The 2015 F-150 pickup: Redefining 'Ford tough' - Washington Post
And Ford is risking something big here with its aluminum-alloy-bodied 2015 F-150 pickup truck. Ford did not have to mess with it, certainly not in a way that many truck lovers deem critical to its nature. But Ford messed with it — deliberately messed with it, crowning the truck with what the company calls a “military-grade aluminum” body. It goes well with the traditional company truck marketing slogan of “Ford tough. But “military-grade aluminum” is a chancy, high-tech foray into the future — one that promises better fuel and hauling efficiency for all pickup trucks and cleaner air for all communities and businesses that rely on pickups. But the only thing now known for certain is that the use of a “military-grade aluminum” body shaves an estimated 700 pounds from the F-150 pickup truck’s weight. It is a darned good idea but a risky sell in a market traditionally wedded to the notion that pickup truck means “tough” and that “tough” means steel. The naysayers already are forming a chorus, saying that Ford’s aluminum-bodied truck, based on a few “tests” by the Virginia-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, costs 26 percent more to repair than a comparable steel-bodied pickup truck... Source: www.washingtonpost.com
