torque. It’s designed to play the part of a small V-8, an engine choice that has been missing from the F-Series’ lineup for a while now. We spent most of our time driving an F-150 with this engine, and each time we put the hammer down, we had a hard time believing there were only six cylinders under the hood (let alone six really small cylinders). EPA estimates are 19 mpg city and 26 mpg highway, though with turbocharged gasoline engines, real-world figures can vary greatly from the estimates. We came close, seeing 17-18 mpg in town and 24 on the highway. The 2.7 has an auto-stop feature that shuts down the engine at traffic lights and restarts it when the driver takes his foot off the brake. While this feature certainly reduces pollution and improves city fuel economy, we wonder what the long-term effect on the starter or battery will be.

Ford’s 365-hp 3.5L EcoBoost engine, another twin-turbo V-6, remains the torque master of the engine lineup, offering up to 420 ft- lb. For the purists among you, the 5.0L V-8 returns with 385 hp and 387 lb-ft of torque. We drove both of these engines with heavy trailers attached, and performance was surprisingly similar. Sadly, the 6.2L V-8 is gone for 2015, along with the Raptor in which it was encased.

THE ALUMINUM BODY INTRIGUES US, AND WE’RE CURIOUS TO SEE IF IT WILL BE A HELP OR A HINDRANCE FOR CUSTOM BUILDERS. ”

Traditional Transmission and Suspension

Under the body and behind the flywheel, the F-150 is rather conventional. The six-speed automatic transmission is a carry- over, as are the optional four-wheel-drive systems (full or part time, with electronic mode selection) and choice of four axle ratios (3.15 to 3.73, with availability varying based on engine).

The suspension is decidedly low-tech, with a double-wishbone independent front suspension with coil-over shocks up front and a live axle suspended by leaf springs out back. Ford has staggered the rear shocks for increased stability, but if you were hoping for anything radical—such as coil or air springs, both of which can be found in the latest Ram ½-tons—prepare to be disappointed. We liked the way the F-150 went down the road, though the ride and handling feel just a bit old school compared to the air- sprung Ram. However, because the suspension system is not overly complicated, they can still be easily modified for your desired height. There are already a host of suspension products on the market to help you with this.

Familiar Interior With New Gadgets

The interior has been given a bit of a clean-up; the layout will be familiar to owners of the current-generation F-150, with different shapes and textures, but most of the controls are in the same places. There’s now a big color screen between the gauges on the instrument panel, with a host of display options including a digital speedometer and next-turn directions from the navigation system. Drivers can program their own customized home screen as well.

The F-150 can be had with regular, extended and crew cabs. The extended cab, which Ford calls the SuperCab, features rear-hinged “suicide” back doors with no central B-pillar, which makes for easy access to the back seat. The crew cab (SuperCrew in Ford parlance) has a big back seat and plenty of stretch-out space, perfect for those who use their truck as a family car.

Ford has added a dizzying array of optional content, everything from an around-view monitor, which uses carefully placed cameras to give you a 360-degree bird’s-eye view of the truck when parking, to adaptive cruise control, which detects cars ahead and automatically slows down to match their speed. Old school it isn’t, but we’re pleased to see the latest comfort and convenience features from the car world making their way into pickup trucks.

Good in Bed

It’s hard to improve on the big boxy shape of a pickup bed, but Ford’s engineers devoted a lot of time to improving access. The tailgate is damped so that it won’t slam open, and it now locks and unlocks with the central locking system—a nice anti-theft feature (we hear scrap aluminum prices are on their way up). Ford offers an optional tailgate step that conceals in the tailgate itself when not in use, and F-150s with a 5.5-foot bed can now be had with a folding bed step just ahead of the rear wheel. There are LED lights concealed in the bed walls, and options include a set of ramps that lock into the lip of the tailgate and a system of interlocking brackets and cleats (called BoxLink) that allow easy installation of cargo boxes and dividers.

Choices, Choices, Choices

As always, the F-150 is offered in a dizzying array of combinations, with five trim levels (XL, LXT, Lariat, King Range and Platinum), five wheelbases (122.4 up to 163.7 inches), three cabs, three box lengths (6.5 and 8 feet for Regular and SuperCab trucks, 5.5 or 8 feet on SuperCrews), and an option list long enough to require its own magazine. Pricing starts at $26,615 (including a rather steep $1,195 destination charge) for a regular- cab XL with vinyl floors, while a Platinum SuperCrew 4×4 with all of the options will run you close to $65,000.

Potential for Customization?

The F-150’s aluminum body will present some challenges for the custom scene. Fabrication will be complicated as aluminum is more challenging to weld than steel. In fact, Ford has avoided welding in the F-150’s construction; most of the body is either bonded (a fancy industry term for “glued”) and many of the more complicated shapes are extruded (forced through a die to form their shape). When attaching parts to aluminum, one must be aware of galvanic corrosion, as bolting steel or other dissimilar metals directly to aluminum can result in rust.

On the other hand, the aluminum body’s light weight does offer some serious advantages, chief among them being light weight. A lighter body allows the use of smaller, lighter pneumatic airbags or hydraulics, which can be more easily concealed within the bodywork. Lower weight gives the new F-150 serious performance potential, especially with the 5.0L V-8, which happens to be a close relative of the engine found in the Mustang.

A Milestone for Ford Trucks

Overall, we liked the Ford F-150. It’s a comfortable, quiet truck that offers buyers a lot of choices, from a bare-bones work truck to fully kitted-out family cruiser. The aluminum body intrigues us, and we’re curious to see if it will be a help or a hindrance for custom builders. We can’t honestly say that the Ford F-150 pulls ahead of the radical Ram 1500 or the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra (which have also been updated for 2015). Then again, the Ford F-Series is the best-selling pickup in America, and we don’t expect that to change. ST

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